DNA Verified: Did people in Sindh demonstrate demanding independence from Pakistan?

A video showing a public protest has gone viral on social media, with users claiming it depicts people in Pakistan demanding independence for "Sindhudesh." However, a fact-check by the Press Trust of India (PTI) reveals that the video is actually from a protest held in February 2025 in Sindh against the construction of six new canals on the Indus River. The claim linking the footage to a separatist movement is false and misleading.

Claim 
A video depicting a protest was recently shared by a Facebook user, ‘Media Prime,’ on May 17. The user claimed that the people are now demanding "Sindhudesh’s independence" in Pakistan. "After Baluchistan, the demand for the separation of Sindhudesh has arisen in Pakistan. Pakistan is bound to be divided into four parts,” read the post’s caption.

Investigation 
The Desk ran the viral video through the InVid verification tool and extracted multiple keyframes. One of these keyframes was reverse-searched using Google Lens, which led the Desk to several social media posts sharing the same video with similar claims. One such post can be found here, and its archived version can be viewed here. On further scanning the search results, the Desk came across a Facebook post dated February 23, 2025, featuring the same video as seen in the social media post. Though no information was available along with the post, it is clear that the video is months old and not recent.

Additionally, as part of the investigation, the Desk ran the keyframes through reverse image search and found an X post dated February 23, 2025. The video in the X post resembled the visuals of the social media post. As per the X post, the protest was staged against constructing canals on the Indus River. “Pakistan is losing its identity! Stop constructing canals from the Indus and let the river flow freely. This is not just JSQM-A’s demand, but also the demand of the entire Sindhi nation!  #NoMoreCanalsOnIndus,” read the post’s caption.

The Desk also noticed a banner in the social media post that read ‘Release Advocate Aamir Umrani’. Below is a screenshot highlighting the same. 

Taking a cue from this, the Desk conducted a customised keyword search on Google to find relevant media reports and came across a report by The Tribune dated February 24, 2025. According to the report, the nationalist parties of Sindh organised protests against building six new canals on the Indus River. Meanwhile, Jeay Sindh Mahaz also blocked the National Highway in Shaheed Benazirabad district, demanding the safe recovery of the lawyer Aamir Ali Umrani, who has allegedly been subjected to enforced disappearance. 

“With vocal expressions of disapproval being reiterated time and again against building six new canals on the Indus River, the nationalist parties of Sindh organised protests and blocked highways in different parts of the province,” read a section of the report. 

Subsequently, the Desk concluded that the video in the social media post showing a protest is from February 2025 against the construction of six new canals on the Indus River in Sindh. It does not show any protest demanding Sindhudesh’s independence.