Fact Check: Railway refutes Ashfaq Ansari's arrest in Delhi stampede case

Social media posts claiming arrest of Ashfaq Ansari in Delhi stampede case have been found to be fake and misleading after a fact check analysis

Claim

Ashfaq Ansari, an Indian Railway Employee, has been arrested in the Delhi Railway Station stampede case.

FACT CHECK

Northern Railway's Chief Public Relations Officer Himanshu Shekhar Upadhyay told BOOM that the claim is false.

In a tragic incident on February 15, 2025, at least 18 pilgrims have died in a stampede triggered by Maha Kumbh rush at Delhi Railway Station.

The Railway Department has formed a 2-member committee to investigate this incident.

Meanwhile, some social media users are claiming that Ashfaq Ansari, a Railway staffer who announced the change of platform of the train at the last moment, has been arrested.

A fact check analysis by BOOM found these claims as false.

Northern Railway's Chief Public Relations Officer (CPRO) Himanshu Shekhar Upadhyay while talking to BOOM said no such arrest has been made.

He also said the matter is under investigation, and as a matter of fact, there has not been any arrest in the case as of now.

Taking to social media platform X, a user who identifies him as Manoj Srivastava, wrote:

"Ashfaq Ansari, who announced the change of platform at the last moment has been arrested. The crowd is not guilty. This railway employee with jihadi mentality is guilty and did this as part of a conspiracy."

Some other users also made similar claims in their social media posts on X and Facebook.

Fact Check Analysis

To check the authenticity of the report, BOOM searched for credible sources. However, it did not find any authentic media report corroborating the claim that railway employee named Ashfaq Ansari has been arrested in connection with the New Delhi Railway Station stampede.

Besides, there is also no mention of anyone's arrest in the stampede case so far in the media report.

After the accident, different statements were made by some concerned officials regarding its cause.

Owing to the seriousness of the matter, the railway formed a committee comprising of two officers of Northern Railway - Narsingh Dev and Pankaj Gangwar, to probe the accident.

The committee is yet to submit its report.

For further confirmation, BOOM contacted Northern Railway Chief Public Relations Officer (CPRO) Himanshu Shekhar Upadhyay.

He categorically said that the viral claim of Ashfaq Ansari being arrested is false.

“No arrest has been made in this case yet. A high-level committee has been formed which is investigating the incident from all angles”, Upadhyay told Boom.

[This story was originally published by BOOM in Hindi language. It has been translated and republished with slight edit by ummid.com as part of the Shakti Collective.]

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