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| - Fact Check: Farmers cutting a deal for protest? No! Video shows negotiation over tractor
India Today found that the viral video shows a negotiation over a tractor in the Talwandi Sabo tractor market in Punjab.
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India Today Fact Check
This video has nothing to do with the ongoing protest. The people seen in the viral video were negotiating over a tractor.
A video of turban-clad men aggressively negotiating a deal and exchanging insults is circulating on various social media platforms. Bundles of cash are prominently seen in the viral video. Those sharing it claimed that these men were farmers engaged in a dispute over fees for participating in the ongoing protest.
One person who shared the video on Facebook wrote: "This video exposes these brokers. There is a debate over the fee for occupying space at the border for a month. The person facing the camera demands Rs 40,000, but the broker offering the money insists that Rs 35,000 for a month is sufficient, considering your farming activities and the labourers working on your behalf. If you only intend to sit here, you'll receive food; if you want alcohol, then accept Rs 35,000. This is their reality. Please repost this widely so that the nation understands the true nature of these individuals. Their objective is not to assist farmers but to undermine Modi's popularity, as they have openly stated."
India Today Fact Check found that the viral video has nothing to do with the ongoing protest. Instead, the people seen in the viral video were negotiating over the price of a tractor.
Our Probe
Reverse searching keyframes from the viral video led us to a higher-quality version of the viral clip, shared by an Instagram account on January 19. The caption in Gurmukhi, loosely translated to English, read: “Look at the tractor deal happening.” It is worth noting that a few tractors could be seen behind the people in the viral clip as well.
In this better-quality version, two people can be seen seated across from each other at a table and scribbling on a piece of paper. The man on the other side could be heard saying, “We had agreed upon 35 thousand.” However, another turban-clad man seated beside him insists on 40 thousand and attempts to leave the negotiations in between. He also can be heard saying, “Look at the tractor as well, it is new.” Some onlookers in the background can be seen laughing as they witness the strange deal.
In January, many shared the video in question on social media, indicating that it showed a tractor deal taking place.
A Google search revealed that there are several mandis in Punjab where such tractor deals take place. The largest of these takes place every Wednesday in Talwandi Sabo, a town in the Bathinda district of Punjab. Further, we also found other videos showing aggressive negotiations taking place at this mandi, like the one seen in the viral clip.
We contacted Vicky Dhillon, a farmer from Punjab’s Mansa district, who often shares such videos of the Talwandi Sabo Mandi on social media. According to him, the man in the black turban was the seller, while the one in the pink turban was a broker. He added that people negotiating at the Mandi are often just as dramatic, which is why their videos go viral. Vicky also told us that the men can be heard discussing various parts of the tractor in the viral clip.
On searching further, we found that the viral clip was originally posted on an Instagram account on January 17 — almost a month before the farmers’ protest began. A comparison between the viral clip and the Instagram post confirms that the caption and the username of the account were cropped out of the viral video.
Where did the deal take place?
This video was also shared by a Facebook channel called Panj Pani TV. We spoke to its owner, Devkaran, who confirmed that this video is indeed from Talwandi Sabo Tractor market in Bathinda. Devkaran stated, "There are three major tractor markets in Punjab: Patiala, Moga, and Bathinda. By listening to the accent in the viral video it is evident that it is from Bathinda. I have also spoken to people from the Talwandi Sabo market, who confirmed that this video is indeed from there."
It is thus clear that an old video of people negotiating over a tractor was falsely associated with the ongoing farmers' protest.
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