A video on the COVID-19 vaccine has sent social media into a tizzy. In the 56-second clip, a man is heard saying that the coronavirus vaccine has a chip in it which will be used for mind control. BJP Uttar Pradesh spokesperson Shalabh Mani Tripathi tweeted the video, alluding that the Muslim man making the claim is Indian. It had been viewed more than 1.3 lakh times at the time of writing. (Archive link)

ये हैं भारत के ‘ मुन्ना भाई वैक्सीन विशेषज्ञों ‘ का इस्लामिक संस्करण, कहते हैं वैक्सीन में चिप लगी है, सबका मिज़ाज क़ाबू कर लेंगे। pic.twitter.com/IgJ4V1o89u

— Shalabh Mani Tripathi (@shalabhmani) January 4, 2021

The man in the video states that the injectable vaccine will be made mandatory. He suggests that it will contain a substance that can be used for mind control. Once the vaccine is administered to an individual, they will no longer have control of their own thoughts. He also states that there will be a microscopic chip in the drug.

BJP national spokesperson RP Singh tweeted this clip and claimed that the man is a member of the Samajwadi Party (SP). He further targetted SP Member of Legislative Council (MLC). (Archive link)

यह मौलाना समाजवादी पार्टी के सदस्य लगते है पार्टी का एक MLC कहता है कि #Coronavirusvaccine आप को नपुंसक बना देगी, मौलाना साहिब थोड़ा और आगे बढ़ गए वैक्सीन में चिप की बात करते है। pic.twitter.com/vWIYOvCZXN

— R.P. Singh: ਆਰ ਪੀ ਸਿੰਘ National Spokesperson BJP (@rpsinghkhalsa) January 4, 2021

This video has gone viral on Twitter and Facebook.

Fact-check

Alt News performed a reverse image search of stills from the video and found a report by Pakistani newspaper Siasat dated June 2, 2020. The story contains a link to the full version of the original clip on YouTube. The man in the video is identified as Pakistani religious teacher Kaukab Noorani Okarvi. He is an Islamic scholar, researcher, and writer from Pakistan. Okarvi had made these remarks while addressing people in a Karachi mosque. Furthermore, it is mentioned here that he also accused the doctors of killing COVID-19 patients.

On May 29, 2020, a longer version of this video was uploaded by a YouTube channel called ‘Islamic Lectures Official’.

It was also discussed in an Aaj Tak video story dated December 13, 2020 which identified him as Pakistani.

Therefore, neither this video nor the man is related to India. This clip is part of an address by an Islamic scholar from Pakistan named Kaukab Noorani Okarvi.

This post was originally published on Radio Free.