No, video doesn’t show protesters pulling down Indian flag in Manipur

What is the claim?

A video showing a group of men removing a flag from the roof of a government office and replacing it with another flag has been shared on social media to claim that the Indian tricolor flag was forcefully "discarded" by the Meiteis — Manipur state's majority population. The text on a board on the building seen in the clip indicates that the incident was captured at the deputy commissioner's office in Thoubal in the northeastern state, which has been embroiled in a violent ethnic conflict between the Meitei and Kuki communities since May 2023.

The video was shared with the claim that it shows Meiteis replacing the Indian national flag to hoist a "Meitei secessionist flag" at the office. The overlaid text on the video reads, "Meitei radicals disposing Indian national flag atop a govt. Office & replacing it with Salai Taret, a Meitei Secessionist flag (sic.)" Archived version of such post shared on X can be found here and here.

Screenshot of the posts sharing the viral video. (Source: X/Screenshot)

However, we found that the video doesn't depict the Indian tricolor being pulled down. It shows protesters removing an old Salai Taret flag from the main gate of a government office and replacing it with a new one.

What did we find?

A reverse image search on one of the keyframes led us to an X post (archived here) that carries a screenshot of the viral video and 17-second clip of a man addressing a crowd. The post refuted the viral claim and states that an old, torn Salai Taret flag (a flag representing the seven clans of Meitei people) was removed in order to be replaced with a new one. 

Screenshot of the X post. (Source: X/Screenshot)

At 0:04-mark of the clip the camera tilts up to reveal that the man is standing beneath the same government office seen in the viral video. He can be heard saying in the local Meitei language, "No one would like the Salai Taret flag hoisted like that(Translated)."

Logically Facts was able to access a longer and clearer version of the video, where we noticed that the flag hanging on the roof of the district commissioner's office does not resemble the Indian national flag. It has several colors not seen on the tricolor.

Screenshot of a closer view of the flag. (Source: Accessed by Logically Facts)

We found the incident was also reported by the news website EastMojo on September 9, 2024. According to the report, the incident occurred at the office in Thoubal district, and doesn't show the Indian flag being removed. The report quoted Thoubal Deputy Commissioner A Subhash Singh saying, "It was an old Salai Taret flag taken down by protesting students and replaced with a new one. That flag has since been removed. We don’t usually hoist a flag at the main gate. The tricolour is flown at the main office complex." 

After the video went viral, Manipur Police also refuted the claim as fake on X (archived here). They wrote, "The student protestors tried to replace an old and worn out Salai Taret. Both the flags were removed from the gate after the mob was dispersed by the police."

An Imphal-based reporter told Logically Facts that the incident took place on September 9. According to The Print, scores of protesters, including women and students, gathered outside the heavily guarded Thoubal district commissioner's office on September 9, and vandalized public property demanding the removal of central forces and key officers posted in the state. 

Old visuals of Thoubal district commissioner's office gate

We searched for earlier visuals of the office and found a video report by a local news outlet Imphal Times about a protest on September 27, 2023. At 2:04 timestamp of the video we can see that there is no flag on top of the main gate as seen in now viral video. 

A screenshot of the Imphal Times video report. (Source: YouTube/Imphal Times/Screenshot)

However, another video report by local news outlet Imphal Today (archived here) published on November 29, 2023, shows a similar flag as seen in the viral video hoisted on top of the gate. This suggests that the flag might have been raised between September 27 and November 2023.  

A screenshot of the Imphal Today video report shows a similar flag. (Source: YouTube/Imphal Today/Screenshot)

Fresh violence in Manipur

Renewed escalation of violence in Manipur since September 1, has led to the death of at least 11 people in different parts of the state, The Indian Express reported. The state home department has suspended internet service (archived here) till September 15, and imposed an indefinite curfew in three districts. 

The verdict

Amid the fresh incidents of protests and violence in Manipur, some social media users are sharing a video to falsely claim that Meiteis removed the Indian national flag from a government office. The video actually shows protesters replacing an old Salai Taret flag with a new one.