Many former parliamentarians lost their seats in the recently concluded general election. Many have posted hateful and satirical posts targeting these former MPs. In this background, we came across a misleading video falsely claiming to be an attack on one such former parliamentarian from Jaffna, Douglas Devananda.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Social Media Posts <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n A video is being widely shared online with captions suggesting that it shows Douglas Devananda, a longstanding member of parliament in Sri Lanka, being physically attacked by his followers. The claim asserts that the attack occurred following his recent electoral defeat in the 2024 Sri Lankan general election. <\/p>\n\n\n\n https:\/\/www.awesomescreenshot.com\/video\/33659198?key=f2420348bbbda1865f6690f6caa2e114<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n <\/p>\n\n\n\n Fb<\/a> | Archive<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n This claim was viral among WhatsApp users as well.<\/p>\n\n\n\n <\/p>\n\n\n\n Fact Check <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Verification Steps<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Mainstream Media Check<\/strong>: Our first step was to check if any credible news outlets had reported an incident involving Devananda being attacked after the election. Mainstream media reported no such incident, nor did any verified sources cover an altercation of this nature involving Douglas Devananda after the election.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Police Statement<\/strong>: We also reviewed recent briefings from the Sri Lankan Police spokesperson. No reports or mentions of an attack on Devananda post-election were found, indicating that this story had no recent official acknowledgement.<\/p>\n\n\n\n We also contacted the Jaffna Police Station, who confirmed that no such incident happened during or after the general election.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Video Analysis<\/strong>: We analysed the viral video’s keyframes and keywords, and our findings indicated that this footage is not recent; it actually dates back over 5 months and is unrelated to the recent election.<\/p>\n\n\n\n![\"A](\"https:\/\/lh7-rt.googleusercontent.com\/docsz\/AD_4nXffQ5CifNHZjZwwjx8_wBFYJnINGDXBv-7x6mZxJv12tAHdLZwX48d06yP9Ddved13aJ0rDQBDnmzFnrf0izZzzqKwE_1y2KBdTt7_jov39EwMCbyXSUOOdLtoB7E-8nsd9X0vLojhZl8aHeRMGap0?key=8-iVllAtBgbzGAfrNaNx23YK\")