From a military briefing falsely linked to Arunachal Pradesh to a counter-terrorism drill passed off as Chinese soldiers frisking Indian troops, Indians are being targeted with fake news on X. The spurt of such posts comes even as reports emerge of face-offs between Indian and Chinese troops in Arunachal. Is it part of a psyop by Pakistan and China?
Amid reports of face-offs between Indian and Chinese troops at multiple points along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) in Arunachal Pradesh, old videos and misleading visuals and commentary are being circulated on social media, fuelling claims of Chinese incursions and military setbacks for India. The Indian Army’s official fact-checking account on X has been busy busting fake news for the last couple of days.
These misleading posts have emerged against the backdrop of renewed military friction along the LAC, which is not demarcated mutually by India and China, leading to differing perceptions of the boundary.
On October 22, Director General Shatrujeet Kapoor of the Indian-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) said Indian and Chinese troops had faced-off in multiple locations along the LAC since at least July. Reports had emerged that Chinese troops had been denying Indian forces access to key patrolling points along the LAC in the Taksing area.
It is against this backdrop of ongoing tensions that misleading posts have emerged on X. It is not yet known whether these are part of a coordinated disinformation or psychological operation (psyop) directed by Beijing. But given China’s well-developed cognitive warfare capabilities and its history of alleged disinformation campaigns, the posts warrant caution. The Indian Army’s official fact-checking account has called out certain posts as Pakistan-linked.
OLD VIDEOS AND FOOTAGE BEING REPACKAGED
In one prominent post, a digitally altered video falsely attributes remarks to Lt Gen Girish Kalia, claiming China has taken control of Asaphila, Longju and Taksing in Arunachal Pradesh and blocked supplies to Indian troops.
According to an October 25 fact-check by the Indian Army’s official fact-checking account on X, the original footage is from an October 27, 2023, briefing by then Maj Gen Kalia in Kupwara, Jammu and Kashmir, about foiled infiltration attempts and the recovery of weapons and narcotics. He made no such claims about Arunachal Pradesh.
A recently uploaded video claimed to show Chinese soldiers frisking Indian troops in Arunachal Pradesh. India Today’s Fact-Check unit on October 25 established that the footage was actually from Devanahalli, near Bengaluru in Karnataka, where Indian forces had conducted a drill.
The investigation traced a longer version of the clip to a YouTube upload from May 15. A shopkeeper whose establishment appeared in the footage confirmed that he had recorded it in Devanahalli. It depicted an Indian Army drill, not a confrontation with Chinese troops.
The video was subsequently shared with a misleading caption claiming that Chinese soldiers were searching Indian personnel in Arunachal Pradesh and that Indian troops needed Chinese permission to move through Indian territory.
In another instance, Pakistan-linked propaganda accounts circulated a false claim that an Indian Army soldier had been shot in the head by an unknown gunman in Ladakh. According to a October 24 post by the Indian Army’s fact-checking account, “The claim is false. No such incident has taken place. The circulated image appears to show Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) personnel and does not establish the claimed shooting.”
The fact-checking account on October 24 also flagged several Pakistan-linked accounts for using footage of protests held in Arunachal Pradesh on October 23 against the proposed Siang Upper Multipurpose Project. The posts allegedly misrepresented the demonstrations as an “anti-Indian Army uprising”.
IT MINISTRY FLAGS COORDINATED SOCIAL-MEDIA PROPAGANDA
The Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) on October 26, also flagged a coordinated social media campaign falsely claiming that Chinese vehicles had entered Indian territory without authorisation.
A video showing Chinese commercial vehicles near Nathu La Pass in Sikkim, a designated India-China border, was deliberately spun in a series of posts to portray the movement as a Chinese intrusion. The posts also alleged that mainstream Indian media was concealing the incident.
According to the MeitY, the video in question is actually from a trade point where commercial vehicle movement is permitted under established bilateral arrangements. MeitY identified 12 social media handles that shared the content between 8.26 am and 12.56 pm on October 26.
PAK-LINKED PROPAGANDA ACCOUNTS CIRCULATE DOCTORED VIDEO
In another instance, Pakistan-linked propaganda accounts circulated a digitally manipulated video falsely attributing remarks to retired Lt Gen Manoj Kumar Katiyar, former General Officer Commanding-in-Chief of the Army’s Western Command, claiming he had warned that Arunachal Pradesh could become India’s next major military flashpoint.
According to the Indian Army’s fact-check on October 26, the original footage was from a media interaction at Chandimandir in Panchkula on March 30, 2026, on the eve of his retirement, during which he discussed Operation Sindoor, Operation Rahat, operational preparedness and other Western Command initiatives. He made no such statement about Arunachal Pradesh.
The Indian Army’s fact-checking account flagged on October 26 another misleading post that tried to pass off a 2020 video as a Chinese incursion into Arunachal Pradesh.
“A TikTok video of an exercise by Special Operations Forces of Kazakhstan is being circulated across multiple social media platforms with misleading claims that Indian and Chinese troops are facing off in the Taksing region of Arunachal Pradesh, with tensions escalating along the LAC and the Indian Army on high alert,” the Indian Army’s fact-check handle noted.
It added, “The video was originally posted on TikTok on 10 October 2026, and the words AOK-CCO are clearly visible on the web equipment of the soldiers”.
CHINA, PAKISTAN PLAYING A PSYOPS GAME?
The use of old footage to push fresh narratives is hardly new. Misleading clips routinely surface on social media.
But the recent spurt in posts claiming Indian troops have suffered setbacks in Arunachal Pradesh has raised concerns about a possible Chinese or Pakistani psychological operation or psyop. The posts have surfaced amid intermittent face-offs between Indian and Chinese troops along the Line of Actual Control (LAC).
In several of the recent instances, the Indian Army’s fact-check handle has revealed the propagandist handles as those linked to Pakistan.
China’s involvement in psyops is not without precedent. In the aftermath of Operation Sindoor, India’s military response to the Pahalgam terror attack, a US congressional commission alleged that Beijing orchestrated a disinformation campaign to discredit the French-made Rafale fighter jet, Reuters reported.
The US-China Economic and Security Review Commission, a bipartisan body, said Chinese-linked accounts circulated AI-generated images and video-game visuals as supposed wreckage of aircraft destroyed by Chinese weapons supplied to Pakistan. The posts sought to portray the Indian Air Force (IAF) as having lost a Rafale jet during the aerial clashes in Operation Sindoor.
According to the report, the alleged campaign aimed to undermine the Rafale’s reputation among potential buyers. The advanced 4.5-generation fighter is operated by more than 10 countries. India has 36 Rafales in its Air Force, with another 26 ordered for the Navy.
New Delhi has acknowledged losing some aircraft during Operation Sindoor, but has repeatedly denied claims that Pakistan shot down a Rafale. That, however, could not stop such claims from spreading.
Among those who amplified claims about Rafale losses was former French Navy fighter pilot Pierre-Henri Chuet, who is now under formal investigation in France over alleged intelligence activity benefiting China and the disclosure of national defence secrets. Chuet has denied wrongdoing and has been released under judicial supervision. He has not been convicted.
