A false message on WhatsApp claiming ATMs will be closed for 2-3 days has been going viral. The government has fact-checked the claim and found it to be fake. ATMs will continue to operate as usual, it said, urging users to avoid sharing unverified messages amid heightened tensions between India and Pakistan.
“Are ATMs closed? A viral WhatsApp message claims ATMs will be closed for 2-3 days. This Message is Fake. ATMs will continue to operate as usual. Don’t share unverified messages,” said the government.
False news regarding ATMs, from which bank customers can debit money from their accounts at any time, has the potential to spread panic. It may lead to long queues at banks and disrupt their work. Therefore, it is important, users verify such claims directly with the bank before forwarding them.
Pakistan has been flooding the digital space in order to control the narrative war, having been pushed to the backfoot by failed airstrikes and exposed Pakistan Army-terrorist nexus.
India’s Press Information Bureau (PIB) has debunked several claims being spread by Pakistan-based handles. At least eight viral videos and posts were fact-checked by the PIB between 10 pm on May 8 and 6:30 am on May 9.
These included a viral video that claimed a drone attack in Punjab’s Jalandhar, which was found to depict a farm fire and was recorded before any confirmed aerial activity. Another post claimed that an Army post held by “20 Raj Battalion” was destroyed in Pakistani firing. The Indian Army has no such unit, the government clarified.
The false claims included an old video of the 2020 Beirut explosion that some users claimed was Pakistan airstrikes, and rumours of a fidayeen (suicide) attack on an Army brigade in Rajouri with a misleading video.
Tensions escalated between the nuclear-armed neighbours last month after Pakistan-backed terrorism claimed 26 civilian lives in Jammu and Kashmir’s Pahalgam. Follow live updates here
In response, India began Operation Sindoor and struck terror camps deep inside Pakistan and Pakistan Occupied Kashmir (POK), followed by frantic efforts by Pakistan to hide their terror trails.
Left red-faced, Islamabad continued shelling across the Line of Control (LoC) and launched airstrikes at Indian military bases. The Indian Army gave a befitting reply and took down their missiles and drones.
