Pakistan Spreads Fake News About Squadron Leader Shivangi Singh: She Has Not Been Captured

Amid escalating tensions following India’s precise military operation — Operation Sindoor — a wave of misinformation has surfaced from Pakistan-based social media handles. Among the false claims gaining traction was the assertion that a woman Indian Air Force (IAF) pilot had been captured by Pakistani forces. This claim has now been officially debunked by the Press Information Bureau (PIB) Fact Check unit.

"Indian Female Air Force Pilot has not been captured. Pro-Pakistan social media handles claim that an Indian Female Air Force pilot, Squadron Leader Shivangi Singh, has been captured in Pakistan. This claim is FAKE," PIB Fact Check clarified in a post on X (formerly Twitter).

The false claim was widely circulated alongside a misleading image, which was later identified as a photo from an unrelated 2014 IAF incident. The image showed the aftermath of a Sukhoi SU-30MKI crash near Pune-Ahmednagar highway in Maharashtra on October 14, 2014 — not from any recent event or cross-border operation.

This incident is part of a broader disinformation campaign launched after India struck nine known terror launch pads in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK) in response to the recent terror attack in Pahalgam.

A senior Indian official stated,

“Following India’s decisive action under Operation Sindoor, Pakistan has launched a full-scale disinformation offensive — a desperate attempt to control the narrative by spreading lies and confusion.”

He further warned that the objective of such digital propaganda is not only to mislead the public but also to blur the lines between fact and fiction through a coordinated flood of misinformation.

This development also comes on the heels of India advising global actors — including China — to verify facts before amplifying or endorsing unverified claims related to Operation Sindoor.