Did Fazlur Rehman's son raise questions about his father's mental health?

Following a controversial statement by Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam (F) chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman regarding military personnel during a political rally in Kasur, Punjab, on 12 July, a video clip began circulating widely on social media.

The clip claimed that Maulana Fazlur Rehman's son had spoken about his father's mental health and appealed to people not to take his statements seriously.

The claim is false. Maulana Fazlur Rehman's son has made no such statement about his father.

The Claim

On 16 July, an X (formerly Twitter) user shared a 40-second video clip allegedly showing Asad Mahmood, Maulana Fazlur Rehman's son, addressing a press conference.

In the video, Asad Mahmood appears to apologise for his father's remarks. The post's caption claimed that he said:

"My father's mental state is not stable; he wanted to become Pakistan's president, but the reality is that he could not even save his own seat."

At the time of publication, the post had received more than 22,500 views, along with 153 likes and 87 reposts.

Similar claims were also shared on other social media accounts.

Tweet by Khawaja Yaseen Usmani

The Facts

Asad Mahmood did not make any statement regarding his father's mental health. The audio added to the viral video was generated using artificial intelligence (AI).

A reverse image search found that the viral clip was taken from a media talk by Asad Mahmood held in Sahiwal, Punjab, on 30 November 2024.

The same clip can be found in a video posted on the official X account of JUI-F at the 2:10 timestamp.

In the original video, Asad Mahmood was discussing Pakistan's 2024 general elections and allegations of electoral rigging. The footage predates Maulana Fazlur Rehman's recent remarks and contains no reference to his health or mental condition.

The audio of the viral clip was also analysed using Hiya, a deepfake voice detection tool. The tool gave the audio an authenticity score of only 2 out of 100, indicating a strong likelihood that it was artificially generated.

Verdict

The viral audio claiming that Asad Mahmood apologised for his father's remarks, questioned Maulana Fazlur Rehman's mental health, and asked people not to take his statements seriously is AI-generated and false.

The original video does not contain any such comments.