Fact-Check: Ajit Doval did say ISI recruited more Hindus than Muslims, deepfake claim false
New Delhi: Days after the November 10 terrorist attack near Delhi’s Red Fort that killed at least 13 people and injured many others, a video of National Security Adviser Ajit Doval resurfaced on social media, sparking widespread debate. In the 35-second clip, Doval is heard saying that “more Hindus than Muslims have been recruited for ISI tasks in India.” The video was shared by several users attempting to counter communal narratives that emerged following the blast.
Shortly after the clip went viral, Doval told CNN-News18 that the video was a “deepfake” and insisted he had never made such a statement.
He said the clip was likely created to distort public opinion and target India’s counter-terrorism narrative. Moneycontrol later also published a report echoing his claim.
However, a detailed fact-check by Alt News showed that the viral video was not fake. The organisation conducted a reverse image search of keyframes from the clip and traced it to a 1 hour 17 minute lecture uploaded on YouTube by the Australia India Institute on March 20, 2014. The original lecture was delivered on March 11, 2014 — long before deepfake tools became commonly known or widely used.
At around the 1:04:00 mark of the authentic video, Doval can be heard clearly stating that the number of individuals recruited by Pakistan’s ISI for intelligence tasks in India included “more Hindus than Muslims,” adding that out of more than 4,000 cases since 1947, “probably not even 20 percent would be Muslims.” The fact-check confirms that these remarks were indeed made by Doval over a decade ago.
Alt News also noted that the viral clip circulating now is a short excerpt from a much longer lecture in which Doval repeatedly warns against viewing terrorism through a communal lens. In his full address, he stressed that national security is not a Hindu versus Muslim issue, and pointed out that Indian Muslims have historically opposed terrorism. He referenced the 2012 Ramleela Maidan gathering where 50,000 Maulanas issued a fatwa against global terrorism, and said that casualties of Islamic terrorism globally have overwhelmingly been Muslims themselves. He also noted that top Islamic leaders in India had been on the target list of the Indian Mujahideen.
In the lecture, Doval added that a small violent fringe is often mistaken for the voice of Islam, whereas the majority of Indian Muslims reject violence. He also recalled that Indian Muslims made significant contributions to the freedom movement.
Alt News concluded that the viral video is genuine and not AI-generated, and that NSA Doval’s recent claim calling it a deepfake is incorrect. The fact-check, while confirming the authenticity of the clip, also points out that selective circulation of a short excerpt strips away the broader context of Doval’s full remarks on terrorism, national security and communal harmony.
Fake News by @CNNnews18 claiming Ajit Doval's video is a Deep-Fake. In 2014, NSA Ajit Doval did say ISI recruited more Hindus than Muslims in India. Here is a Fact Check: https://t.co/kuTD1MN8f2 https://t.co/GaF1kMRPnO pic.twitter.com/dVFvChLxy6
— Mohammed Zubair (@zoo_bear) November 17, 2025
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BJP, Opposition in war of words after Constitution Amendment Bill defeat
New Delhi (PTI): The BJP and the Opposition on Saturday engaged in a war of words over the issue of the implementation of women's reservation in legislatures, with Union minister Kiren Rijiju saying the parties which stalled the Constitution Amendment Bill will face the wrath of women.
The Opposition accused the government of delaying implementation by linking it with delimitation and using it to serve its political interests.
While the BJP termed the development a “black day” and accused the Congress and other opposition parties of betraying women, the Congress and its allies asserted that the quota law, passed in 2023, should be implemented immediately and accused the government of playing politics over it.
Parliamentary Affairs Minsiter Kiren Rijiju accused the Congress of being anti-women, and said it will have to face their wrath across the country.
“They will have to face the anger of the women of the country. This is a black stain on the Congress and its allies, one that they will never be able to erase. This Bill was about giving historic representation to women—what objection could there have been?” he told reporters in the Parliament House complex.
"The opposition is celebrating after depriving women of their rights; women of the country will teach them a good lesson," he added.
Union minister Shobha Karandlaje targeted Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi, alleging that the Opposition’s actions had undermined both women’s empowerment and regional representation.
“They have harmed south India as well, where seats could have increased by over 50 per cent. Women were supposed to get reservation, but they have been denied that opportunity. This has been done under the leadership of Rahul Gandhi,” she alleged.
BJP MP Bansuri Swaraj accused the Congress and the INDIA bloc of deceiving women and backtracking on their earlier stand. “They have betrayed the trust of women, and we will take this story of your deception to every citizen,” she said.
Swapna Verma, general Secretary, BJP (Madhya Pradesh) Mahila Morcha, said, “Congress and its INDI alliance have once again exposed their anti-women mindset. Despite the sincere appeal of Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi ji for collective, and non-partisan support, those driven by political obstinacy chose to defeat not just a Bill, but the aspirations of an entire nation.”
Opposition leaders accused the government of delaying implementation and using the issue for political gain in Assembly elections in West Bengal and Tamil Nadu.
Congress MP Shashi Tharoor said the opposition is not against women’s reservation, but has objected to its linkage with delimitation. “We are fully in support of women’s reservation and would have happily passed the Bill on Friday itself. Our objection was not to reservation, but to linking it with delimitation,” he said.
Tharoor said delimitation raises “fundamental questions” about the country’s future and cannot be rushed.
“This is a very important issue for India’s unity and democracy. It requires serious, wide-ranging discussion -- not something to be decided in a two-day session.
Alleging political motives, he added, “This was a political game, not about women. Women were being used to serve short-term political interests. If the government brings a new Bill in the Monsoon Session without linking it to delimitation, we will pass it.”
"There must be a serious discussion involving all parties and states, especially in light of future Census data and the framework for a new delimitation exercise.”
Congress MP K C Venugopal said there is no disagreement on women’s reservation and demanded its immediate implementation.
“Their agenda was to link delimitation with women’s reservation, which has failed. They wanted delimitation according to their convenience, like in Assam and Jammu and Kashmir, by redrawing constituencies. That has failed.
“We demand that, without any delay, the 2023 women’s reservation law be implemented,” he said.
CPI(M) leader John Brittas alleged that the government’s strategy had been exposed in Parliament.
“The dubious and diabolical game plan of the government has fallen flat. They were using women as a shield to mislead the nation. If they have even an iota of sincerity, let them implement one-third reservation based on the present strength of legislatures,” he said.
“The opposition will jointly defeat any ulterior motives and designs of this government,” he added.
Samajwadi Party leader Ram Gopal Yadav questioned the legislative process and alleged political motives. “This historic Bill was already passed in 2023. Why was there a need to bring amendments again? Even after that, the earlier law was notified. So what was the need for discussion and voting?” he asked.
“The whole country knows this was done with elections in West Bengal in mind. When you knew you did not have a two-thirds majority, what was the point of bringing it? This shows there was a political angle, not genuine intent,” he said.
The Constitution Amendment Bill, which sought to operationalise women’s reservation and increase the strength of the Lok Sabha, was defeated in the Lower House on Friday as it failed to secure the required two-thirds majority.
While 298 members voted in favour of the Bill, 230 voted against it. Out of 528 members who voted, the Bill required 352 votes for passage.
According to the Bill, Lok Sabha seats were to be increased to a maximum of 850 from the current 543 to operationalise the women’s reservation law before the 2029 parliamentary polls, following a delimitation exercise based on the 2011 Census. Seats were also to be increased in state and Union Territory assemblies to accommodate 33 per cent reservation for women.
