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This photo is not related to the Delhi Jama Masjid’s dome which got damaged in the recent storm - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
June 3, 2022
A photo is being shared widely on social media with a claim that it shows the dome of Delhi Jama Masjid which has been recently damaged in the storm. Let’s fact-check the claim made in the post.
Claim: Photo of Delhi Jama Masjid’s dome which has been recently damaged in the storm.
Fact: The posted photo is an old one. It shows a dome of Jama Masjid in Bulandshahr which was damaged in 2017. The photo is not related to the Delhi Jama Masjid’s dome which got damaged in the recent storm. Hence the claim made in the post is MISLEADING.
When the photo was run through Google Reverse Image Search, the same photo was found in an article published by ‘Patrika’ in 2017. In the article, it can be read that the photo shows a dome of Jama Masjid in Bulandshahr which was damaged in 2017. Many similar visuals from 2017 can be seen here, here, here, and here. So, it is an old photo that is not related to any recent storm.
However, it is true that the dome of Delhi Jama Masjid got damaged in the recent storm. Some of the actual visuals can be seen here, here, and here.
To sum it up, the posted photo is not related to the Delhi Jama Masjid’s dome which got damaged in the recent storm.


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This photo is of a Swedish replica ship started in 2005, not of a 282-Year-Old East India Company Ship - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
July 28, 2021
A post is being widely shared on social media claiming that a 282-Year-Old East India Trading Company Ship had returned to London. The post even claims that the ship in the photo returned to London for the first time since 1787. Let us fact-check the claim made in the post.
Claim: Photo of a 282-Year-Old East India Trading Company Ship returning to London.
Fact: The photo is of a Swedish Ship named Gotheborg III that sailed along the River Thames, London in 2007. It is a replica ship modelled on the original 18 Century Swedish East India Company Ship, named East Indiaman Gotheborg or Gotheborg I. On 12 September 1745, the Gotheborg I sank when she sailed onto a well-known underwater reef, the Hunnebadan. The Gotheborg III started functioning in 2005 and had set sail to China in the very same year. Hence, the claim made in the post is FALSE.
When reverse image search is done on the photo, the same photo was found in the Stock Photo Website, Shutterstock. The Stock Image was taken by Ray Tang on 19 May 2007. According to the description below the image, the ship is a Swedish Ship named ‘Gotheborg’ sailing down the River Thames in London. ‘The ship (is) a full-scale replica of an 18th Century East India merchantman and is the only ship of its kind in the world.’
Taking a cue that this was a Swedish replica ship, we searched in Google with relevant keywords and found a BBC article published on 19 May 2007. The ship that sailed along the Thames in 2007 was modelled on the original 18 century Swedish East India Company ship, the Gothenburg. The work to recreate this replica began in 2002 and it started sailing in 2005. Another article about the ship visiting London can be seen here. There was an exchange of gun salutes between the replica ‘Gothenburg’ and HMS Belfast in London, videos of which can be seen here and here.
The Swedish East India Company launched the East Indiaman Gotheborg in 1738 named in honour of the city of Gothenburg in Sweden. On 12 September 1745, the ship sank when she sailed onto a well-known underwater reef, the Hunnebadan.
The Replica Ship is called Gotheborg III. It was inspired by the Gotheborg I that sank in 1745, Gotheborg II was built decades later. The Gotheborg III started functioning in 2005 and had set sail to China in the very same year.
To sum it up, this photo is of a Swedish replica ship started in 2005, not of a 282-Year-Old East India Company Ship.

source: news-factly

license: Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

author: Sai Krishna Muthyanolla


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This photo of 30 men standing on Audi’s DKW car has nothing to do with China - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
March 28, 2023
A photo is being shared on social media claiming it to be a picture of China testing the capability of a car in 1993. The photo shows a group of more than 10 men standing on a wooden roof placed on a car. Let’s verify the claim made in the post.
Claim: Photo showing how China tested the capability of a car in 1993.
Fact: The photo was captured while demonstrating the strength of AUDI’s DKW “Front Reichsklasse” Type F7 car in Berlin city in Germany. The photo shows 30 men standing on the roof of the Audi Company’s DKW’s Type F7 car launched in 1937. The photo has nothing to do with China. Hence, the claim made in the post is False.
On reverse image search of the photo shared in the post, the same photo was found published on the ‘Alamy’ website, with the description, “Demonstration of the load capacity of a DKW type “Reichsklasse” F7.” The description of the photo stated that the picture was taken by Sueddeutsche Zeitung on 01 January 1920 in Berlin city in Germany. But a disclaimer is provided below the photo stating, “This image could have imperfections as it’s either historical or reportage. DKW “Reichsklasse” F7, 1937. “Demonstration of the load capacity of a DKW type “”Reichsklasse”” F7.”. Date created: 01/01/1937-31/12/1937”.
The Audi MediaCenter published the same image with the title, “30 men on the roof of a DKW “Front Reichsklasse” Type F7. The photo was taken to demonstrate the strength of the DKW`s wooden coachwork.” Many websites published articles reporting that Audi had launched the DKW F7 version car in 1937. The details of Audi’s DKW cars can be seen here.
To sum it up, this photo of 30 men standing on a car was taken in Germany while testing Audi’s DKW F7 car, and it has nothing to do with China.


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This photo of a beautiful cloud formation over a bridge is a digitally created image - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
July 14, 2021
An image is being shared on social media claiming it as the beautiful cloud formation visuals during the sunset over a bridge. Let’s verify the claim made in the post.
Claim: Image of beautiful cloud formation during the sunset over a bridge.
Fact: The photo shared in the post is a digitally created image. This image is a composition of different images available on the internet. This image was created by the Russia-based photographer, Nick Yuryev. It is not a real image. Hence, the claim made in the post is FALSE.
On reverse image search of the photo shared in the post, a similar photo was found on the ‘Imgur’ image sharing website. This image was described as the ‘Apocalyptic sunset over Moscow’. In the description of the photo, it is mentioned as a digital artwork by Nick Yuryev. Several Facebook users have shared this image by crediting it to Nick Yuryev. They can be seen here and here.
Nick Yuryev, a Russian-based photographer had shared this image on his Instagram handle on 05 April 2016. Nick Yuryev described it as his beautiful artwork of the Krymsky bridge or Crimean bridge located in Moscow city, Russia.
Nick Yuryev had created this image by combining different images available on the internet. The bridge visuals in the image are similar to the Crimean bride located in Moscow. A similar clouds formation image was found on the ‘Reddit’ website eight years ago. Earlier, ‘Snopes’ had also published a fact-check article on this digitally created image.
To sum it up, this photo of a beautiful cloud formation over a bridge is a digitally created image.


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This photo of a benevolent elephant carrying a lion cub with its mother walking by it, is a photoshopped one - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
June 20, 2019
Since 2018,  the image of an ‘Elephant carrying a lion cub with its mother walking by it’ has been widely shared on social media with a beautiful story- “Considered one of the best photos of this century. A lioness and her cub were walking but the heat was excessive and the puppy was in great distress walking. The elephant realized that his cub would die and carried him to a pool of water alongside his mother”. Let’s try to verify the authenticity of the image and also check how real the story described in the post is.
The image of an Elephant carrying a lion cub with its mother walking by it is considered as the best photo of the century.
Fact: The photoshopped image was shared by ‘Kruger Sightings’ on April Fool’s Day in 2018. Later on, the creator of this image, Nadav Ossendryver himself revealed he posted the photo-story as an April Fool’s Joke. Hence, the claim made in the post stands FALSE.
When the image in the post is run through Google Reverse Image Search technique, the photo was found in an article of ‘SA people news’, a South African newspaper. The article enclosed the tweet put by ‘Kruger Sightings’ on April Fool’s Day in 2018 and termed the image of ‘Elephant Carrying Lion Cub’ as a photoshopped one.
As the image went viral within a few hours of its sharing, Nadav Ossendryver, the creator of this image, wrote an article on it with the title “How To Make Your April Fool’s Joke Go Viral!” and put it on his website on April 2, 2018.
From the fact-check article written by ‘Snopes.com’, it was found that the image is created by doing photoshop with three individual images. The picture of the elephant was taken in 2005 at Kruger National Park, South Africa. In the collage below, the original elephant photograph is on the left and the photoshopped image showing the elephant carrying a lion cub is on the right.
The original picture of the lion cub was taken at the ‘Werribee Open Range Zoo’ in Australia.
The picture of the lion(described as the cub’s mother in the story) was found in a blog written by Adam Bannister.
To sum it up, the photo of a benevolent elephant carrying a lion cub with its mother walking by it is a photoshopped one.
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This photo of a gigantic horse claimed to be from 1910 is AI-generated. - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
December 1, 2023
A photo of a huge horse surrounded by four men is being shared on social media with a claim that it was taken in the year 1910. Let’s fact-check this claim through this article.
Claim: This photograph of a giant horse is from 1910.
Fact: This is a photograph generated using Artificial Intelligence (AI).  Hence, the claim made in the post is False.
To learn more about the viral photo, we performed a reverse image search online, leading us to the same photo posted on a Facebook page named Vigour Graphics. This was uploaded on 1 April 2023. This page mentioned that the viral photo was created with AI.
Generally, a standard error in AI-generated photos is that the human hands and legs tend to look distorted and abnormal. In the viral photo, the fingers of the third person standing from the right look abnormally long.
Additionally, we ran this photograph through the “Hive Moderation” tool, which detects AI-generated content. It shows that the viral image is 71.4% likely to be AI-generated.
Furthermore, we looked on the internet for the tallest horses, which revealed that according to the Guinness World Records, “The tallest and heaviest documented horse was the shire gelding Sampson (later renamed Mammoth), bred by Thomas Cleaver of Toddington Mills, Bedfordshire, UK. This horse, foaled 1846, measured 21.2½ hands, 2.19 m (7 ft 2.5 in) in 1850 and was later said to have weighed 1,524 kg (3,359 lb).”
To sum up, an AI-generated photo of a giant horse is being falsely shared as a real photo from the year 1910.

created: December 1, 2023


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This photo of a helicopter carrying a container is not related to India. - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
June 17, 2020
A photo of a helicopter carrying a container is being shared widely on social media with a claim that it shows heavy airlifting of military hardware towards the Line of Actual Control (LAC). It is being shared in the context of recent clashes between the two sides (India and China) at the Galwan Valley in Ladakh. But, FACTLY has found that the photo was taken in 2013 and it is neither related to India nor China. The same photo can found on the ‘U.S. Department of Defense’ website with the following description – ‘A U.S. Army CH-47 Chinook helicopter carries a sling-loaded shipping container during retrograde operations and base closures in the Wardak province of Afghanistan on Oct. 26, 2013. The Chinook is assigned to the 10th Combat Aviation Brigade’. Also, the photo can be found on the ‘Alamy’ website with a similar description.
Sources:
Claim –
1. Facebook post (archived)
Fact –
1. ‘U.S. Department of Defense’ website – https://www.defense.gov/observe/photo-gallery/igphoto/2002032263/
2. ‘Alamy’ website – https://www.alamy.com/us-army-ch-47-chinook-helicopter-carries-a-sling-loaded-shipping-container-image65364003.html
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This photo of a man holding poster regarding the inefficiency of Mumbai Police is photoshopped. - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
August 13, 2020
An image of a man holding a poster regarding the inefficiency of Mumbai Police is being shared widely on social media. The poster reads – ‘सुशांत सिंह हत्या की जाँच वहीं मुंबई पुलिस कर रही है जो 18 साल में ये पता नहीं लगा पाई की उस रात सलमान की गाड़ी कौन चला रहा था II’ (Translation – Sushant Singh’s case is being investigated by the same Mumbai Police who could not find the person who drove Salman’s vehicle that night in 18 years). Let’s fact-check the authenticity of the posted image.
Photo of a man holding the poster questioning the efficiency of Mumbai Police in investigating Sushant Singh Rajput’s death.
Fact: The poster in the photo has been edited. A similar photo with different text (related to CAA and NRC) on the poster is being circulated on the internet at least since December 2019 i.e. much before the death of Sushant Singh Rajput in June 2020. Hence the claim made in the post is FALSE.
When the photo was run through Google Reverse Image Search, many similar images were found in the search results. A similar photo was found being circulated on the internet at least since December 2019 i.e. much before the death of Sushant Singh Rajput in June 2020. The poster in the photo has different text, related to CAA (Citizenship Amendment Act) and NRC (National Register of Citizens). The posts from December 2019 can be found here, here, and here. While the original source of the photo was not found, it can be concluded that it is definitely not related to Sushant Singh Rajput’s death as the photo is an old one and all the previous versions are related CAA and NRC.
To sum it up, this photo of a man holding poster regarding the inefficiency of Mumbai Police is photoshopped.
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This photo of a massive crowd in Islamabad was taken before Imran Khan’s removal as Prime Minister of Pakistan. - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
April 16, 2022
A photo through a post is being widely shared on social media claiming that the picture shows a recent event of a massive crowd gathered in Peshawar in support of Imran Khan. Let us fact-check the claim made in the post.
Claim: Photo of massive crowd in Peshawar, in support of Imran Khan after his removal as PM.
Fact: This photo was taken before Imran Khan’s removal as Pakistan PM. The photo is from a public rally addressed by Imran Khan in Islamabad on 27 March 2022. However, Imran Khan was ousted as the Pakistan’s Prime Minister through a vote of no-confidence in the wee hours of 10 April 2020. Hence, the claim made in the post is MILEADING.
When reverse image search is done on the photo, the same photo was found in a Facebook post published on 27 March 2022. Whereas Imran Khan was ousted as Pakistan’s Prime Minister through a vote of no-confidence in the wee hours of 10 April 2020. Hence, the photo is old, which was taken before Imran Khan’s removal as Prime Minister.
When we searched in google with relevant keywords, an article was found with the same viral photo. The photo is from a public rally addressed by then Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan on 27 March 2022, in Islamabad. That rally was organised as a show of strength after Imran Khan was facing a no-confidence motion in the Parliament.
On 03 April 2022, this motion was blocked, and the National Assembly dissolved. However, the Supreme Court of Pakistan restored the National Assembly on 07 April 2020. And Imran Khan was removed in the wee hours on 10 April 2022 after the opposition voted in favour of the motion.
At Parade Ground Islamabad. Prime Minister @ImranKhanPTI addressed massive and historic Jalsa today.
It’s a war for Pakistan’s sovereignty and we will fight it, PM @ImranKhanPTI!#IamImranKhan #ThankYouPakistan pic.twitter.com/O88qUyAKm1
To sum it up, this photo of a massive crowd was taken before Imran Khan’s removal as Prime Minister of Pakistan.


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This photo of a new 500-rupee note had been morphed with the image of Lord Ram - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
May 27, 2022
A photo through a post is being widely shared on social media claiming that Lord Ram’s image had been printed on India’s new 500-rupee note. Let us fact-check the claim made in the post.
Claim: Image of Lord Ram has been printed on India’s new five hundred rupee note.
Fact: There are no pictures of Lord Ram printed on India’s new 500-rupee notes. If there were new 500-rupee notes with the picture of Lord Ram on it, the Reserve Bank of India would have notified it on the website. There were no such press releases in the RBI website. The latest 500-rupee note printed was the Mahatma Gandhi (New) Series (MGNS) which was introduced way back in 2016. Hence, the claim made in the post is FALSE.
When reverse image search is done on the viral photo, a similar photo of was found in shutter shock, a stock photo website. But the stock photo had the image of Mahatma Gandhi, and not Lord Ram. Everything else in the stock photo is the same, except the image of Mahatma Gandhi right in the middle of the note. Even the series on the stock photo is same as the one in the viral photo. Hence, the photo of Lord Ram was morphed onto the image of Mahatma Gandhi to make it look real.
If there were new 500-rupee notes with the picture of Lord Ram on it, the Reserve Bank of India would have notified it on its website. There were no such press releases in the RBI website. The latest 500-rupee note printed was way back in 2016. The Mahatma Gandhi (New) Series (MGNS) was introduced in the year 2016 when demonetisation was announced by the Prime Minister.
To sum it up, this photo of a new 500-rupee note had been morphed with the image of Lord Ram.


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This photo of a reindeer with glowing antlers is an artwork inspired from Finland - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
September 16, 2021
A photo of a reindeer with brightly glowing antlers is being widely shared through a post claiming that the antlers were painted with reflective paint in Finland. The post even claims that with the paint, the reindeer could be visible from long distances to help motorists avoid road mishaps in Finland. Let us fact-check the claim made in the post.
Claim: Photo of a reindeers’ antlers with reflective paint in Finland.
Fact: The photo is not real, it is an artwork by an Instagram user named, @vasjenkatro. The artist’s rendering was inspired from Finland’s idea of painting reindeers’ antlers, so they are not hit by cars at night. In 2014, the Finnish Reindeer Herders Association started to coat the antlers with reflective paint to prevent frequent accidents involving reindeer. Hence the claim made in the post is MISLEADING.
When reverse image search is done on the photo, an Instagram post with the same image was found. The image was posted 06 February 2021 by a user named, @vasjenkatro, who according to his Instagram profile, is a visual designer. The post reads, ‘This is 3D. It is not real.’ The artist even says that he made the artwork after he saw that in Finland, the reindeers’ antlers are painted so they don’t get hit by cars at night.
There are frequent accidents involving reindeer in Finland because of multiple roads and railways going through the reindeer pasture areas. Therefore, in 2014, the Finnish Reindeer Herders Association started to coat the antlers with reflective paint to prevent traffic accidents. However, the reflective paint campaign wasn’t as successful; other methods like using an app were being tried to prevent animals from dying in car crashes.
One real image of a reindeer shining with fluorescent paint can be seen in this article. But the photo in the post is artwork and is not real.
To sum it up, this photo of a reindeer with glowing antlers is an artwork inspired by Finland, where reindeers’ antlers were painted to prevent accidents at night.

created: September 16, 2021


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This photo of a Satellite-Draped Building is not real - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
July 13, 2023
A photo of a building shrouded in satellite dishes has been making rounds on social media, accompanied by a claim that it is not a digitally edited image. In this article, we will examine the veracity of this claim and present factual information.
Claim: This photo of a building cloaked in satellite dishes is real, not digitally edited.
Fact: This is a digitally manipulated photo created by an artist named Till Nowak. It features an actual building whose height was digitally doubled in post-production, with 3D-modeled satellite dishes added. Hence, the claim made in the post is  False.
A reverse image search using Google led us to multiple articles (here, here, and here) addressing the origins of this viral photo. These sources corroborate that the image in question combines elements of actual photography and digital editing and was crafted by an artist named Till Nowak.
Till Nowak showcased the same image on his website, framebox.com, under the title ‘Dishes`.’ This artwork, created in 2007, involves digitally augmenting the height of a real building captured in a photograph and integrating 3D-rendered models of satellite dishes into the composition.
To sum up, the photo circulating on social media, portraying a building adorned with satellite dishes, is not an authentic depiction but digitally created.


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This photo of a snake trapped in fisherman’s net is from Andhra Pradesh, not Hyderabad - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
October 20, 2020
A photo of a large Python caught in a fisherman’s net is being shared on social media claiming it as the photo of a snake found in Hyderabad. Let’s verify the claim made in the post.
Claim: Photo of a large snake found in Hyderabad.
Fact: This photo shows 15-feet-long python trapped in a fisherman’s net in the Krishna river of Andhra Pradesh. This incident took place on ‘08 October 2020’ at Devarapalli village in Andhra Pradesh. This photo has nothing to do with Hyderabad. Hence, the claim made in the post is FALSE.
On reverse image search, a similar photo was found in an article published by ‘The Times of India’ news website on ‘9 October 2020’. In the article, it is mentioned that a 15-feet-long python was rescued by Vijayawada forest division officials when it was found trapped in a fisherman’s net in the Krishna river of Andhra Pradesh. This incident took place on ‘8 October 2020’ at Devarapalli village in Andhra Pradesh. It is reported in the article that the Vijayawada forest divisional officers rescued the trapped python from the fisherman’s net and released the snake in the reserve forest area of Kothuru Tadepalli region.
Sharing the same photo, ‘The New Indian Express’ news website also published an article on ‘9 October 2020’. In this article also, it is reported that the incident happened in Devarapalli village of Andhra Pradesh.
To sum it up, photo of a snake trapped in fisherman’s net from Andhra Pradesh is shared as that from Hyderabad city of Telangana.

created: October 20, 2020


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This photo of Aam Aadmi Party’s Rajya Sabha MP Raghav Chadha has been edited - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
April 1, 2022
A photo through a post is being widely shared on social media claiming it to be the photo of Raghav Chadha, the Aam Aadmi Party member, and Rajya Sabha MP. Let us fact-check the claim made in the post.
Claim: Photo of AAP’s Rajya Sabha MP Raghav Chadha.
Fact: The photo of Raghav Chadha has been edited and make-up added. The photo of Aam Aadmi Party member and Rajya Sabha MP Raghav Chadha is from the Lakme Fashion Week 2022; he participated for his maternal uncle who is a fashion designer. Hence, the claim made in the post is MISLEADING.
When reverse image search is done on the photo, a similar photo of Raghav Chadha was found in a tweet. According to the tweet, the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leader, Rajya Sabha MP Raghav Chadha was participating in Lakme Fashion Week 2022. Raghav Chadha said, according to his Instagram page, that he dressed for his maternal uncle who is a fashion designer.
Youngest Rajya Sabha MP, The Youth Icon, A Cool Dude @raghav_chadha walking the ramp at Lakme Fashion Week ❣ #LakmeFashionWeek2022 pic.twitter.com/vRM43T3Hhf
When the viral photo is compared with the photo found in the tweet, the viral photo has been edited and make-up was added to it.
To sum it up, this photo of Aam Aadmi Party’s Rajya Sabha MP Raghav Chadha has been edited.


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This photo of an airplane on a solar eclipse day is digital artwork, not a real picture - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
May 26, 2022
An image is being shared on social media claiming it is an amazing solar eclipse picture taken from space. Earlier, a few social media users have shared this image claiming it is a picture taken by a British pilot. Let’s verify the claims made in these posts.
Claim: Photo of an airplane on a solar eclipse day taken from space.
Fact: The image shared in the post is an edited one. This photo was digitally created by combining different images. A version of this image was created by adding the elements furnished by NASA. This photo does not show the real picture of a solar eclipse. Hence, the claim made in the post is FALSE.
On reverse image search of the photo shared in the post, a similar photo without the airplane was found published on the ‘Shutterstock’ website by an art page named ‘muratart’. The description of the image states, “Solar eclipse “Elements of this image furnished by NASA”. ‘muratart’ published multiple similar images visualising different positions of a solar eclipse.
On further search, the photo of airplane and solar eclipse was also found in the ‘muratart’ Shutterstock profile. The description if the photo reads ‘Solar Eclipse and passenger airplane in the clouds”Elements of this image furnished by NASA “.’
The solar eclipse portion of the image was also used to create other images. They can be seen here and here. ‘muratart’ created another version of this image by replacing an asteroid structure in place of the solar eclipse. From all these pieces of evidence, it can be concluded that the image shared in the post is digital artwork.
To sum it up, this photo of an airplane on a solar eclipse day is a digital artwork, not a real picture.


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This photo of BJP leaders is from the recent BJP Parliamentary party meeting in Delhi, not from Goa - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
July 18, 2022
A photo is being shared on social media claiming it is a picture of BJP leaders partying in Goa. This photo shows BJP Telangana leader G. Kishan Reddy posing along with Shandilya Giriraj Singh, Kailash Choudhary and other BJP leaders. Comparing this image with a few other pictures showing TRS party leaders interacting with the flood victims, this post claims it as the difference between the BJP and the TRS when it comes to the concern over the flood victims. Let’s verify the claim made in the post.
Claim: Recent photo of BJP leaders partying in Goa while many parts of the country are reeling in floods.
Fact: The photo shared in the post was captured during the recent BJP Parliamentary party meeting held on 16 July 2022, in New Delhi. The photo does not show BJP leaders in Goa. Hence, the claim made in the post is MISLEADING.
When we searched for this photo using relevant keywords on the internet, we found the same photo on the official Twitter handle of BJP leader and Union Minister G. Kishan Reddy. Kishan Reddy tweeted this photo describing it as a selfie taken with Shandilya Giriraj Singh, Kailash Choudhary, SS Ahluwalia and other prominent BJP leaders during the BJP Parliamentary party meeting held on 16 July 2022, in New Delhi.
With Hon’ble Ministerial & MP colleagues Shri @girirajsinghbjp ji, Shri @KailashBaytu ji, Shri @SSAhluwaliaMP ji at the @BJP4India Parliamentary party meeting in New Delhi. pic.twitter.com/dACSBkIwDN
BJP MP SS Ahluwalia retweeted this tweet by Kishan Reddy. Several other BJP leaders who participated in the BJP Parliamentary Party meeting have also shared the pictures taken by them at the meeting. They can be seen here, here and here. A photo tweeted by BJP MP Pratap Simha shows the same visuals of Shandilya Giriraj Singh and Kailash Choudhary sitting together in the last row of the meeting hall.
Amid the ongoing continuous & heavy rainfall in several parts of Telangana, BJP leaders Bandi Sanjay and Dharmapuri Aravind have also visited rain-affected regions and interacted with the flood victims.
Visited Charlabhutkur village in my Constituency & inquired about problems people were facing due to rains. I request govt to provide all possible support to the people who have been affected due to rains. Urged people to be more careful as it is raining incessantly. pic.twitter.com/00ZTV15vnR
To sum it up, a photo taken during the BJP Parliamentary Party meeting in Delhi is shared as BJP leaders partying in Goa while many parts of the Telangana are reeling under floods.


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This photo of children dressed in Hindu attire and dining on banana leaves was not taken in Germany - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
December 29, 2022
A post sharing a photo of a few children in Hindu attire eating food on banana leaves is being shared on social media, claiming that Hindu culture is being promoted in Germany, and that the picture is from there. Let’s fact-check this post through this article.
Claim: Photo of a few children in Hindu attire eating food on banana leaves in Germany.
Fact: The children in the photo are students of Bhaktivedanta Gurukul in Mayapur, West Bengal. This photo has nothing to do with Germany. So, what is being claimed in the post is FALSE.
A reverse image search of the photo in the post led to a Facebook post that shared the same photo in October 2020. According to the description given in this post, this photo is related to Bhaktivedanta Gurukul in Mayapur, West Bengal.
Based on the Facebook post, we searched the internet about the Gurukul, which led to its official website and Facebook page. Looking carefully at the photos and videos on this Facebook page, one can notice that the children of the Bhakti Vedanta Gurukul are wearing the same clothes as the children in the viral post.
We also performed a keyword search on YouTube and found a tour video of Bhaktivedanta Academy. In this video, it can be seen that the walls in the kitchen are the same as the walls in the viral photo.
BOOM fact-checking agency contacted ISKCON Mayapur Media Communications Head Subroto Das for clarification regarding the photo. He confirmed that the photos are of Bhaktivedanta Gurukul and the students in the photo from the Gurukul. But, they did not mention when those images were taken.
To sum up, this photo of Hindu children eating food on banana leaves was not taken in Germany.

created: December 29, 2022


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This Photo of Dainik Bhaskar’s Hoarding criticizing BJP is morphed - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
July 26, 2021
The photo of hoarding in the name of Dainik Bhaskar is being widely shared through a post on social media. In the photo, it is written ‘Neither Mahant of the Monastery, nor fake saint. Now, only the truth shall prevail, the news in UP will not be suppressed, nor will it stop“. Let us fact-check the claim made in the post.
Claim: Photo of Dainik Bhaskar’s hoarding, criticising BJP.
Fact: This photo was morphed from an image taken from an article published on 04 January 2020. There are no recent news articles of Dainik Bhaskar’s hoarding criticising the BJP. This photo went viral in the light of searches conducted by the IT Department at the offices of Dainik Bhaskar group. Hence, the claim made in the post is FALSE.
When we searched for news articles regarding Dainik Bhaskar’s hoarding criticizing the BJP or any of its leaders, we could not find any. Such Photos of hoardings could not be seen on Dainik Bhaskar’s website, or its Facebook and Twitter account. When the photo is observed closely, one can see a watermark on the bottom left corner. It is read in English as, ‘Yogi Jhootha Hai’. A Facebook account with the very same name ‘Yogi Jhootha Hai’ was found with the same image, which was published on 22 July 2021. However, the post in a satirical tone said “The ‘oppressive government’ tried to suppress the voice of ‘Dainik Bhaskar’, this is what Dainik Bhaskar would want to do.”
When a reverse image search is done on the photo, a similar photo with an identical background was found in an article published by News Nation. The article titled, “Desh Mange Narendra Modi, Dilli Mange Kejriwal’: ‘BJP Member’ puts up hoarding in Delhi” was published on 04 January 2020. This hoarding came up in West Delhi’s Paschim Vihar days before the Delhi Assembly polls in 2020. Upon close observation, one can observe that the image in the article and the photo have an identical background; and that the photo was clearly morphed from this image.
On 22 July 2021, the Income tax department conducted searches at the offices of the Dainik Bhaskar Group across the country. “In a statement, Dainik Bhaskar said the Income Tax searches were the result of its aggressive and fearless journalism on mismanagement during the second COVID-19 wave – it had done a series of stories on deaths during the second wave, and of bodies being dumped along the Ganga,” according to the article.
Following the searches, the Income Tax Department in a statement said, “Cyclical trading and transfer of funds among group companies engaged inunrelated businesses to the tune of Rs. 2200 crore has been found. The enquiries have confirmed that these have been fictitious transactions without any actual movement or delivery of goods. The tax effect and violation of other laws is being examined”.
To sum it up, a morphed photo is being shared as a Dainik Bhaskar’s hoarding criticizing the BJP government.


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This photo of Delhi CM Aravind Kejriwal distributing masks is not related COVID-19 pandemic - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
April 8, 2021
A photo is being shared on social media claiming it as recent visuals of Delhi CM Aravind Kejriwal, Deputy CM Manish Sisodia standing without wearing a mask while teaching a student how to wear a mask. Let’s verify the claim made in the post. This is being shared in the context of increasing COVID-19 cases in the country.
Claim: Recent photo of Delhi CM Aravind Kejriwal standing without wearing a mask while teaching a student how to wear a mask.
Fact: This photo is related to the Delhi Government’s initiative to protect children from air pollution in 2019. In November 2019, Aravind Kejriwal led Delhi Government took the initiative to distribute 50 lakh N95 masks to protect children from air pollution. This photo has nothing to do with COVID-19. Hence, the claim made in the post is FALSE.
On reverse image search of the photo shared in the post, a similar photo is found in an article published on 01 November 2019. In the article, it is reported that Delhi CM Aravind Kejriwal handed out masks to school children as part of the Government’s initiative to protect them from air pollution. The Delhi Government took an initiative to distribute 50 lakh masks to protect children from air pollution in Delhi. As part of this initiative, Aravind Kejriwal reportedly distributed face masks to the children in a Delhi school on 01 November 2019.
On 01 November 2019, Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) shared the same photo on their Twitter handle. In the tweet, it is mentioned that Aravind Kejriwal led Delhi Government has started distributing face masks in Government and Private schools to protect children from air pollution.
"Delhi has turned into a 'gas chamber' due to pollution caused by crop burning in neighbouring states.
This is why we are distributing 50lakh masks from today onwards in pvt. and govt. schools.
I urge all Delhiites to use them whenever needed.”@ArvindKejriwal pic.twitter.com/cMUNpHo4dl
News articles and videos published about this event can be seen here and here. The first COVID-19 case in India was confirmed on 30 January 2020 in Kerala. From all these pieces of evidence, it can be concluded that the photo shared in the post is not related to the ongoing COVID-19 crisis in India.
To sum it up, 2019 photo of Aravind Kejriwal distributing face masks to protect children from air pollution falsely linked to the ongoing COVID-19 crisis in India.


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This photo of Glenn Maxwell touching the feet of Sachin Tendulkar is morphed - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
November 13, 2023
A widely circulated photo on social media shows Australian cricketer Glenn Maxwell touching the feet of Indian cricket legend Sachin Tendulkar. This post alleges that this occurred after Maxwell’s remarkable double century against Afghanistan in the ongoing ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup 2023 cricket match on 7 November 2023. In this article, we fact-check this claim.
Claim: A photo depicting Glenn Maxwell touching Sachin Tendulkar’s feet after his double century against Afghanistan.
Fact: The photo in question is edited, and the original image shows Tendulkar shaking hands with an Afghan cricketer. Therefore, the claim made in the post is False.
We conducted an internet search using relevant keywords to ascertain the viral photo’s authenticity. This search led us to a set of posts (here and here) by the International Cricket Council (ICC) that included a video of Sachin Tendulkar meeting with Afghan cricket players, where he is seen in a similar shirt as in the viral photo. But in regard to the viral claim, we found no photographic or news evidence of Tendulkar meeting with Glenn Maxwell on the cricket field following his double century.
Further investigation revealed a tweet by Tendulkar lauding Maxwell’s performance as the “best ODI knock” he had ever seen but there is mention or evidence of the alleged meeting.
A wonderful knock by @IZadran18 to put Afghanistan in a good position. They started well in the 2nd half and played good cricket for 70 overs but the last 25 overs from @Gmaxi_32 was more than enough to change their fortune.
From Max pressure to Max performance! This has been… pic.twitter.com/M1CBulAgKw
A subsequent search for more images of Tendulkar’s meeting with the Afghan cricket team led us to the original image that was manipulated to create the viral photo.
In the original photo, Tendulkar is seen shaking hands with an Afghan player, and Maxwell is nowhere in the picture.
To sum up, the viral image claiming to show Glenn Maxwell touching Sachin Tendulkar’s feet is an edited version of an original image showing Tendulkar shaking hands with an Afghan cricketer.

created: November 13, 2023


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This photo of Indian soldiers waving Indian flag near Kailash mountain is a photoshopped one - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
September 15, 2020
A photo is being shared on social media with a claim that Indian soldiers captured the Kailash mountain which was occupied by China in 1962. In the photo, Indian soldiers are seen holding Indian Flag in front of the Kailash mountain. Let’s verify the claim made in the post.
Photo of Indian soldiers waving the tri colour Indian flag at Kailash Mountain.
Fact: Photo shared in the post is an edited one. Two unrelated photos are merged to portray as if Indian soldiers are waving the flag in front of the Kailash Mountain in China occupied Tibet. Hence the claim made in the post is FALSE.
On reverse image search, a similar photo of the same group of Indian soldiers waving the tricolour Indian flag was found in ‘DefenceXP’ website. But, the background of the soldiers in this photo is not the same as the one in the post. In the original photo, soldiers are not seen in front of the Kailash Mountain. In the website, photo credits the Indian army. On searching for the complete information about this photo, we found the photo of the same group of soldiers waving the Indian flag in ‘India vs Disinformation’ website. In the description of the photo, it is mentioned that despite the bone-chilling cold, Indian Army hoisted the tricolour at LOC on the occasion of 71st Republic Day. So, it is concluded that the soldiers holding the Indian flag at LOC, not near Kailash mountain. The original photo can also be seen here and here.
While searching for the mountain behind the soldiers in the photo, a similar photo of the mountain was found in a Facebook post of a user. In the post, it is described as the picture of Kailash mountain.
To sum it up, two unrelated pictures are merged to portray Indian soldiers waving the flag in front of Kailash mountain in China occupied Tibet.

created: September 15, 2020


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This photo of Jashodaben holding a placard with statements against Narendra Modi is photoshopped - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
April 27, 2020
A photo of Narendra Modi’s estranged wife Jashodaben holding a placard with statements against him is making rounds on social media. The placard held by Jashodaben has the text in Hindi and its English translation is – ‘When my husband could not become mine, how will he become yours or other Indians… Is this the empowerment of women? – Jashodaben Modi’. FACTLY has found the photo to be photoshopped. In the original photo, Jashodaben holds an RTI copy that she has filed with Mehsana Police seeking details of the security arrangements that she and other family members of the PM are entitled to as per protocol. The contents of the RTI is in Gujarati and its English translation can be read here.
Sources:
Claim – Facebook post (archived)
Fact –
1. News article – https://www.outlookindia.com/photos/people/jashodaben-modi/15715?photo-104574
2. News article – https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-india-30189212
3. News article – https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/Scared-of-her-guards-PM-Narendra-Modis-wife-Jashodaben-files-RTI/articleshow/45265149.cms
4. News video – https://www.ndtv.com/video/news/news/pm-modi-s-estranged-wife-jashodaben-files-rti-on-her-security-346007
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This photo of Joe Biden and Narendra Modi sitting in front of a Mahabharatha wall painting is edited - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
September 13, 2023
A photo of US President Joe Biden and PM Narendra Modi is being widely circulated on social media. In this photo, a Mahabharatha chariot wall painting can be seen behind the two leaders. Let’s fact-check this photo through this article.
Claim: A photo of a meeting between Joe Biden and Modi in a room with a Mahabharatha wall painting.
Fact: The viral photo has been manipulated, and the original version of the image does not feature a Mahabharatha wall painting. Hence, the claim made in the post is False.
Firstly, we performed a reverse image search online to check the claim’s veracity. This led us to a Tweet of PM Narendra Modi, which contained a set of photos, out of which one is identical to the viral photo.
Happy to have welcomed @POTUS @JoeBiden to 7, Lok Kalyan Marg. Our meeting was very productive. We were able to discuss numerous topics which will further economic and people-to-people linkages between India and USA. The friendship between our nations will continue to play a… pic.twitter.com/Yg1tz9kGwQ
These photos were captured during the meeting of US President Joe Biden with PM Modi at 7, Lok Kalyan Marg. The photo, which is identical to the viral photo, is a wider shot in which many other delegates can be seen apart from Biden, Modi, and two other women. The viral photo was created by cropping this photo to which a Mahabharatha chariot wall painting was added.
Check out the following collage to understand this.
A video of PM Modi’s meeting with Joe Biden was also uploaded on the official YouTube channel of PM Modi.
To sum up, this photo of Joe Biden and Narendra Modi sitting in a room with a Mahabharatha wall painting is edited.

created: September 13, 2023


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This photo of Kerala Gold Smuggling case accused Swapna Suresh posing with Pinarayi Vijayan’s family is a morphed one - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
June 14, 2022
An image is being shared on social media claiming it is a picture of Kerala Gold Smuggling Case prime accused Swapna Suresh posing with Kerala CM Pinarayi Vijayan and his family. This post claims that the photo was taken during Pinarayi Vijayan’s daughter’s wedding ceremony. In the wake of Swapna Suresh’s recent allegations on Pinarayi Vijayan and his family’s involvement in the 2020 Kerala Gold Smuggling case, this photo is going viral on social media. Let’s verify the claim made in the post.
Claim: Photo of Swapna Suresh posing with the family of Kerala CM Pinarayi Vijayan.
Fact: The photo shared in the post is a morphed one. This image was created by morphing Kerala politician E. P. Jayarajan’s wife’s face with that of Swapna Suresh. Hence, the claim made in the post is FALSE.
On reverse image search of the photo shared in the post, a similar photo was found in an article published by the ‘News 18’ on 15 June 2020. This article states that the image was taken during Pinarayi Vijayan’s daughter Veena’s wedding ceremony. But in the original group photo, Swapna Suresh was not present along with the Pinarayi Vijayan’s family.
When we searched for further details, we found that the original photo shows Kerala former MLA E. P. Jayarajan and his wife posing with Pinarayi Vijayan’s family. The image shared in the post was created by morphing Jayarajan’s wife PK Indira’s face with that of Swapna Suresh.
Earlier, when a similar edited photo was shared on social media as the picture of Pinarayi Vijayan’s name tattoo on Swapna Suresh’s hand, FACTLY published a fact-check article debunking that claim.
To sum it up, a morphed photo shared as the picture of Swapna Suresh posing with Pinarayi Vijayan’s family.


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This photo of Lionel Messi holding the Palestinian National Flag is an edited one - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
May 25, 2021
An image is being shared on social media claiming it as the picture of Argentina’s star football player, Lionel Messi holding the Palestinian National flag. This post claims that Lionel Messi had taken a pro-Palestine stance amidst the recent conflict between Israel and Palestine. Let’s verify the claim made in the post.
Claim: Photo of Argentina’s football player, Lionel Messi holding the Palestinian National Flag.
Fact: The photo shared in the post is an edited one. The original photo shows Lionel Messi holding the ‘Icons.com’ online shopping website placard. This photo was shot when Lionel Messi launched the official FC Barcelona memorabilia collection exclusively at his partner shopping website, Icons.com. Lionel Messi had not made any statement regarding the recent conflict between Israel and Palestine. Hence, the claim made in the post is FALSE.
On reverse image search of the photo using the appropriate keywords, a similar photo was found posted on the official Facebook handle of Lionel Messi. In the original image, Lionel Messi was holding the ‘Icons.com’ online shopping website placard, not the Palestinian National Flag. This photo was shot when Lionel Messi launched the official FC Barcelona memorabilia collection exclusively at his partner online shopping website, Icons.com. Lionel Messi had reportedly signed ten FC Barcelona framed t-shirts for online sale at the ‘Icons.com’ website.
‘Icons.com’ had shared the same image on their Instagram handle on 11 May 2021. ‘Icons.com’ is Lionel Messi’s official and exclusive world signing partner and licensee. Lionel Messi signed memorabilia collection on the ‘Icons.com’ website can be seen here.
Lionel Messi had not made any statement regarding the recent conflict between Israel and Palestine. From all these, it can be concluded that the photo shared in the post is an edited one.
To sum it up, this photo of Argentina football player Lionel Messi holding the Palestinian National Flag is an edited one.


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This photo of MS Dhoni touching the feet of Sachin Tendulkar is an edited one - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
May 12, 2023
A photo is being shared on social media claiming it is the picture of Mahendra Singh Dhoni touching Sachin Tendulkar’s feet during the Indian Premier League (IPL) match between Chennai Super Kings and Mumbai Indians. Sharing the picture, the post praises the upbringing and the humility of MS Dhoni. Let’s verify the claim made in the post.
Claim: Photo of MS Dhoni touching the feet of Sachin Tendulkar.
Fact: The photo shared in the post is an edited one. The original photo shows Mahendra Singh Dhoni standing beside Sachin Tendulkar and having a cheerful laugh. The photo was taken on 08 April 2023 before the Mumbai Indians vs. Chennai Super Kings match at the Wankhede stadium. Hence, the claim made in the post is False.
On reverse image search of the photo shared in the post, a similar photo was found tweeted by the official Twitter handle of Chennai Super Kings. The original photo tweeted by Chennai Super Kings shows MS Dhoni standing beside Sachin Tendulkar and having a cheerful laugh. BCCI also tweeted the photo on 08 April 2023 saying- “2 Legends. 1 Frame”.
2⃣ Legends. 1⃣ Frame
💙💛#TATAIPL | #MIvCSK | @sachin_rt | @msdhoni pic.twitter.com/9pLrQh4hp6
Several news websites have published articles sharing this photo. A few of those articles can be seen here, here and here. The original photo does not show MS Dhoni bowing his head down and touching the feet of Sachin.
Sachin Tendulkar and MS Dhoni shared a moment before the Mumbai Indians vs Chennai Super Kings match on 08 April 2023. Sachin and Dhoni together inspected the Wankhede pitch before the start of the match. Though we could not find the details of the picture of Dhoni bowing down, from all these pieces of evidence, it can be concluded that the photo shared in the post is an edited and altered image.
To sum it up, this photo of MS Dhoni touching the feet of Sachin Tendulkar is an edited one.


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This Photo of Nigerian people holding ‘Justice for Sushant’ Placards is a morphed one - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
October 22, 2020
A photo of Nigerian people holding ‘Justice for Sushant’ placards is being shared on social media claiming that Nigerian people are protesting in support of justice for Sushant Singh Rajput. Let’s verify the claim made in the post.
Claim: Nigerian people protesting in support of justice for Sushant Singh Rajput.
Fact: Photo shared in the post is the morphed version of the original photo. In the original photo, the Nigerians are seen holding the placards against the Nigerian Special Anti Robbery Squad (SARS). Hence, the claim made in the post is FALSE.
On reverse image search of the photo shared in the post, the original version of the photo was found in an article published by ‘The Conclave NG’ news website on ‘11 October 2020’. In the original photo, these people can be seen holding the ‘Reform Police and Disband SARS’ and ‘SARS Authorized Criminals’ placards. In the article, it is mentioned as a photo taken while they were protesting against the controversial Nigerian special squad ‘SARS’.
On searching for more information using these keywords, the same original photo was found in an article published by ‘CNN’ news channel on ‘13 October 2020’. It is mentioned in the article that the Nigerians and celebrities are protesting against the Special Anti Robbery Squad (SARS) using the hashtag #EndSARS. They took to the streets in mass protests against the controversial police unit which was accused of kidnapping, extortion and harassment.
To sum it up, this photo of Nigerian people holding ‘Justice for Sushant’ placards is a morphed one.

created: October 22, 2020


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This photo of people holding a ‘No to Islamophobia’ poster is from London (UK), not Austria - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
November 4, 2020
In the context of the recent gun attack in Vienna (Austria), a photo showing people holding a poster – ‘No to Islamophobia’ is being shared on social media. In the post, it is being claimed that the photo was taken in Austria. Let’s fact-check the claim made in the post.
Claim: Photo of people holding ‘No to Islamophobia’ poster in Austria.
Fact: The photo in the post was taken in London (UK) in 2017, not in Austria. While there were both pro and anti-refugee rallies in Austria previously, the posted photo is not related to them. Hence the claim made in the post is FALSE.
When the image in the post was run through Google Reverse Image Search, the same photo was found in an article published by ‘Al Jazeera’. In the article, the photo credit is given to ‘Matt Dunham/AP’. So, when we searched using relevant keywords, the same photo was found on the ‘AP Images’ website. On the website, the following description is seen with the image – ‘People hold up a banner during a ‘Unity Vigil’ against racism and Islamophobia in reaction to Wednesday’s attack, backdropped by the gates of Downing Street in London, Friday, March 24, 2017’.
Also, the location in the photo can be seen in the street view of Downing Street in London.
They were both pro and anti-refugee rallies in Austria previously. But the posted photo is not related to them.
To sum it up, the posted photo of people holding a ‘No to Islamophobia’ poster is from London (UK), not Austria.

created: November 4, 2020


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This photo of PM Modi and Smriti Irani is digitally altered - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
April 1, 2024
A photo (here, here and here) currently circulating on social media platforms purports to show Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi being hugged by Smriti Irani. We fact-check this claim through this article.
Claim: The photo shows Smriti Irani hugging PM Narendra Modi.
Fact: The viral photo has been digitally altered. In the original photo, Smriti Irani is seen with her daughter, not PM Modi. Therefore, the claim made about this post is False.
To verify the validity of the viral photo, we performed a reverse image search. This led us to the original photo posted (archived post) by Smriti Irani on her Instagram account in 2017.
In the original photo, Smriti Irani is seen sharing a warm moment with her daughter. The caption accompanying the post reads, ‘#when #yourbabygirl overshoots #you in height and #you can’t help but #smile 😍😘😘😘😘😘😘😘😘😘😘’.
A post shared by Smriti Irani (@smritiiraniofficial)
This clearly indicates that the viral photo of PM Modi and Smriti Irani is a product of digital manipulation.
Additionally, we found that this moped picture has been doing the rounds on the internet for a very long time, and ‘Free Press Journal’ tweeted (archived post) in 2021 that a person Gordhan Nagar, was booked by the police under the IT Act, for posting this morphed picture of Modi and Irani.
Madhya Pradesh: Khachrod police station in #Ujjain district registered case against local resident Gordhan Nagar for posting a #morphed pic of Prime Minister Modi and union minister Smriti Irani under IT Act on Saturday. Post carries inappropriate comment pic.twitter.com/jdNPHglUvn
To sum up, the viral photo claiming to show PM Modi and Smriti Irani in an embrace is a digitally altered version of an original photo of Irani and her daughter.


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This photo of PM Modi & Others with shadows as that of lions is a photoshopped one - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
July 8, 2020
A photo of PM Narendra Modi, Chief of Defence Staff General Bipin Rawat and Army Chief MM Naravane taken during Modi’s recent visit to Ladakh is doing the rounds on social media. The photo has the trio’s shadows on the ground seen as that of lions and the post claims it is not photoshopped and it is a message from nature. Let’s fact-check the claim made in the post.
Photo of PM Narendra Modi, Chief of Defence Staff General Bipin Rawat and Army Chief MM Naravane with shadows as that of lions.
Fact: The photo is photoshopped. In the original photo, the trio have their own shadows on the ground and not the shadows of lions. Hence the claim made in the post is FALSE.
The photo posted has Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Chief of Defence Staff General Bipin Rawat and Army Chief MM Naravane in it. It was taken during Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s recent visit to Ladakh to address the Indian soldiers. The photo can be found in a tweet on the official Twitter account of the Press Information Bureau of India (PIB India). But in the photo, the trio Narendra Modi, Bipin Rawat and Naravane have their own shadows on the ground and not the shadows of lions. So the photo posted is edited using tools like ‘Photoshop’.
To sum it up, the photo of PM Narendra Modi, Chief of Defence Staff General Bipin Rawat and Army Chief MM Naravane having their shadows as that of lions is photoshopped.
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This photo of PM Modi promoting Vestige products is digitally altered. - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
February 19, 2024
Lately, multiple requests have been received on Factly’s WhatsApp tipline to verify the authenticity of a photo of Prime Minister Narendra Modi holding a framed certificate that reads ‘100% Quality Guaranteed.’ We also found similar posts on social media, which show PM Modi promoting the brand Vestige. Let’s fact-check this claim through this article.
Claim: Photo shows PM Modi promoting the products of a brand named ‘Vestige’
Fact: This is a morphed photo. The original version of this photo is available on the ‘pmindia.gov.in’ website, which shows PM Modi holding gold coins at the launch of ‘Sovereign Gold Bond’ scheme in November 2015. Hence, the claim made in the post is False.
To check the veracity of the viral claim, we performed a reverse image search using the internet, leading us to the original version of this photo available on the official website of the Prime Minister of India.
This was posted on 5 November 2015, taken at an event where the PM participated in the launch of the ‘Sovereign Gold Bond’ scheme.
A moment of pride… launch of India Gold Coins, bearing the Ashok Chakra. pic.twitter.com/vlY9bErzaU
This photo also features the late Arun Jaitley and the finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman. You can see that the photo frame that PM Modi is holding does not contain what is seen in the viral image. This was not a promotional event for Vestige. In the original photo, the PM was holding a frame containing gold coins. The following collage shows the difference between the viral edited and original photos.
To sum up, a photo of PM Modi holding gold coins was morphed to look like he is promoting the products of a brand named ‘vestige.’

created: February 19, 2024


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This photo of PM Modi staring inappropriately at Rihanna is morphed - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
June 22, 2023
A photo of PM Narendra Modi that shows him staring inappropriately at singer Rihanna is viral on social media. Let’s find out the facts behind this photo through this article.
Claim: Photo of PM Narendra Modi inappropriately staring at singer Rihanna.
Fact: This is a morphed photo. The picture of Rihanna is from 2017, when she received the Harvard University Humanitarian of the Year award. Narendra Modi was not present at that event. Hence, the claim made in the post is False.
Performing a reverse image search by cropping Rihanna’s portion of this picture led us to a few news articles from 2017 (here and here), revealing that this picture was taken when she was presented with Harvard University’s Humanitarian of the Year award.
Photographer Paul Marotta shot this picture. You can observe that the background of the viral photo and the one in this photo are different. Moreover, none of the news reports on this event mentioned the presence of Narendra Modi. Additional searches on the internet to determine if both of them shared a stage together yielded no news reports validating it. The media would widely cover a meeting between such well-known personalities.
Furthermore, performing a reverse image search on Narendra Modi’s portion of the picture led us to a few Facebook posts from 2020 (here and here), but there was no mention of the occasion or event in which it was taken. A secondary search led us to a news report by The Tribune, which contained a mid-shot of him wearing the kurta seen in the viral photo. This report was from 2019 when he attended a traders’ convention in New Delhi.
In addition to this, we conducted another search to find more photos (here, here, and here) related to this event and found several full shots of him wearing the same dress as seen in the viral photo. Although we could not find the exact same picture, it could most possibly be from this event. You can see the video coverage of this event here.
With this evidence, we can conclude that two pictures shot on different occasions were morphed together to create the viral image.
To sum up, the photo of PM Modi staring inappropriately at Rihanna is morphed.


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This photo of Priyanka Gandhi holding Trishul while offering prayers in a temple is morphed - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
October 21, 2021
An image is being shared on social media claiming it as visuals of Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi holding Trishul while offering prayers in a temple. In the wake of Priyanka Gandhi’s visits to temples in Uttar Pradesh, this post satirically calls Priyanka Gandhi an upcoming Radhe Maa type God-woman in the country. Let’s verify the claim made in the post.
Claim: Photo of Priyanka Gandhi holding Trishul while offering prayers in a temple.
Fact: The photo shared in the post is a morphed one. The original photo does not show Priyanka Gandhi holding a Trishul in her hand. This photo was shot in March 2019, when she offered prayers at the Vindhyavasini temple in Mirzapur, Uttar Pradesh. Hence the claim made in the post is FALSE.
On reverse image search of the photo shared in the post, a similar photo was found in an article published by the ‘INDIA TV’ news website on 19 March 2019.  This article reported it as the visuals of Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi offering prayers at Vindhyavasini temple in Mirzapur, Uttar Pradesh. But the original photo published in the ‘India TV’ article did not show Priyanka Gandhi holding Trishul in her hand.
Reporting Priyanka Gandhi’s 2019  visit to the Vindhyavasini temple in Mirzapur, several other news websites published the same original photo in their articles. They can be seen here and here.
To sum it up, this photo of Priyanka Gandhi holding Trishul while offering prayers in a temple is a morphed one.

created: October 21, 2021


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This photo of Rahul Gandhi wearing a coolie badge with number 420 is morphed - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
September 28, 2023
Recently, a photograph of Congress MP Rahul Gandhi is making the rounds on social media. In the picture, Rahul Gandhi is seen wearing a railway porter’s (coolie) badge with the number 420, often associated with fraudulence in Indian pop culture. This article fact-checks the claim related to the photograph.
Claim: Rahul Gandhi wore a coolie badge with the number 420.
Fact: The original picture from Rahul Gandhi’s Instagram page reveals that he wore a coolie badge with the number 756 and not 420 as claimed. Hence, the claim in the post is False.
A reverse image search was performed on the internet to authenticate the viral picture. The search led to Rahul Gandhi’s official Instagram page, where an identical photo was found.
A post shared by Rahul Gandhi (@rahulgandhi)
However, the number on the badge was clearly 756, not 420, as shown in the viral photo.
Further, to understand more about this incident, we explored the context of this photograph. It was taken when Rahul Gandhi met with railway porters at the Anand Vihar railway station (here and here), New Delhi, on 21 September 2023. He was seen wearing the coolie shirt and badge as a symbol of solidarity with the workers.
To further verify this, we found an interview of the coolie who had tied the badge on Rahul. He confirmed that the badge number was 756.
To sum up, the photograph being shared on social media is a doctored version of the original. Rahul Gandhi did wear a coolie badge, but it carried the number 756, not 420.

created: September 28, 2023


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This photo of Rajnath Singh writing ‘Om’ and ‘Swastik’ on Rafale fighter jet is an edited one - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
September 11, 2020
A photo is being shared on social media with a claim that Defence Minister Rajnath Singh wrote ‘Om’ and ‘Swastik’ symbols on the Rafale fighter jet during the Rafale induction ceremony at Ambala airbase on 10 September 2020. Let’s verify the claim made in the post.
Photo of Defence Minister Rajnath Singh writing ‘Om’ and ‘Swastik’ symbols on Rafale fighter jet in Ambala.
Fact: Photo shared in the post is an edited one. Defence Minister Rajnath Singh wrote ‘Om’ symbol on Rafale fighter jet while doing ‘shastra pooja’ during the Rafale fighter jet handover ceremony at France in 2019. However, in the original photo related to the Rafale Induction ceremony on ‘10 September 2020’, ‘Om’ and ‘Swastik’ were not written on the Rafale fighter jet. Hence the claim made in the post is FALSE.
On reverse image search, a similar photo was found in a tweet posted by ANI news channel on ‘10 September 2020’. In the original photo, there are no symbols of ‘Om’ and ‘Swastik’  on the Rafale fighter Jet. Also, in the edited version of the photo, Rajnath Singh is seen with no legs.
On further research, it is found that the Rajnath Singh photo in the post is taken from his last year’s visit to France. Defence Minister Rajnath Singh did ‘Shastra pooja’ during the Rafale handover ceremony at the Dassault aviation plant in Merignac, France on ‘08 October 2019’. During this ceremony, Rajnath Singh was seen writing ‘Om’ symbol on Rafale fighter jet.
Further, the attire Defence Minister Rajnath Singh wore during the Rafale Induction ceremony at Ambala airbase on ‘10 September 2020’ is different from what is shown in the post.
In a tweet, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh mentioned that ‘Sarva Darma Pooja’ was conducted during the Rafale Induction ceremony at Ambala airbase.
अम्बाला में आज राफेल विमानों  के औपचारिक रूप से भारतीय वायुसेना में शामिल होने पर हुई 'सर्वधर्म पूजा' pic.twitter.com/Csc9pvVOET
To sum it up, an edited photo is being shared with a false claim that Rajnath Singh wrote ‘Om’ and ‘Swastik’ symbols on Rafale fighter jet during the induction ceremony at Ambala airbase.

created: September 11, 2020


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This photo of Russian President Vladimir Putin’s office with the portrait of Ambedkar is morphed - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
December 2, 2021
A photo through a post is being widely shared on social media claiming that Russian President Vladimir Putin hung a photo of Dr. B.R. Ambedkar in his office. Let us fact-check the claim made in the post.
Claim: Photo of Russian President Vladimir Putin’s office with the portrait of Dr. B.R. Ambedkar.
Fact: The photo is morphed from an image where the President usually chairs the security council sessions of Russia. In several other similar images, the portrait seen is the State Seal of the Russian Federation. There are no evidence to conclude that a portrait of Dr. B.R. Ambedkar is hung in Putin’s office, which is the meeting place of the Security Council in the Moscow Kremlin’s Senate building. Hence, the claim made in the post is FALSE.
When reverse image search is done on the photo, a similar image was found in an article on the official website of the President of Russia. The article dated 27 November 2001, is titled, “Vladimir Putin chaired a Security Council session”. According to the caption of the image, the President of Russia was chairing a security council session. There are different articles during different time periods in the same office setting (similar image backgrounds), which can be seen here, here, and here. However, the only major difference in all these images is that there is no portrait of Dr. B.R. Ambedkar.
When the viral image is compared with the similar images found on the official website of the President of Russia, one can see that the image of Dr. B.R. Ambedkar had been digitally added. The viral photo had been morphed. The portrait which is seen in all these images is actually the State Seal of the Russian Federation.
The office seen in the photos is the meeting place of the Security Council in the Moscow Kremlin’s Senate building. In Russia, the security council was formed in 1992 and, the security council office is a separate department of the Presidential executive office; its status within the Presidential Executive Office is that of a directorate. There is no evidence to conclude that a portrait of Dr. B.R. Ambedkar is in this meeting place.
The same picture went viral earlier which was then debunked by multiple organizations here & here.
To sum it up, this photo of Russian President Vladimir Putin’s office with the portrait of Ambedkar is morphed.

created: December 2, 2021


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This photo of Shah Rukh Khan washing his feet in a wash basin is a BTS still of the movie Jab Harry Met Sejal - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
August 11, 2023
A social media post shares a photograph of Bollywood actor Shah Rukh Khan in which he can be seen cleaning his feet; one can see his foot inside a wash basin.  The description of the photo reads, ‘No, this is no uneducated bigoted rustic M from a slum of Bihar or UP or Bangladesh. This is one of the richest stars of the globe, who can buy entire Bandra, Mumbai.’ Let’s check the truthfulness of this post through this article.
Claim: Photo which shows Shah Rukh Khan (SRK) washing his right foot in a wash basin.
Fact: This is a Behind The Scenes (BTS) still of a scene from the 2017 film ‘Jab Harry Met Sejal.’ This scene appears right towards the climax of the film. Hence, the claim made in the post is Misleading.
We ran the viral photo through the Google reverse image search to learn more about it. This search led us to a tweet from 2021 that contained this photo. According to the tweet, which reads ‘…Harry going back to convey his love to Sejal…’ the viral photo is from a movie. A quick Google search with relevant keywords revealed that the movie’s name is Jab Harry Met Sejal, which was released in 2017.
.@iamsrk #ShahRukhKhan. #TB when you were spotted shooting for this scene of the movie JHMS at the Airport / Mumbai.
~Behind the scene :
~The scene :
Harry going back to convey his love to Sejal.
( 17 Feb 2017 ) #SRK♡ pic.twitter.com/F3cUaGenGH
This film is streaming on Netflix, and the still, which is seen in the viral post, appears before the climax of the film. But, the photo in the viral post looked like it was shot from a different angle compared to the one in the scene; we felt this could be a behind-the-scenes photo from the film set and searched the internet to see if such a photo was available.
This led us to a YouTube video uploaded on the official channel of Red Chillies Entertainment. This is a behind the scenes footage of the film Jab Harry Met Sejal; the viral still appears at the 1:15 mark. This evidence proves that the viral post misquotes a BTS still from this movie as an actual photo.
To sum it up, this photo of Shah Rukh Khan washing his feet in a wash basin is a BTS still of the movie Jab Harry Met Sejal.


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This photo of SP leader Azam Khan with a shaved head is an edited one - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
October 25, 2022
A photo of Samajwadi Party (SP) party leader Azam Khan is being shared on social media with a claim that he shaved his head in memory of former UP CM Mulayam Singh Yadav, who passed away recently. Let’s fact-check the claim made in the post.
Claim: Photo of SP leader Azam Khan with a shaved head. He shaved his head in memory of Mulayam Singh Yadav.
Fact: The posted photo is an edited one. In the original photo, Azam Khan is not seen with a shaved head. Also, the photo was taken in June 2022 whereas Mulayam Singh Yadav passed away in October 2022. Hence the claim made in the post is FALSE.
When we searched with keywords on the internet, many news articles with an uncropped version of the photo were found in the search results. The original version of the photo can be found in the ‘Hindustan Times’ article with the title – “‘Get well soon’: Akhilesh Yadav meets ailing Azam Khan in Delhi hospital”. In the original photo, there is hair on Azam Khan’s head. Also, the photo was taken in June 2022 whereas Mulayam Singh Yadav passed away in October 2022.
Various news agencies picked up the photo from Akhilesh Yadav’s tweet. Another photo of Azam Khan from a different angle can be seen in his tweet.
अच्छी सेहत के लिए दुआएँ… आप जल्द अच्छे होकर आएं! pic.twitter.com/dMDDg4WE3P
To sum it up, the photo of SP leader Azam Khan with a shaved head is an edited one.

created: October 25, 2022


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This photo of the detained wrestlers smiling in a police van is digitally altered. - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
May 30, 2023
A photo circulating on social media shows Indian wrestlers, Vinesh and Sangeetha Phogat allegedly smiling after being detained (here and here) from their protest site at Jantar Mantar. This article aims to fact-check the claim surrounding this photo and reveal the truth.
Claim: Photo of wrestlers smiling after being detained at a protest site in Jantar Mantar.
Fact: This photo has been digitally altered. The original photo does not depict the wrestlers smiling. Therefore, the claim made in the post is False.
To investigate the authenticity of the viral photo, we conducted a reverse image search and discovered several similar posts (here and here) across social media platforms. Observations from users’ comments suggested that the photo had been digitally altered using the AI applications like ‘FaceApp’. We also came across a photo uploaded by journalist Mandeep Punia, where the wrestlers were not seen smiling.
विनेश फोगाट को भी दिल्ली पुलिस ने हिरासत में ले लिया है pic.twitter.com/LzsC9vdxhZ
In order to verify the claim of digital alteration, we downloaded the FaceApp application and applied its built-in smile filter. Our findings confirmed that the photo could indeed be manipulated using this app. Additionally, a notable observation is that the wrestlers in the viral photo exhibited a dimple on their right cheek, which contradicts their actual appearance in other verifiable photos available online.
We ran this photo through FaceApp, and it produced similar results. Here’s a video of how to add smile to a photo using FaceApp.
Moreover, Bajrang Punia, an Olympic gold medalist from India, took to Twitter to say that the image fake. He expressed intent to pursue legal action against individuals who shared the manipulated photo.
IT Cell वाले ये झूठी तस्वीर फैला रहे हैं। हम ये साफ़ कर देते हैं की जो भी ये फ़र्ज़ी तस्वीर पोस्ट करेगा उसके ख़िलाफ़ शिकायत दर्ज की जाएगी। #WrestlersProtest pic.twitter.com/a0MngT1kUa
It is worth noting that various other applications offer similar features, enabling the conversion of non-smiling faces to smiling ones. As a demonstration, we applied the same smile filter to a photo of Amitabh Bachchan, yielding similar results.
To sum up, the viral photo depicting detained wrestlers smiling is digitally altered using an AI-based application.


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This photo of the Keoratola Crematorium with an 'I Love Keoratola Mahasashan' sign board is fake - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
April 12, 2023
A photo of a building with a board that reads ‘I Love Keoratola Mahasashan’ is being shared on social media. Keoratola Mahasashan, or Crematorium, is located in Kolkata, which is one of the city’s largest cremation grounds. Let’s fact-check the photo in the post through this article.
Claim: A photo of Keoratola Crematorium with a board that reads ‘ I Love Keoratola Maasashan.‘
Fact: This is an edited image of a photo of the Crematorium from 2011. The original image does not contain a board in front of the building. Hence, the claim made in the post is False.
Performing a keyword search on the internet to check if any board that reads ‘I Love Keoratola Mahasashan’ was installed in front of the Keoratola Crematorium led us to a few news articles that reported (here and here) this image to be fake.
While quoting Mamata Banerjee, the Kolkata Tribune wrote, “News are being spread about the Keoratala crematorium again. I love Keoratala! It didn’t actually happen. This is completely false….I condemn those who make fun of cremation.”
‘In the context of this incident, local councillor Mala Roy himself said that no such work was done in the crematorium,’ News Khabriya reported. Reportedly, the Chief Minister of West Bengal, Mamata Banerjee, felt upset over this photo and asked the Kolkata City Police Commissioner Vineet Kumar Goyal to find about the persons who uploaded this picture on social media. Eventually, the police identified the person responsible for it.
Meanwhile, to know the details of the original photo, we performed a reverse image search on Google using the viral photo. This led us to the original image from 2011, which is available on Wikimedia Commons. The original photo contains no board that reads ‘ I Love Keoratola Mahasashan.’ A 2019 news report published by the Times of India also contained this image which has no signboard.
To sum up, this photo of the Keoratola Crematorium with an ‘ I Love Keoratola Mahasashan’ sign board is fake.


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This photo of the Sri Lankan flag being displayed on Burj Khalifa was not taken after the team’s victory in the 2022 Asia Cup - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
September 12, 2022
A photo is being shared widely on social media with a claim that the Sri Lankan flag was displayed on the Burj Khalifa tower in Dubai after the Sri Lankan cricket team won the Asia Cup on 11 September 2022. Let’s fact-check the claim made in the post.
Claim: Photo shows the Sri Lankan flag being displayed on the Burj Khalifa tower after their cricket team won the 2022 Asia Cup.
Fact: The photo is an old one. It is not related to the 2022 Asia Cup. The picture was taken in 2019 when the Burj Khalifa was lit up with the Sri Lankan flag to show solidarity after the terrorist attacks in Sri Lanka. Also, there are no reports of the Sri Lankan flag being displayed on the Burj Khalifa tower after their cricket team won the 2022 Asia Cup. Hence the claim made in the post is FALSE.
When the photo was run through Google Reverse Image Search, the same photo was found to be posted by a website in 2019. The photo is credited to ‘Giuseppe CACACE / AFP’. So, when searched with keywords, the same photo was on the ‘Getty Images’ website with the following description – “A picture taken on April 25, 2019 shows the Gulf emirate’s Burj Khalifa, the world’s tallest skyscraper, lit with an image of Sri Lanka’s national flag in solidarity with the country following the April 21 “terrorist” attacks against hotels and churches celebrating Easter that killed more than 200 people.” A similar photo was also tweeted by the official Twitter account of Burj Khalifa in April 2019. So, the posted photo is an old one.
برج خليفة يضيء تضامناً مع #سريلانكا. معاً نحو عالم يسوده السلام والتسامح#BurjKhalifa lights up in solidarity with #SriLanka. Here’s to a world built on tolerance and coexistence pic.twitter.com/3U39ztZd4H
Also, there are no reports of the Sri Lankan flag being displayed on the Burj Khalifa tower after their cricket team won the 2022 Asia Cup. The official Twitter account of Burj Khalifa has also not tweeted anything about lighting up the tower with the Sri Lankan flag after the team’s recent victory.
To sum it up, the posted photo of the Sri Lankan flag being displayed on Burj Khalifa was not taken after the team’s victory in the 2022 Asia Cup.

created: September 12, 2022


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This photo of 'The Statue of Unity' with Graffiti is morphed, not authentic - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
November 16, 2022
A post with the image of ‘Statue of Unity’ that has names written on it is being shared on social media. The post description reads, ‘Kon hai ye log … kahaa se aate hai’, which translates to ‘ who are these people, where do they come from,’ lamenting that people are defacing even such monuments. Let’s fact-check this photo through this post.
Claim: Image of the Statue of Unity with Graffiti.
Fact: The original version of this image does not contain any writings on the statue. There are also no media reports of any such incident. Hence the claim made in the post is FALSE.
We searched the internet with relevant keywords to know if news organisations have reported an incident of graffiti on the ‘Statue of Unity.’ The search did not yield any relevant information. Since the Statue of Unity is a famous monument in India, any damage to it would be widely reported. However, no such reports are found.
Further, we performed a reverse image search on the post’s image and found the original image (source:PTI). This image of the ‘Statue of Unity’ does not contain any graffiti. This confirms that the image shared in the viral post is morphed/edited to include graffiti.
To sum up, this photo of the Statue of Unity with graffiti is morphed.

created: November 16, 2022


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This photo of workers climbing on the pole to hoist a flag had been morphed with the flags of BJP, RJD, and Congress - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
June 8, 2022
A photo through a post is being widely shared on social media claiming that dedicated BJP workers were hoisting their flag in Tamil Nadu. Let us fact-check the claim made in the post.
Claim: Photo of dedicated BJP workers hoisting their flag on a pole in Tamil Nadu.
Fact: The photo is morphed from an image shared by Bahujan Samaj Party personnel. According to RS Praveen Kumar, the Chief Coordinator of BSP’s Telangana state unit, the photo shows BSP workers in action in Telangana. The flag part of the viral photo was morphed with the flag of BJP. Hence, the claim made in the post is FALSE.
When reverse image search is done on the photo, a similar photo was found on Twitter. However, the flag on the pole was not the BJP’s flag. The photo was shared by a BSP Telangana member who said that BSP workers had climbed the pole and hoisted the ‘Blue Flag’ (BSP Flag). The photo was also shared by RS Praveen Kumar, the Chief Coordinator of Bahujan Samaj Party’s Telangana state unit.
సంకల్పం గొప్పగా ఉన్నప్పుడు పరికరాలతో పని లేదు.
మా అన్నతమ్ముళ్లే నిచ్చెనగా మారి బహుజనుల గుండెచప్పుడు నీలి జెండాను ఎగురవేశారు.
ఇలాంటి లక్షలాదిమంది యువకులు తెలంగాణలో బహుజన రాజ్య స్థాపన కోసం @RSPraveenSwaero గారి అడుగుజాడల్లో నడుస్తున్నారు.@Mayawati @AnandAkash_BSP @ramjigautambsp pic.twitter.com/gkLh8FnnBz
It can be seen that the flag part of the photo had been morphed with the BJP flag taken from the starpng website which had a freely downloadable image of the BJP flag.
When both the images are compared, it can be seen that the flag part was morphed in the viral photo. We can say that the BJP flag is morphed but we could not independently confirm whether there was a BSP flag there.
To sum it up, this photo of workers climbing on the pole to hoist a flag had been morphed with that of BJP’s.
Update (10 JUNE 2022):
Other similar photos are now being shared with the flags of Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) and the Congress party.
The RJD flag has also been picked from the ‘starpng’ website and edited into the photo. The same flag can be seen on that website. So, the photo with the RJD flag is an edited one.
In their investigation, ‘Vishwas News’ has found that the photo is from Uttar Pradesh and the pole in the photo actually has a BSP flag. The posted photo with the Congress flag is also an edited one. Multiple parties have edited the photo and placed their own party flags.


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This photo of Yogi Adityanath bowing in front of Tipu Sultan is digitally morphed. - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
May 31, 2023
A viral photo circulating on social media shows the chief minister of Uttar Pradesh, Yogi Adityanath, supposedly bowing in front of a portrait of Tipu Sultan. Let’s see the truthfulness of this photo through this fact-check.
Claim: A photo of Yogi Adityanath bowing in front of Tipu Sultan’s Portrait.
Fact: This is a digitally morphed image. In the original photo, Yogi Adityanath is seen paying his respects to Dr. B.R. Ambedkar, not Tipu Sultan. Hence, the claim made in the post is False.
Firstly, we conducted a reverse image search on the viral photo and discovered a similar image posted on Yogi Adityanath’s official verified Facebook page on 29 June 2021. The photo caption indicated the inauguration of a memorial honouring Dr. Bhim Rao Ambedkar.
Digging deeper, we sought to understand the context in which the event captured in the original image took place. Our search revealed that in June 2021, then President of India, Ram Nath Kovind, participated in the foundation stone-laying ceremony for the Dr. Ambedkar Memorial in Lucknow. We also discovered photographs of the then President Kovind paying his respects before Dr. Ambedkar’s portrait—identical to the one featured in the image where Yogi Adityanath bowed to Dr. Ambedkar. News reports on this event can be found here, here, and here.
Additionally, we found a photo of this event from a different angle in which Yogi Adityanath is seen bowing in front of Dr. Ambedkar. All of this proves that the portraits on the stage belong to Dr. Ambedkar and not Tipu Sultan.
By comparing the viral image with the original image, it becomes evident that the viral photo is a cropped version of this, in which the image of Tipu Sultan has been digitally added in place of Dr. Ambedkar’s portrait. This manipulation clearly indicates that the photo is morphed and does not show Yogi Adityanath bowing in front of the portrait of Tipu Sultan.
To sum up, this widely circulated photo depicting Yogi Adityanath bowing in front of Tipu Sultan is digitally morphed.


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This photo of Yogi Adityanath drinking water from a handpump is before he became the CM of UP - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
April 13, 2022
A photo through a post is being widely shared on social media claiming that Yogi Adityanath drinks water from a handpump even after becoming the Chief Minister. Let us fact-check the claim made in the post.
Claim: Photo of Yogi Adityanath drinking water from a handpump after becoming the CM.
Fact: The photo of Yogi Adityanath is available on social media at least since 2016, when he was the MP of Gorakhpur. Yogi Adityanath became the Chief Minister of UP in 2017. Hence, the claim made in the post is MISLEADING.
When reverse image search is done on the photo, the same photo was found in a tweet posted on 24 April 2016. So, the photo is old and not taken after Yogi Adityanath became the CM. Yogi Adityanath became the Chief Minister of UP in 2017. According to the tweet, the photo shows the simplicity of Gorakhpur MP Yogi Adityanath. The photo credit had been given to someone named ‘Hargobind Pravah’. We could not find the person named Hargobind Pravah, online. However, the same photo had been shared on Twitter and Facebook (here and here) at least since 2016.
गोरखपुर के सांसद और भावी मुख्यमंत्री (उप्र) योगी आदित्यनाथ जी, सादगी का एक उदाहरण—-फोटो साभार हरगोविन्द प्रवाह जी pic.twitter.com/tah6qzro8F
When Yogi Adityanath was newly elected as the CM of UP in 2017, one picture went viral on social media where he was served ‘Himalaya’ water when others were given ‘Bisleri’ water in a meeting. ‘Himalaya’ water is costlier than ‘Bisleri’. There were different photos of Yogi Adityanath with bottled water near his seating area in meetings, after he became the CM of UP. Those pictures can be seen here, here, and here.
Factly had written a fact-check article in 2020 when the same image was photoshopped and shared as Yogi Adityanath drinking cow urine.
To sum it up, this photo of Yogi Adityanath drinking water from a handpump is before he became the CM of UP.


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చేతి పంపు కింద నీళ్ళు తాగుతున్న ఈ ఫోటో యోగి ఆదిత్యనాథ్ ముఖ్యమంత్రి కాకముందుది - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
April 18, 2023
ఉత్తరప్రదేశ్ ముఖ్యమంత్రి యోగి ఆదిత్యనాథ్ ఒక చేతి పంపు వద్ద నీళ్ళు తాగుతున్న ఫోటో ఒకటి సోషల్ మీడియాలో విస్తృతంగా షేర్ అవుతోంది. ఎందరో ముఖ్యమంత్రులు బిస్లరీ, హిమాలయా బాటిల్స్ అడిగి దాహం తీర్చుకోవడం మీరు చూసి ఉంటారు కానీ ఇలా చేతి పంపు కింద నీళ్ళు తాగే ముఖ్యమంత్రిని చూసి ఉండరు అంటూ ఈ ఫోటోను షేర్ చేస్తున్నారు. ఈ కథనం ద్వారా ఆ ఫోటోకు సంబంధించి నిజమేంటో చూద్దాం.
క్లెయిమ్: ముఖ్యమంత్రి యోగి ఆదిత్యనాథ్ ఒక చేతి పంపు వద్ద నీళ్ళు తాగుతున్న ఫోటో.
ఫాక్ట్(నిజం): చేతి పంపు వద్ద నీళ్ళు తాగుతున్న ఈ ఫోటో యోగి ఆదిత్యనాథ్ ముఖ్యమంత్రి కాకముందు నుండే ఇంటర్నెట్‌లో అందుబాటులో ఉంది. పైగా యోగి ఆదిత్యనాథ్ హిమాలయ వాటర్ బాటిల్స్ వాడుతున్న చాలా ఫోటోలు సోషల్ మీడియాలో వైరల్ అయ్యాయి. కావున పోస్టు ద్వారా చెప్పేది తప్పుదోవ పట్టించే విధంగా ఉన్నాయి.
యోగి ఆదిత్యనాథ్ చేతి పంపు వద్ద నీళ్ళు తాగుతున్న ఈ ఫోటో ఏ సందర్భంలో తీసిందో తెలియనప్పటికీ, ఈ ఫోటో యోగి ఆదిత్యనాథ్ ఉత్తరప్రదేశ్ ముఖ్యమంత్రి కాకముందు నుండే ఇంటర్నెట్‌లో అందుబాటులో ఉంది.
ఈ ఫోటోను రివర్స్ ఇమేజ్ చేయగా, ఇదే ఫోటోను ఏప్రిల్ 2016లో సోషల్ మీడియాలో షేర్ చేసిన పలు పోస్టులు మాకు కనిపించాయి. ఈ సోషల్ మీడియా పోస్టులను ఇక్కడ, ఇక్కడ మరియు ఇక్కడ చూడొచ్చు.
ఐతే యోగి ఆదిత్యనాథ్ మొదటిసారి ముఖ్యమంత్రిగా ప్రమాణస్వీకారం చేసింది 19 మార్చ్ 2017న. దీన్నిబట్టి, ఈ ఫోటో యోగి ముఖ్యమంత్రిగా ఉన్నప్పుడు తీసింది కాదని స్పష్టంగా అర్ధమవుతుంది.
యోగి ఆదిత్యనాథ్ కూడా హిమాలయ వాటర్ బాటిల్స్ వినియోగించాడు :
2017లో యోగి ఆదిత్యనాథ్ కొత్తగా ముఖ్యమంత్రి అయిన రోజుల్లో యోగి ఆదిత్యనాథ్ హిమాలయ వాటర్ బాటిల్స్ ఉపయోగించిన ఫోటోలు వైరల్ అయ్యాయి. ఒక మీటింగ్‌లో యోగి ముందు హిమాలయ వాటర్ బాటిల్స్, ఇతర అధికారుల ముందు బిస్లేరి బాటిల్స్ ఉన్న ఫోటో ఇక్కడ చూడొచ్చు.
యోగి ఆదిత్యనాథ్ హిమాలయ వాటర్ బాటిల్స్ వినియోగిస్తూ కనిపించే మరికొన్ని ఫోటోలు ఇక్కడ, ఇక్కడ మరియు ఇక్కడ చూడొచ్చు.
దీన్నిబట్టి పోస్టులో చేస్తున్న వాదనకు వ్యతిరేకంగా యోగి ఆదిత్యనాథ్ కూడా బ్రాండెడ్ వాటర్ బాటిల్స్ వాడుతున్నట్టు అర్ధం చేసుకోవచ్చు.
చివరగా, చేతి పంపు కింద నీళ్ళు తాగుతున్న ఈ ఫోటో యోగి ఆదిత్యనాథ్ ముఖ్యమంత్రి కాకముందుది. యోగి ఆదిత్యనాథ్ కూడా బ్రాండెడ్ వాటర్ బాటిల్స్ వినియోగిస్తున్నాడు.


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This photo, purportedly showing the original parents of Sasha and Malia Obama, is edited - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
March 22, 2024
A photo (here, here and here) has been making its rounds on social media, purporting to show Sasha and Malia Obama’s ‘real’ parents – a man and a woman who are clearly not Barack and Michelle Obama. The photo has been shared with the claim that these individuals are the actual parents of Sasha and Malia. We will fact-check this claim through this article.
Claim: The viral photo shows Sasha and Malia Obama’s real parents.
Fact: The viral photo is an edited version of an original image, which features Barack and Michelle Obama, not the alleged parents. The original, unedited photograph is from 2015 and is available on the official government website, Obamalibrary.gov. Hence, the claim made in the post is rated as False.
The image was manipulated to replace the faces of Barack and Michelle Obama with those of Anita Blanchard and Martin Nesbit in a family portrait taken in 2015.
To ascertain the authenticity of the viral photo, we carried out a reverse image search. This search led us to Obamalibrary.gov, where we found the original, unedited photograph. It features Barack and Michelle Obama posing with Sasha and Malia in the Rose Garden of the White House in April 2015.
The viral photo, in contrast, has been manipulated to remove the dogs from the scene and to replace the bodies of Barack and Michelle Obama with those of another couple.
Further reverse image search revealed that the couple inserted into the viral image is Anita Blanchard and Martin Nesbitt. Anita Blanchard is a gynaecologist, and Martin Nesbitt is the Chairman of the Obama Foundation. A 2008 article from The New York Times identifies them as close friends of the Obama family. You can see the original photo of this couple that was used in the viral edited photo here.
The claim that Blanchard and Nesbitt are the biological parents of Sasha and Malia Obama is an old debunked hoax (here and here). Other fact-checkers have previously refuted this claim (here and here).
To sum up, the viral photo alleging to showcase the ‘real’ parents of Sasha and Malia Obama is a manipulated image.


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This photo showing a disrespectful gesture towards PM Modi is digitally edited - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
April 19, 2024
A photograph(here and here) allegedly showing an individual making a disrespectful hand gesture towards the Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi is doing its rounds on social media platforms. The picture depicts PM Narendra Modi waving his hand from a car while a person in the crowd seemingly makes an offensive gesture. We fact-check this claim through this article.
Claim: A photo shows a person making a disrespectful gesture towards PM Modi.
Fact: The viral photo is a digitally edited version of the original image dating back to at least 2019, in which the offensive hand gesture is not there. Hence, the claim made in the viral post is False.
To learn more about the viral photo, we conducted a reverse image search. This led us to several old news reports (here, here and here) containing the same image, suggesting that the photograph is not recent.
A clear difference between the viral image and the ones found on news outlets like Hindustan Times is the absence of the offensive hand gesture in the latter.
This analysis confirms that the viral photo has been digitally altered to create a false impression of a disrespectful gesture being made towards PM Modi from among a crowd.
To sum up, the viral photo of a disrespectful gesture made towards PM Narendra Modi is a digitally edited version of an older image.


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This photo showing AIMIM chief Asaduddin Owaisi holding a portrait of Lord Ram is morphed - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
May 21, 2024
Amidst the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, a photo of All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM) president Asaduddin Owaisi holding a portrait of Hindu deity Lord Ram along with other people is being widely shared across social media platforms (here, here, & here). The post claims that sensing his defeat in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, Owaisi is seeking support from Hinduism.
Claim: Photo of AIMIM president Asaduddin Owaisi holding a portrait of Lord Ram after sensing defeat in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections.
Fact: This viral photo showing Asaduddin Owaisi holding a portrait of Lord Ram is morphed. In the original picture posted on Asaduddin Owaisi’s official Facebook page on 07 April 2018, Owaisi is holding a portrait of Dr. Bhimrao Ambedkar, not Lord Ram. Hence, the claim made in the post is FALSE.
To verify the authenticity of the viral image, we conducted a Google reverse image search. This search led us to a similar photo (archived link) posted on Asaduddin Owaisi’s official Facebook page on 07 April 2018, with the caption: “Dalits from Mochi Colony met #AIMIM President Barrister Asaduddin Owaisi at AIMIM party headquarters #Darussalam and thanked him for undertaking development activities in their area (Ramnaspura division, Bahadurpura Constituency).” In this photo, Owaisi is holding a portrait of Dr. Bhimrao Ambedkar, not Lord Ram. The same people are seen standing with Owaisi in both photos.
Below is a comparison of the viral image with the original image. From this, it is evident that the original photo was morphed and shared to spread misinformation.
Factly debunked various claims related to AIMIM chief Asaduddin Owaisi that went viral in the context of the 2024 Lok Sabha elections (here, and here).
To sum up, this photo showing AIMIM chief Asaduddin Owaisi holding a portrait of Lord Ram is morphed.


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This photo shows a Bangladeshi man, not a crying general category UPSC aspirant from Lucknow - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
June 7, 2021
A photo of a crying man is being shared on social media with a claim that he is 29-year-old Rajesh Tiwari from Lucknow who failed to clear this year’s UPSC Civil Services Examination. It is also being claimed that he got 643 marks whereas the cut-off for the general category was 689. The post blames reservation for his plight as he belongs to the general category and the cut-off for SC/ST was only 601. Let’s fact-check the claim made in the post.
Claim: Photo of crying Rajesh Tiwari from Lucknow who could not clear the UPSC exam due to reservation.
Fact: The man in the photo belongs to Bangladesh. His name is Sayeed Rimon, not Rajesh Tiwari. He is a social media influencer and promotes social awareness in Bangladesh. Hence the claim made in the post is FALSE.
When the photo was run through Yandex Reverse Image Search, the same photo was found in an article published by a Bangladesh website in 2019. In the article, it is written that the person in the photo is Sayeed Rimon, who tries to bring social awareness among the public through his photos. He is a Bangladeshi, not Indian. On his Facebook profile, Sayeed Rimon has described himself as – ‘Textile Engineer | Social Awareness Promoter | Social Influencer’. He posted the same photo on his profile in 2016 and on his page in 2017.
Also, it was found that the same message, with the story of UPSC aspirant Rajesh Tiwari, is being shared on social media at least since 2017.
On the UPSC website, the cut-off marks of the Civil Services Examination for the years 2016, 2017, 2018, and 2019 can be seen. While it is true that the cut-off is higher for the general category, none of those numbers (2016-19) match with the numbers given in the post.
To sum it up, an unrelated photo from Bangladesh shared as a UPSC aspirant crying after failing to clear the cut-off due to reservation.