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Old photo of Rahul Gandhi with his niece is shared with a misleading narrative linking it to the ‘Bharat Jodo Yatra’ - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
September 19, 2022
A photo is being shared on social media claiming it is a recent picture of Congress leader Rahul Gandhi having a close conversation with a young girl during the ‘Bharat Jodo Yatra’. Sharing the photo, this post states that noone is going to take Rahul Gandhi’s yatra seriously, when he is busy applying mehndi and playing with children. Let’s verify the claim made in the post.
Claim: Recent picture of Rahul Gandhi having a close conversation with a young girl during the ‘Bharat Jodo Yatra’.
Fact: The photo shared in the post shows Rahul Gandhi with his niece Miraya Vadra during a remembrance ceremony for the 71st birth anniversary of the former Indian Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi, on 20 August 2015. The photo shared in the post is old and has nothing to do with the ‘Bharat Jodo Yatra’. Hence, the claim made in the post is MISLEADING.
On reverse image search of the photo shared in the post, the same photo was found published on the ‘Getty Images’ website on 20 August 2015. According to the description of the photo, the young girl who is seen with Rahul Gandhi in the photo is Miraya Vadra, daughter of Rahul Gandhi’s sister Priyanka Gandhi Vadra. The description of the photo states, “Congress Vice President Rahul Gandhi with his niece Miraya Vadra during a remembrance ceremony for the 71st birth anniversary of the former Indian Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi at Veer Bhumi on August 20, 2015 in New Delhi, India. Rajiv Gandhi was assassinated during electoral campaigning, allegedly by Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) rebel separatists, in the town of Sriperumpudur, in the southern state of Tamil Nadu on May 21, 1991”. The photo was credited to the ‘Hindustan Times’ reporter Sonu Mehta.
A few other pictures of Rahul Gandhi with Miraya Vadra during the remembrance ceremony of Rajiv Gandhi can be seen here and here. Several news websites published these pictures in their articles in 2015. They can be seen here and here.
CTR Nirmal Kumar, the head of BJP Tamil Nadu’s IT & social media unit, recently tweeted this photo with the same description as claimed in the post. Later, CTR Nirmal Kumar deleted his tweet and published another tweet stating, “My intention is never to bring anybody’s personal life to public. My Tamil Tweet about this @RahulGandhi was misunderstood. Though I stand by the contents of the tweet as it was purely a political comment & nothing wrong with it. I’m deleting that tweet!”. From all these pieces of evidence, it can be concluded that the photo shared in the post has nothing to do with the ‘Bharat Jodo Yatra’, that Congress started from Tamil Nadu’s Kanyakumari, on 07 September 2022.
My intention is never to bring anybody’s personal life to public My Tamil Tweet about this @RahulGandhi was misunderstood.
Though I stand by contents of the tweet as it was purely a political comment & nothing wrong in it.
I’m deleting that tweet!
To sum it up, an old picture of Rahul Gandhi with his niece is shared with a misleading narrative linking it to the ‘Bharat Jodo Yatra’.

created: September 19, 2022


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Old photo of Ronaldo shared as the one captured during the 2022 FIFA World Cup Final - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
December 19, 2022
A viral image on social media is being claimed as a picture of Portuguese football player Cristiano Ronaldo watching the FIFA World Cup 2022 final match between Argentina and France. Let’s fact-check this claim through this article.
Claim: A photo of Cristiano Ronaldo watching the Argentina-France FIFA World Cup 2022 final
Fact: This image of Cristiano Ronaldo is from October 2018 and was captured during a UEFA Champions League match between Juventus and BSC Young Boys. Hence the claim made in the post is FALSE.
We performed a reverse image search on the photo and found the same on Getty images. According to the photo’s description, it was captured by Pier Marco in Turin, Italy, on 2 October 2018. Cristiano Ronaldo attended a UEFA Champions League Group H match between Juventus and BSC Young Boys at Allianz Stadium. Mirror.com published a news report on the same, which you can read here.
Additionally, we searched the internet to see if Ronaldo attended the World Cup final in which Argentina clinched the title. This search did not yield any conclusive information.
To sum up, an old photo of Ronaldo is shared as that captured during the FIFA World Cup 2022 final between Argentina & France.

source: news-factly

created: December 19, 2022

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

author: Sai Krishna Muthyanolla


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Old photo of Sunny Leone's Kochi rally shared as sea of people gathered for PM Modi's Kochi roadshow - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
April 26, 2023
A photo of a white car engulfed in a massive crowd is being shared on social media with a claim that it is a photo taken during Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s recent Kochi visit. Let’s verify the claim made in this photo.
Claim: A photo of a massive crowd gathered on the roads of Kochi during PM Modi’s visit in April 2023.
Fact: This photo is from 2017 and was captured when Bollywood actress Sunny Leone visited Kochi to inaugurate a mobile store. Hence the claim made in the post is False.
Although huge crowds greeted PM Modi during his recent roadshow in Kochi, we found this photo to be unrelated to it. To learn the details behind this viral photo, we performed a reverse image search on Google, which led us to multiple news articles (here and here) from 2017 which contained this photo.
Reportedly, Bollywood actress Sunny Leone visited Kochi to inaugurate a mobile phone store in August 2017, and a huge crowd gathered there to get a glimpse of her. The actor even posted the same image on her Twitter and thanked everyone.
PM Narendra Modi held a roadshow in Kochi on 24 April 2023, and supporters gathered on the sides of the road where he walked and greeted them. More visuals can be seen here and here.
To sum up, an old photo of Sunny Leone’s Kochi rally is peddled as a sea of people captured during PM Narendra Modi’s Kochi roadshow.


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పాత ఫోటోని పెట్టి కరోనా సమయంలో ఆకాశంలో వెలసిన వినాయకుడు అని షేర్ చేస్తున్నారు - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
August 24, 2020
ఆకాశంలో మేఘాలు వినాయకుడి రూపంలో ఉన్న ఫోటోని చూపిస్తూ భూలోకంలో పండగలు జరుపుకోవాలంటే కోర్టు అనుమతి తీసుకోవాల్సి వస్తున్న నేపథ్యంలో వినాయకుడు ఆకాశంలో వెలిసాడు అని చెప్తూ ఉన్న పోస్ట్ ఒకటి సోషల్ మీడియాలో వైరల్ అవుతుంది. ఈ కథనం ద్వారా అందులో ఎంత నిజముందో చూద్దాం.
క్లెయిమ్: ఇటీవల కాలంలో వినాయక చవితి జరుపుకోవాలంటే కోర్టు అనుమతి తీసుకోవాల్సి వస్తున్న కారణంగా వినాయకుడు ఆకాశంలో వెలిసాడు.
ఫాక్ట్(నిజం): పోస్టులో ఉన్న ఫోటోని 2015లో ప్రముఖ నటుడు రిషి కపూర్ తన ట్విట్టర్ ఎకౌంటులో పోస్ట్ చేసాడు. దీన్నిబట్టి ఈ ఫోటో పాతదని చెప్పొచు. తెలుగు రాష్ట్రాలతో సహా పలు రాష్ట్రాలు గణేష్ ఉత్సవాల నిర్వహణలకు సంబంధించి కఠిన నిబంధనలు అమలులోకి తీసుకొచ్చిన నేపధ్యంలో ఈ ఫోటోని వివిధ క్లెయిమ్స్ తో బాగా షేర్ చేస్తున్నారు. కావున పోస్టు ద్వారా చెప్పేది తప్పు.
పోస్టులో ఉన్న ఫోటోని రివర్స్ ఇమేజ్ సెర్చ్ చేయగా ఇదే ఫోటోని 29 సెప్టెంబర్ 2015న ప్రముఖ నటుడు రిషి కపూర్ తన ట్విట్టర్ ఎకౌంటులో పోస్ట్ చేసాడని తెలిసింది. తిరుపతిలో ఆకాశంలోని మేఘాలు వినాయకుడి రూపంలో దర్శనమిచ్చాయి అన్న వివరణతో ఈ ఫోటోని షేర్ చేసాడు. ఐతే ఈ ఫోటో నిజంగానే తిరుపతిలో తీసిందని కచ్చితంగా చెప్పడానికి మాకు ఎటువంటి ఆధారాలు దొరకనప్పటికి, రిషి కపూర్ ఈ ఫోటోని షేర్ చేసిన తేదీ బట్టి ఈ ఫోటో ఇటీవలే జరిగిన వినాయక చవితి సమయంలో తీసింది కాదని కచ్చితంగా చెప్పొచ్చు.
తెలుగు రాష్ట్రాలతో సహా పలు రాష్ట్రాలు గణేష్ ఉత్సవాల నిర్వహణకు సంబంధించి కఠిన నిబంధనలు అమలులోకి తీసుకొచ్చిన నేపధ్యంలో ఈ ఫోటోని వివిధ క్లెయిమ్స్ తో బాగా షేర్ చేస్తున్నారు. గణేష్ ఉత్సవాల నిర్వహణలకు సంబంధించి పలు రాష్ట్రాలు విధించిన  నిబంధనల గురించిన వార్తా కథనాలు ఇక్కడ మరియు ఇక్కడ చూడొచ్చు.
చివరగా, పాత ఫోటోని చూపిస్తూ, పండగలు జరుపుకోవాలంటే కోర్టు అనుమతి తీసుకోవాల్సి వస్తున్న నేపథ్యంలో వినాయకుడు ఆకాశంలో వెలిసాడు అని చెప్తూ తప్పుగా షేర్ చేస్తున్నారు.


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Old photo shared as recent picture of slums covered up during UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s visit to Gujarat - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
April 25, 2022
A photo is being shared on social media claiming it is a picture of slums covered up during UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s visit to Gujarat. This post accused the Narendra Modi government of hiding slums using curtains during Boris Johnson’s visit to India. Let’s verify the claim made in the post.
Claim: Recent picture of slums covered up during UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s visit to Gujarat.
Fact: The photo shared in the post was taken in March 2021, during Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to the Sabarmati Ashram in Ahmedabad, as part of the ‘Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav’ celebrations. However, during Boris Johnson’s recent visit to Gujarat, similar white curtains were arranged to cover slums on the roads from Ahmedabad to Sabarmati. Hence, the claim made in the post is MISLEADING.
On reverse image search of the photo shared in the post, the same photo was found tweeted by the ‘Ahmedabad Mirror’ news website on 12 March 2021. The description of the photo states, “Slum residents of Parikshit Nagar in Ahmedabad peep from the covers that block their view of the route to Sabarmati Ashram. PM Narendra Modi is expected to begin the 75th anniversary of India’s Independence Day celebrations”. ‘Ahmedabad Mirror’ credited this photo to their journalist Asik Banerjee.
Slum residents of #ParikshitNagar in #Ahmedabad peep from the covers that block their view of the route to #SabarmatiAshram. PM @narendramodi is expected to begin the 75th anniversary of India's #Independence #Day #celebrations
Credit : @AsikBanerjee pic.twitter.com/KHn7ItjgG4
A few other journalists have also tweeted similar pictures of covered slums during Narendra Modi’s visit to Sabarmati Ashram in 2021, as part of the Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav’ celebrations. They can be seen here and here.
Aao chupan chupaai khele ek aur baar..
Hidding the slums once again??#DandiYatra #MahatmaGandhi #DandiMarch #Ahmedabad pic.twitter.com/UtroZPhz5D
However, during the UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s recent visit to Gujarat, similar white curtains were arranged to cover slums on the roads from Ahmedabad to Sabarmati. Several National and International news websites have published articles reporting this information. They can be seen here and here. But the photo shared in the post is not related to UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s recent visit to India. In 2020, during the former U.S. President Donald Trump’s visit to India, the government had built walls to hide slums from Trump’s view in Ahmedabad.
To sum it up, an old photo is shared as the recent picture of the Modi government hiding slums during Boris Johnson’s visit to Gujarat.


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Old photo shared as that of an injured soldier who survived the Chinese attack in Galwan valley - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
June 22, 2020
Screenshot of a tweet with a photo of a man injured on his upper back is doing the rounds on social media claiming that he is one of the Indian soldiers who had survived the Chinese attack in Galwan valley. In the recent border clashes between India and China at the Galwan valley on 15 June 2020, twenty Indian soldiers had lost their lives. However, FACTLY has found the photo to be on the internet at least since 2016. The photo is found in the blog articles of Indonesia, Malaysia and Thailand that discussed rigorous training exercises in the military. FACTLY could not ascertain the exact context of the photo, but it is definitely not related to the recent faceoff with the Chinese troops in Galwan Valley, Ladakh.
Sources:
Claim –
1. Facebook post (archived)
Fact –
1. Earlier source – http://kaupyime.blogspot.com/2016/11/4.html
2. Earlier source – https://blogmazeer.blogspot.com/2016/05/ingat-senang-nak-jadi-komando-saksikan.html
3. Earlier source – https://bulletinmedia.blogspot.com/2016/08/gilaa-15-foto-sulit-latihan-komando.html
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Old photograph from Telangana passed off as cash seized from Bengal BJP leader’s residence - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
April 16, 2021
A social media post with a photograph of  ₹2,000 notes stacked in the corner while police personnel address the media has been widely shared with the claim that this money was recovered was from a BJP leader’s residence in West Bengal. Through this article, let’s fact-check the claim made in the post.
Claim: Photograph of money recovered from BJP leader’s house in West Bengal.
Fact: The photograph in the post is neither related to any BJP leader nor is it from West Bengal. It is from Khammam, Telangana. The photograph shows the Telangana police who had nabbed a gang involved in the circulation of fake ₹ 2,000 notes on 02 November 2019.  Hence the claim made in the post is FALSE.
Reverse Image Search of the photograph led us to a 2019 news article by the Financial Express. As per the article, Telangana Police busted an inter-state gang involved in the circulation of fake ₹ 2,000 notes. The incident took place in Vemsoor Mandal of Khammam district. Police arrested five persons for cheating the public in the guise of exchanging ₹2,000 denomination currency notes and offering 20 percent commission. This article was reported on 02 November 2019.
The incident was also reported by ANI and Telangana Today. Telangana police arrested four members of a family and some others while seizing 320 bundles of fake ₹ 2000 currency notes from Khammam. Commissioner of Police (CP) Tafseer Iqubal told the media that the racket was being operated with Sathupalli town (in Telangana) as its centre. Also, no recent news reports of cash being seized from BJP leader’s house in West Bengal were found. . Hence, the claim that BJP leader from West Bengal was involved in this incident is false.
Telangana: Khammam police today arrested five persons for cheating public in guise of exchanging Rs. 2,000 denomination currency notes and offering 20% commission.
320 bundles of Rs. 2000 denomination fake notes (around Rs 6.4 crores) seized. pic.twitter.com/ptulXGi1Qb
To sum it up, old photograph from Telangana is being passed off as cash seized from Bengal BJP leader’s residence.


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Old Photos are being shared with a false narrative of ‘Kuwait recording 73-degrees temperature’ - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
July 7, 2021
A post is being widely shared on social media claiming that photos show Kuwait experiencing a very high temperature and that it recorded 73 degrees Celsius in the sun and 54 degrees Celsius in the shade. The post also claims that the high temperatures led to the burning of a number of places, vehicles, and plastic objects such as plastic tanks. Let us fact-check the claim made in the post.
Claim: Photos of Kuwait recording 73 degrees Celsius in the sun and 53 degrees Celsius in the shade.
Fact: All the photos attached to the post are old. Photo 1 was taken in Arizona, USA in June 2018. Photo 2 is circulating on social media since 2019. Photo 3 is from an article published on Kuwait in 2016. Photo 4 has been circulating on social media since 2018 in different contexts. However, the world record for the highest temperature stands at 56.7 degree Celsius, recorded at Death Valley in Furnace Creek Ranch, California, on 10 July 1913 and not 73 degrees Celsius. Hence the claim made in the post is FALSE.
Photo 1:
When reverse image search is done on the first photo, a fact-check article by Snopes was found with the title, ‘Did cars melt in Saudi Arabia or Kuwait due to a heat wave’ published on 10 July 2018. The article says the photograph is real, but the pictured vehicles did not melt due to extremely hot weather in Arizona (or anywhere else); the damage was caused by a fire at a nearby construction site. ‘Tucson News Now’ reported that the fire broke out at a worksite near the University Vista apartments at the University of Arizona on the morning of 19 June 2018. In addition to the two pictured vehicles, at least a dozen more cars were damaged by the blaze.
Photo 2:
When reverse image search is done on the second photo, we could not find the exact source of the photo, but it has been floating around in social media since 2019. A Facebook post published on 20 August 2019 by ‘Chtoukapress’ read in English as ‘The heat, my Lord, safety’ had the same photo attached in its post. ‘Chtoukapress’, according to its website, is an electronic newspaper. Another Facebook post also carried the same photo published on 10 July 2020.
Photo 3:
When reverse image search is done on the third photo, an article by ‘Kuwait Local’ published on 23 July 2016 titled, ‘MP Ahmad Lari Urges Increasing the Weekends from 2 days to 3 days due to high temperatures.’ However, there was no mention of the exact high temperatures prevalent in Kuwait at that time. According to an article by ‘greennews’, the all-time heat record for the Eastern Hemisphere of 54 degree Celsius was set in Kuwait. This article was published on 26 July 2016. Some meteorologists suggest that it may even be the hottest verified temperature on the planet and this story received very little mainstream media coverage, according to the article.
Photo 4:
When reverse image search is done on the fourth photo, we could not find the exact source of the photo, but it has been floating around in social media since 2018. A satirical Facebook post published on 06 July 2018 shared the photo in the context of Iraq.
According to an article in the Guardian, on 21 July 2016 the temperature in Mitribah, north-west Kuwait, reached 53.9 degrees Celsius. This was, at the time, the third-highest reading reliably recorded on Earth, and the hottest ever for the whole of Asia. The world record for the highest temperature stands at 56.7 degrees Celsius, recorded at Death Valley in Furnace Creek Ranch, California, on 10 July 1913, this is according to the World Meteorological Organisation (WMO) database hosted on the Arizona State University website. For India, the record is 51 degrees Celsius, witnessed in Phalodi, Rajasthan, on 19 May 2016, according to the article by CNN.
FACTLY had earlier debunked the claim about Kuwait recording the world’s highest temperature. The article written in 2019 can be seen here.
To sum it up, old photos are being shared with a false narrative of ‘Kuwait recording 73-degrees temperature’.


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Old photos are falsely shared as 'Karni Sena' convoy going to Mumbai in support of Kangana Ranaut - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
September 9, 2020
A collage with the photos of a large convoy is being shared on social media claiming it as the photos of Karni Sena convoy going to Mumbai in support of Kangana Ranaut. Let’s verify the claim made in the post.
Photos of Karni Sena convoy going to Mumbai in support of Kangana Ranaut.
Fact: Photos shared in the post show an old convoy picture at unknown locations in the country. They are old photos and hace nothing to do with the ongoing tussle between Kangana and Maharashtra Government. Hence the claim made in the post is FALSE.
Photo-1:
On reverse image search, a similar photo was found in the Facebook post of a user posted on ‘14 July 2020’. The same photo was found in a tweet posted by another user in 2018. In both these posts, they claim it as the convoy of Rajasthan Former Deputy Chief Minister Sachin Pilot. However, we could not ascertain if it was Sachin Pilot’s convoy because of lack of conclusive evidence. But it is an old photo which has nothing to do with the Karni Sena’s plans to escort Kangana Ranaut from Mumbai Airport to her home.
Photo-2:
On reverse image search, similar photo found in a tweet by a random user on ‘05 March 2017’. The same photo was found in a Facebook post claiming it as the caravan of Brahman group. Though the original context of this photo is not known,  it can be concluded as an old photo and has nothing to do with the ongoing tussle between Kangana Ranaut and Maharashtra Government.
In the ongoing tussle between Kangana Ranaut and Maharashtra Government, Karni Sena members announced on ‘07 September 2020’ that they will escort Kangana Ranaut from the Mumbai Airport to her home. The tussle between Kangana and Siva Sena leaders started when Kangana compared Mumbai to ‘Pakistan Occupied Kasmir (PoK)’ in her tweet.  Karni Sena members gathered at Mumbai Airport on 09 September 2020 to support Kangana Ranaut. Visuals at the airport can be seen here.
To sum it up, old photos are now falsely shared as the Karni Sena convoy going to Mumbai in support of Kangana Ranaut.

created: September 9, 2020


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Old photos are linked to the martyred Indian soldiers in the recent clashes at Galwan valley - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
June 19, 2020
Multiple photos are shared on social media linking them to Indian soldiers martyred in the recent border clash between India and China in the Galwan valley (Ladakh). Let’s verify the authenticity of these images.
Pictures of martyred Indian soldiers in the recent border clash between India and China in the Galwan valley (Ladakh).
Fact: The photos shown in these posts are old. They are not related to the recent face-off that took place between India and China in Galwan valley (Ladakh). Hence the claim made is FALSE.
Image-1 (Archived):
On reverse image search, it is found that this photo is related to the horrific killing of 76 CRPF Jawans by Naxals in Chhattisgarh’s Dantewada district. Information related to the incident can be seen here and here.
Image-2 (Archived)
When searched for the image, it is found out that this photo is in circulation at least since 31 May 2020. This image was also tweeted by Member of Parliament (Lok Sabha), Asaduddin Owaisi asking the government if it is true. The image allegedly shows PLA troops bringing down several Indian soldiers at a close-quarters fight at Pangong Lake. More information on this image can be read here and here. Though the context of this image cannot be exactly established, it is definitely not related to the recent clashes at Galwan Valley.
Image-3 (Archived):
On reverse image search, this image was found to be shared on social media at least since 16 February 2019, in the aftermath of the attack on CRPF personnel by a suicide bomber. The same image was found in Reddit post published on 16 February 2020, titled ‘The mortal remains of the martyred Indian soldiers from the Pulwama terrorist attack being taken to their hometown for cremation’.
To sum it up, old photos from different contexts are now falsely shared as those related to martyred Indian soldiers in the recent border clash between India and China in the Galwan valley (Ladakh).
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Old photos are shared linking them to the recent Turkey earthquake - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
February 13, 2023
A post which sends a condolence message to the people affected by the earthquake in Turkey and Syria is being shared on social media. This post contains a few photos that allegedly show the earthquake’s aftermath. Let’s fact-check these photos through this article.
Claim: Photos showing the scene of Turkey and Syria after the recent earthquake.
Fact: Out of the four photos in the post, only two were taken after the earthquake that hit Turkey and Syria. The photo of a child crouching and holding his head with his hands among the debris of a building is an old stock photo which is available on Shutterstock and Adobe Stock. The photographer of that picture clarified through her Facebook, in which she mentioned that it was captured in Ukraine. Another photo which was not taken during the recent Turkey earthquake is of a man holding bread while he wipes his tears. This was captured in 1999 during the Turkey earthquake. Hence the claim made in the post is Misleading.
Photo 1:
To learn more about the photo, we performed a reverse image search on ‘Tineye.’ This search led us to stock image websites (here and here). Further, we also found an article from March 2022 with the same photo.
The name of the photographer, according to Shutterstock, is Zapylaieva Hanna. Links to Hanna’s social media accounts are also available on Shutterstock. We went through the profile to see if she had posted the picture there and came across a clarification message in which she said that this picture was captured by her in Ukraine in 2018.
Photo 2:
Performing a reverse image search on this image led us to a news report which contained this image. According to the report, the picture was captured while rescue operations were happening in the Baghlar city of Diyarbakir.
Photo 3:
This photo was taken during the 1999 Turkey earthquake. A reverse image search on this led us to a news article which was published before 2023. This article from 2019 which was published by star.com lists the photos that were captured after a 7.4-magnitude earthquake hit Gölcük, Kocaeli on August 17, 1999. This photo can also be seen in these articles (here and here)
Photo 4:
This photos was captured after the 2023 Turkey earthquake. According to CNN, this is the aerial view of the buildings that were damaged in Hatay, Turkey. The same pictures can be seen in these articles here and here.
To sum it up, this post shares a few old photos and links them to the recent Turkey earthquake.

created: February 13, 2023


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Old photos falsely shared as 'Ram Navami celebrations at Bhuj Mandir (Gujarat)' during Lockdown - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
April 5, 2020
Some photos are being widely shared on social media with a claim that they show the celebrations of Ram Navami (i.e. on 2 April 2020) at Shree Swaminarayan Temple – Bhuj (‘Bhuj Mandir) in Gujarat, during the lockdown period. The post criticizes PM Modi for allowing such a congregation in his Home State (Gujarat) despite the current lockdown in the country. Let’s try to analyze the claim made in the post.
Photos of grandcelebration of Ram Navami (on 2 April 2020) at Bhuj Mandir in Gujarat during Lockdown
Fact: The photos are related to ‘153rd Patotsav of Shree Harikrushna Maharaj’ celebrations at Bhuj Mandir. The celebrations were held from 21 February 2020 to 25 February 2020, i.e. before the lockdown. The posted photos are the screenshots of a video which was streamed live on 22 February 2020. Hence the claim made in the post is FALSE.
Some users have posted (archived) on Facebook claiming that the photos are the screenshots of the video posted recently (in April 2020) by the official YouTube Channel of ‘Bhuj Mandir’. The video can be found here. In the video description, it can be read that the video is related to ‘Harikrushna Maharaj Patotsav 2020’.
But, on the official website, it was found that ‘153rd Patotsav of Shree Harikrushna Maharaj’ celebrations were held from 21 February 2020 to 25 February 2020 at Bhuj Mandir.
So, when searched on its YouTube channel, it was found that the recent video uploaded in April 2020 is a shorter version of the video streamed live on 22 February 2020. So, the posted photos are actually the screenshots of the live video from February 2020 i.e. before the lockdown was imposed.
Also, the photos of the event can be found on the official website.
To sum it up, old photos are falsely shared as ‘Photos of Ram Navami celebrations at Bhuj Mandir (Gujarat) during the current lockdown period.
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Old photos from Akhilesh Yadav’s time as UP CM are shared as the recent pictures of Muslim houses bulldozed by the Yogi Adityanath government in UP - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
June 9, 2022
A collage of images is being shared on social media claiming them to be the recent pictures of the demolished Muslim households in Unnao and Farrukhabad (Uttar Pradesh). This post claims that the Yogi Adityanath government in Uttar Pradesh is intentionally targeting Muslims and bulldozing their houses in the state. Congress leader Salman Khurshid had also shared these images with a similar claim on his social media handles. Let’s verify the claim made in the post.
The archived version of the post can be seen here.
Claim: Recent pictures of the bulldozed Muslim households in Unnao and Farrukhabad.
Fact: The images shared in the post show old pictures from an encroachment drive conducted in 2016, during the SP government and Akhilesh Yadav’s tenure as CM in Uttar Pradesh. This demolition drive was conducted in Loha Mandi and Bartan Bazar areas in Unnao. The demolished houses seen in these pictures were not bulldozed by the present Yogi Adityanath government in UP. Hence, the claim made in the post is MISLEADING.
On reverse image search of the images shared in the post, we found that ‘Amar Ujala’ journalist Shubham Nigam had shared the same images in his Facebook post on 26 May 2016. Shubham Nigam reported them as the pictures from an encroachment drive conducted in Unnao, Uttar Pradesh. Yogi Adityanath was sworn in as the Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh in March 2017. In 2016, Akhilesh Yadav was the Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh.
The ‘Amar Ujala’ news website published multiple articles in May 2016, reporting the details of this encroachment drive conducted in Unnao. They can be seen here and here. Sharing the same photos, these articles reported that the encroachment drive was conducted in Loha Mandi and Bartan Bazar areas located between Ataullah and Chhota Chauraha in Unnao. According to these reports, the district administration demolished around 85 illegal buildings constructed in these areas.
Lately, there are news reports that the Yogi Adityanath government had bulldozed crores worth of illegal constructions in Farrukhabad and Unnao. A few news articles that reported these latest anti-encroachment drives in Farrukhabad and Unnao can be seen here and here. It is nowhere reported that only Muslim houses were bulldozed during these encroachment drives. From all these pieces of evidence, it can be concluded that the photos shared in the post show old pictures from an anti-encroachment drive conducted in Akhilesh Yadav’s regime.
To sum it up, old photos from Akhilesh Yadav’s time as UP CM were shared as the recent pictures of bulldozed Muslim houses by the Yogi Adityanath government in UP.


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Old photos from different cities linked to earthquake hit Tajikistan - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
February 15, 2021
A collage with the images of collapsed buildings is being shared on social media claiming it as the visuals of the recent earthquake that hit Tajikistan. An earthquake of magnitude 6.3 on the Richter scale hit Tajikistan on 12 February 2021. Let’s verify the claim made in the post.
Claim: Photos of massive destruction caused by the earthquake in Tajikistan.
Fact:  The first photo shared in the post is from the 2018 earthquake that hit Sicily city in Italy.  The other photo shows a collapsed building in the 2020 earthquake hit Elazig city in Eastern Turkey. These photos have nothing to do with the recent earthquake that hit Tajikistan. Hence, the claim made in the post is FALSE.
Image-1:
On reverse image search of the photo shared in the post, a similar photo was found in a news article published on 27 December 2018. This article reported it as the visuals of collapsed buildings in the earthquake hit Sicily region in Italy. Sharing a similar photo, ‘BBC’ published an article on earthquake hit Sicily region. In the article, it is reported that a 4.8-magnitude earthquake hit Sicily near Europe’s most active volcano, Mount Etna. The news articles published on the 2018 Sicily earthquake can be read here and here.
Image-2:
On reverse image search of the photo shared in the post, we found a similar photo in a news article published on 24 January 2020. This article reported it as the visual of a collapsed building after a massive earthquake of magnitude 6.8 hit the Elazig province in Eastern Turkey. A similar visual is found in the ‘CNN’ article published on massive destruction caused by the earthquake in Eastern Turkey. The news articles published on this incident can be read here and here.
To sum it up, old photos from different earthquake hit cities are shared as the recent photos from earthquake hit Tajikistan.

created: February 15, 2021


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Old Photos from Eastern Turkey shared as recent pictures of earthquake hit Afghanistan - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
February 15, 2021
A collage with images of collapsed buildings is being shared on social media claiming it as the pictures of the massive destruction caused by the earthquake in Afghanistan. On 12 February 2021, an earthquake of magnitude 6.3 on the Richter scale hit the Fayzabad city in Afghanistan. Let’s verify the claim made in the post.
Claim: Photos of the massive destruction caused by an earthquake in Afghanistan.
Fact: The photos shared in the post show the massive destruction caused by the earthquake in Eastern Turkey on 24 January 2020. These photos have nothing to do with the recent earthquake in Afghanistan. Hence, the claim made in the post is FALSE.
Image-1:
On reverse image search of the photo shared in the post, a similar photo was found in an article published by ‘The New Indian Express’ on 25 January 2020. This article reported it as the visual of a collapsed building after a massive earthquake of magnitude 6.8 hit the Elazig province in Eastern Turkey. Sharing the same photo, several news websites published articles on the earthquake that hit Elazig city in Eastern Turkey. They can be seen here, here, and here. According to these news reports, a powerful earthquake hit Elazig on 24 January 2020.
Image-2:
On reverse image search of the photo shared in the post, we found a similar photo in an article published by ‘Voa’ news website on 24 January 2020. In the article, it is mentioned as a visual of the massive destruction caused by an earthquake in Eastern Turkey. The news articles that published the same photo can be seen here, here, and here.
Image-3:
A similar visual was found in an article published by ‘Global news’ website. In the article, it is reported as the visual from the earthquake that hit Eastern Turkey. News articles sharing similar photo can be seen here and here.
From all these pieces of evidence, it is concluded that the photos shared in the post are related to the earthquake hit Eastern Turkey in January 2020.
To sum it up, 2020 photos from earthquake hit Eastern Turkey are shared as the recent pictures from earthquake hit Afghanistan.


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Old photos from Maharashtra shared as EVM machines robbery in Bihar - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
November 16, 2020
A collage with the photos of a person taking EVM machines to hilly mountains is being shared on social media. In the post, it is being claimed as the pictures of EVM machines robbery in Bihar. Let’s verify the claim made in the post.
Claim: EVM machines robbery pictures in Bihar.
Fact: These photos show election staff carrying EVM machines to the remote areas of Raigad district in Maharashtra. These photos were shot during the 2019 Vidhan Sabha elections in Maharashtra. These photos have nothing to do with the recent Bihar elections. Hence, the claim made in the post is FALSE.
On reverse image search of photos shared in the post, similar photos were found in a tweet posted by the official Twitter account of District Information Office of Raigad district, Maharashtra. In the tweet, it is mentioned as the Maharashtra election staff reaching polling stations in remote areas like Kalkarai. It is mentioned that these pictures were shot during the 2019 Vidhan Sabha elections in Maharashtra.
कळकराई सारख्या दुर्गम भागात मतदान केंद्रावर पोहोचणारे कर्मचारी. आम्हाला तुमचा सार्थ अभिमान आहे 🙏🏻#vidhansabha2019@CEO_Maharashtra
@MahaDGIPR
@MahaCyber1 pic.twitter.com/c2f4ya5HOk
Reporting the same, DEO Raigad has also shared the same photos on their official Twitter handle.
कळकराई सारख्या दुर्गम भागात मतदान केंद्रावर पोहोचणारे कर्मचारी. आम्हाला तुमचा सार्थ अभिमान आहे 🙏🏻#vidhansabha2019@CEO_Maharashtra @MahaDGIPR @MahaCyber1 pic.twitter.com/8f9KRt5wob
To sum it up, 2019 photos of election staff carrying EVMs to the remote areas in Maharashtra are falsely shared as the pictures of EVM machines robbery in Bihar.

created: November 16, 2020


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Old photos of BJP public meetings falsely shared as recent pictures of Amit Shah's roadshow in West Bengal - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
December 21, 2020
Multiple images are being shared on social media claiming them as the pictures of roadshows conducted recently by the Home Minister Amit Shah in West Bengal. They can be seen here and here. Photos of public meetings with huge crowds are shared in these posts. Ahead of West Bengal Assembly elections 2021, these photos going viral on social media. Let’s verify the claims made in these posts.
Claim: Photos of recent roadshows conducted by the Home Minister Amit Shah in West Bengal.
Fact: Photos shared in these posts are old ones. The first photo was shot in 2014, during a public meeting conducted by Amit Shah in West Bengal. The other photo is also an old one. These photos have nothing to do with the recent roadshows conducting by the Home Minister Amit Shah in West Bengal. Hence, the claim made in the post is FALSE.
Image-1:
On reverse image search of the photo shared in the post, a similar photo was found in ‘Alamy’ website. It is mentioned as the picture of a rally addressed by Amit Shah in Kolkata during November 2014. The description of the photo mentions that ‘Supporters of Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) attend a rally by the party president Amit Shah (not pictured) in Kolkata November 30, 2014’.
When we searched for more sources using these keywords, a similar photo was found in an article published by ‘Daily Mail’ news website on ’01 December 2014’. In the article, this photo is mentioned as the picture of huge crowds at a public gathering organized by BJP on ‘30 November 2014’ in West Bengal.
Bharatiya Janata Party and Amit shah shared the visuals of this meeting on their official YouTube and Twitter handles. They can be seen here and here. From all these pieces of evidence, we can conclude that the photo shared in the post is an old one.
Image2:
On reverse image search of the photo shared in the post, a similar photo was found in the official Flickr account of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. PM Modi shared this photo on ‘06 April 2018’. He shared this photo to greet all BJP karyakartas on the special occasion of BJP’s Sthapana Diwas.
The same photo is shared by few users and websites during 2018 and 2019. They can be seen here, here and here. From all these pieces of evidence, it can be concluded that the photo shared in the post is an old one and has nothing to do with the recent roadshows conducted by Amit Shah in West Bengal.
To sum it up, old photos of BJP public meetings are falsely shared as the recent pictures of roadshows conducted by Amit Shah in West Bengal.

created: December 21, 2020


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Old photos of Congress party meetings in Hyderabad falsely linked to the Hyderabad floods - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
October 21, 2020
A photo collage of Congress party leaders is being shared on the social media claiming that the Muslim leaders of Congress party in Hyderabad are celebrating in a farmhouse while Hyderabad city is drowning in floodwaters. Let’s verify the claim made in the post.
Claim: Celebrations of Congress party Muslim leaders in a farmhouse during Hyderabad floods.
Fact: These photos were shot during the Congress party meetings held on ’13 September 2020’ and  ‘6 October 2020’, a few weeks before the Hyderabad city is affected by floods. Hence, the claim made in the post is FALSE.
Photos (1,3 and 4):
On observing the photos carefully, we could see Telangana Congress party leader Mohammed Ali Shabbir in some of the photos. On reverse image search of the photos shared in the post using these keywords, a video showing similar visuals as shared in the post was found on ‘Star News Express’ YouTube channel. This video was posted on YouTube on ‘07 October 2020’. In the description of the video, it is mentioned that more than 200 educated youth joined Congress party at Karwan Golconda division in the presence of Ex-Minister Mohammed Shabir Ali. It is mentioned that the Karwan constituency’s past  MLA contestant and in charge, Mohammed Al Hajri arranged this meeting in Karwan. The same visuals were found in another YouTube video posted on ’06 October 2020’. In this video description also, it is mentioned as the Congress event conducted on ’06 October 2020’ at Karwan area of Golconda division.
Photos (2,5 and 6):
On reverse image search of the remaining photos shared in the post, we found the same photos in a Facebook post of Hyderabad Congress Minority department chairman Sameer Waliullah. In his post, he mentioned that these photos were captured during a dinner get together arranged in his farmhouse on ‘13 September 2020’. He shared these photos to thank all the leaders who attended this get together.
From all these pieces of evidence, it can be concluded that the photos shared in the post are old and not related to the Hyderabad floods caused by the heavy rains on ‘13 October 2020’.

created: October 21, 2020


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Old photos of Mirage 2000 fighter jet crash are falsely shared as Rafale Jet crash - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
September 11, 2020
A collage with the photos of an aircraft crash is being shared on social media claiming that one of the new Rafale fighter jets owned India crashed during the training session and 2 pilots inside the aircraft had died in this incident. Let’s verify the claim made in the post.
One of the new Rafale fighter jets owned by India crashed during the training session.
Fact: Photos in the post show the debris of IAF Mirage 2000 fighter jet that crashed on ’01 February 2019’ near HAL airport in Bengaluru. These photos have nothing to do with the new Rafale fighter jets inducted recently by the Government of India. Hence the claim made in the post is FALSE.
Photo-1:
On reverse image search, a similar photo was found in an article published by ‘ International Bussiness Times’ news website on ‘01 February 2019’. In the article, it is mentioned as the debris of IAF Mirage 2000 fighter jet that crashed near Bengaluru’s HAL airport on ‘01 February 2019’. It is reported in the article that 2 pilots inside the fighter jet died in this accident. The same photo was shared in an article published by ‘The Print’ news website on ‘20 March 2019’ while reporting the outcome of the investigation of IAF Mirage 2000 fighter jet crash near HAL airport in Bengaluru.
Photo-2:
On reverse image search, a similar photo was found in an article published by ‘Hindustan Times’ news website on ‘ 07 February 2020’. In the article, it is mentioned as the photo related to the IAF Mirage fighter Jet crash in Bengaluru on ’01 February 2019’. The same photo was also found in ‘The Indian Express’ article reporting about the IAF Mirage 2000 fighter jet crash in Bengaluru.
Photo-3:
On reverse image search, a similar photo was found in an article published by ‘The Print’ news website on ‘09 February 2019’. This photo was also described as the debris of IAF Mirage 2000 aircraft that crashed in Bengaluru on ‘01 February 2020’. The same photo can also be seen in ‘Outlook India’ Magazine that reported this incident.
From all these pieces of evidence, it can be concluded that photos shared in the post are related to the IAF Mirage 2000 fighter jet crash near HAL airport in Bengaluru during 2019 and have nothing to do with the new Rafale jets inducted into the Indian Air Force recently.
To sum it up, old photos related to the IAF Mirage 2000 fighter jet crash in Bengaluru are falsely portrayed as the new Rafale Jet crash during a training session.

created: September 11, 2020


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Old photo of a protest against French cartoons is falsely linked to PM Modi’s visit to Bangladesh - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
March 25, 2021
A photo is being shared on social media claiming it as the visuals of a massive protest in Bangladesh against Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to Bangladesh. This photo shows hundreds of Muslims marching in a rally. In the wake of PM Narendra Modi’s two-day visit to Bangladesh on 26 March 2021, this post is being shared on social media. Let’s verify the claim made in the post.
Claim: Photo of a massive protest in Bangladesh opposing the PM Narendra Modi’s visit to Bangladesh.
Fact: The photo shared in the post is an old one. In October 2020, thousands of Muslims marched in Dhaka protesting the French cartoons on Prophet Mohammed. This photo is related to that protest and has nothing to do with PM Narendra Modi’s visit to Bangladesh. 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 on 27 October 2020.  This article mentioned the picture to be of a massive protest held in Dhaka city, Bangladesh. This protest was held against the French Cartoons on Prophet Mohammed. Reporting the same, ‘The Irish Times’ shared the same photo in a galley article published on 27 October 2020. This article reported that thousands of demonstrators marched in a rally towards the French Embassy in Dhaka, protesting the French President Emmanuel Macron’s comments on Prophet Mohammed cartoons.
Sharing a similar photo, ‘BBC’ News published an article about this protest held in Dhaka city of  Bangladesh. In the article, it is mentioned that thousands of Muslims participated in a protest rally demanding the complete boycott of French products in Bangladesh. This rally was held in protest against the French President Emmanuel Macron’s statement on not giving up the Prophet Mohammed cartoons published in Charlie Hebdo magazine.
To sum it up, 2020 photo of Bangladesh Muslims protest against French cartoons is shared as the protest against PM Narendra Modi’s visit to Bangladesh.


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Old Photos shared as visuals of vandalised properties in the recent Bhainsa communal riots - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
March 19, 2021
Multiple images are being shared on social media claiming them as the visuals from the recent communal clashes in Bhainsa town of Telangana. They can be seen here, here, and here. These photos show vandalized houses, vehicles, and other properties. Let’s verify the claims made in these posts.
Claim: Photos of the vandalised properties in the recent Bhainsa communal violence.
Fact: Except for one photo, all other photos in these posts are not related to the recent communal clashes at Bhainsa town in Telangana. Two photos in these posts are related to the 2020 Delhi riots. Another two photos are related to the old communal clashes in Bhainsa. Hence, the claims made in these posts are MISLEADING.
Let’s check the details of each photo and try to find whether they are related to the recent communal clashes in Bhainsa.
Photo-1:
On reverse image search of the photo shared in the post, a similar photo was found in the ‘Al Jazeera’ article published in February 2020. This article reported it as a visual from the 2020 Delhi riots. The same photo is also found with a similar description on the ‘Getty Images’ website.
Photo-2:
A similar photo was found published in several news articles, mentioning it as a visual from the 2020 Delhi riots. Those articles can be seen here and here.
Photo-3:
On the reverse image search, a similar photo was found in ‘The News Minute’ article published in January 2020. This article reported it as a vandalised car in the communal clashes that took place in Bhainsa town on 13 January 2020.
Photo-4:
On reverse image search, a similar photo was found in ‘The Hindu’ article published on 13 January 2020. It is reported as the photo of a bike that was burnt down during the communal violence in Bhainsa town.
Photo-5:
On reverse image search, a similar photo was found in an article published in January 2020. This photo was also reported as a visual from the 2020 communal riots in Bhainsa.
To sum it up, old photos are now being shared as visuals of vandalised properties in the recent Bhainsa communal riots.


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Old photoshopped image of Modi bowing down to Saudi king is being shared again - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
June 4, 2019
A post with an image of PM Modi bowing down to Saudi Arabia’s King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud is being shared on Facebook. Let’s try to check the authenticity of the image in the post.
The image in the post shows Modi bowing down to touch the feet of Saudi’s King Salman.
Fact: Modi’s image of bowing down to touch the feet of Advani, back in 2013, was photoshopped to add Saudi King’s photo in Advani’s place. Hence the claim made in the post is FALSE.
When the image in the post is cropped and ran through Google Reverse Image Search, newspaper article on this issue can be found in the search results.  According to the Business Standard article, Modi’s photo of bowing down to Advani, in 2013, at a rally in Bhopal has been photoshopped to place Saudi King’s photo in place of Advani. This photo went viral in 2016 when a News18 journalist has tweeted the morphed  photo. The BJP then had filed a formal complaint on the journalist for which he had apologized.
To sum it up, an old photoshopped image of Modi bowing down to Saudi king is being shared again.
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Old photoshopped image of Sonia Gandhi and Maldives Ex-President Maumoon Abdul Gayoom revived - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
April 23, 2020
An image of Congress President Sonia Gandhi sitting on the lap of Maldives Ex-President Maumoon Abdul Gayoom is being widely shared across social media. But, FACTLY has found the image to be photoshopped. In the original image, both the leaders are seen sitting on separate chairs. The image was taken when Maumoon Abdul Gayoom had met Sonia Gandhi during the former’s visit to India in 2015. When the same image went viral last year, FACTLY has debunked it and has written a fact-check article. Now, the image has been revived in the wake of ‘Republic TV‘ Editor Arnab Goswami’s comments on Sonia Gandhi in the context of Palghar lynching incident.
Sources:
Claim – Facebook post (archived)
Fact –
1. Original image – https://www.gettyimages.in/detail/news-photo/president-of-the-republic-of-maldives-maumoon-abdul-gayoom-news-photo/52489969
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Old protest video is shared as a celebration of Muslims for Amit Shah being COVID-19 positive - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
August 11, 2020
A video of Muslims performing the mock funeral of Home Minister Amit Shah is being shared on social media claiming it as the celebration of Muslims for Amit Shah being  Covid-19 positive. Let’s verify the claim made in the post.
Video of Muslims taking out a mock funeral procession of Amit Shah in celebration of him testing positive for Covid-19.
Fact: This video of  mock funeral procession of Amit Shah was found on the internet since December 2019 and has nothing to do with Amit Shah being tested COVID-19 positive. Hence the claim made in the post is Misleading.
On reverse image search of the screenshots in the video, we found a video with similar visuals in a Facebook post. This video was posted on Facebook on ‘21 December 2019’.  In the video, we could hear Muslims chanting ‘Azadi’ slogans while performing the mock funeral of Home Minister Amit Shah. This video could most probably be related to the anti-CAA protests held during those times across the country.
On clearly observing the barricades in the posted video, we found that this protest was held in Kolkata.
On ‘02 August 2020’, Amit Shah through his official twitter account announced that he tested COVID-19 positive.
कोरोना के शुरूआती लक्षण दिखने पर मैंने टेस्ट करवाया और रिपोर्ट पॉजिटिव आई है। मेरी तबीयत ठीक है परन्तु डॉक्टर्स की सलाह पर अस्पताल में भर्ती हो रहा हूँ। मेरा अनुरोध है कि आप में से जो भी लोग गत कुछ दिनों में मेरे संपर्क में आयें हैं, कृपया स्वयं को आइसोलेट कर अपनी जाँच करवाएं।
To sum it up, an old protest video from Kolkata is being falsely shared as the celebration of Muslims for Amit Shah being COVID-19 positive.
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Old ragging video from Sri Lanka is shared as Hindu extremists abusing Muslim girl students in Karnataka - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
February 10, 2022
A video through a post is being widely shared on social media claiming that Hindu extremists were abusing Muslim girl students in Karnataka. Let us fact-check the claim made in the post.
Claim: Video of Hindu extremists abusing Muslim girl students in Karnataka.
Fact: The video is from Sri Lanka and not India. It is a ragging video taken in Eastern University, Sri Lanka in 2019. Recently, a video of a Muslim girl student wearing burqa who was confronted by students wearing saffron stoles in Karnataka went viral. However, this video is not related to this incident. Hence, the claim made in the post is FALSE.
When reverse image search is done on the screenshots of the video, the same video was found uploaded on YouTube on 24 February 2019. The YouTube video, in its title, mentions that the video is from Eastern University. An article, with the same video attached, says it is a ragging video from Eastern University in Sri Lanka.
‘Lanka Sun News’, which is from Sri Lanka, had posted the same video on their Facebook page, saying that the dreadful ragging visuals were from Eastern University in Sri Lanka. A couple of Facebook users have posted (here and here) the same video in February 2019, claiming these to be from Eastern University, Sri Lanka.
Recently, a video of a Muslim girl student wearing burqa who was confronted by students wearing saffron stoles in Karnataka went viral However, this video is not related to that incident.
When the same video went viral in 2019 claiming that people from RSS were seen harassing Muslim girl students attending college, FACTLY had written an article debunking that claim.
To sum it up, an old ragging video from Sri Lanka is being shared as Hindu extremists abusing Muslim girl students in Karnataka.

created: February 10, 2022


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Old rally video falsely shared as related to the recent farmers’ protest in Delhi. - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
December 1, 2020
A video of a rally is being shared on social media with a claim that it shows ‘Left rally in Maharashtra in support of Delhi farmers agitation’. In Delhi, farmers are protesting the new agricultural laws brought by the Central Government. Let’s fact-check the claim made in the post.
Claim: Video of a rally in Maharashtra in support of recent farmers’ protest in Delhi.
Fact: The rally video is not related to recent farmers’ protest in Delhi. The same video is being shared on the internet at least since 2018. Hence the claim made in the post is FALSE.
When the screenshots of the video were run through Google Reverse Image Search, the same video was found in the search results. A user has published the same video on YouTube in April 2018. While the exact details regarding the rally in the video were not found, it can be concluded that it has no connection with the recent protests as it is found on the internet much before the new agricultural laws were passed in the Parliament.
The visuals related to the recent farmers’ protest can be seen here.
To sum it up, an old rally video is falsely shared as ‘Left rally in Maharashtra in support of Delhi farmers agitation’.

created: December 1, 2020


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Old religious event at a Hotel in Abu Dhabi portrayed as visuals of first Hindu temple in Abu Dhabi - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
February 17, 2021
A video is being shared on social media claiming it as the visuals of first Hindu temple built by Sultan Sheikh Mohammed in Abu Dhabi. This post claims it as the video of Abu Dhabi sultan’s wife carrying the Ramayana on her head to the first Hindu temple in the country. Also, it claims that the Indian spiritual leader Morari Bapu accompanied the Abu Dhabi Sultan and his wife for this event. Let’s verify the claim made in the post.
Claim: Video of the first Hindu temple built by the Sultan Sheikh Mohammed in Abu Dhabi.
Fact:  This video shows a religious event organised by Morari Bapu at the Emirates Palace Hotel in Abu Dhabi. BAPS Hindu Mandir, the first Hindu temple in Abu Dhabi is still under construction. Also, the woman carrying the holy book of Ramayana in the video is not the Abu Dhabi Sultan’s wife. Hence, the claim made in the post is FALSE.
On reverse image search of the screenshots in the video, similar visuals were found in a YouTube video published in 2016. This video was uploaded on YouTube with the title ‘Morari Bapu-Abu Dhabi-Dubai’. When we searched for further details of this video on the Morari Bapu website, we found that Morari Bapu organised this event in Abu Dhabi between 17 and 25 September 2016.
A video with similar visuals is found on the official YouTube channel of Morari Bapu. This video shows the Day-1 of ‘Manas Kishkindha Kand’ event organised in Abu Dhabi during 2016.
According to some social media posts, this ‘Manas Kishkindha Kand’ event in Abu Dhabi took place at the Emirates Place Hotel in Abu Dhabi. They can be seen here and here. Also, the same visuals in the video are found in the trip advisor pictures of Emirates Palace Hotel in Abu Dhabi.  From all these pieces of evidence, it can be concluded that the video shared in the post is related to the 2016 religious event organised at the Emirates Palace Hotel in Abu Dhabi.
In 2018, a few mainstream Indian media outlets reported that Abu Dhabi Crown Prince Mohammad bin Zayed Al Nahyan attended this religious event conducted by Morari Bapu and chanted ‘Jai Siya Ram’ slogans. ‘Gulf News’ published a fact-check article on Indian media reports about Abu Dhabi prince. This fact-check article reported the person who attended the Morari Bapu ceremony is Sultan Sooud Al Qassemi, a UAE-based columnist and commentator of Arab affairs. ‘Gulf News’ article clarified that Mohammad bin Zayed Al Nahyan, the Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi had never attended this event of Morari Bapu. Clarifying the same, UAE Embassy-New Delhi posted a tweet on their official handle.
In a 2016 interview with ABP news channel, Morari Bapu clarified that the woman carrying Ramayana on her head is not the wife of Abu Dhabi Sultan. He mentioned the woman as Siya, a daughter of one of the volunteers in his organisation.
The construction of BAPS Hindu Mandir, the first Hindu temple in Abu Dhabi is still underway. More details about this temple can be seen here and here.
To sum it up, an old religious event video is portrayed as Abu Dhabi Sultan’s wife carrying the Ramayana to the first Hindu temple built in Abu Dhabi.

created: February 17, 2021


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Old religious procession video is shared as devotees of Lord Ram marching in Ayodhya to declare India as Hindu Rashtra - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
November 5, 2021
A video accompanied by a post is being widely shared on social media claiming that devotees of Lord Ram were marching in Ayodhya to declare India as Hindu Rashtra. Let us fact-check the claim made in the post.
Claim: Video of devotees of Lord Ram marching in Ayodhya to declare India as Hindu Rashtra.
Fact: The video shows a religious procession named ‘Durgamata Daud’ in Miraj, Maharashtra taken in 2019 and is not related to Ayodhya. ‘Durgamata Daud’ is an annual religious procession taken out on the occasion of Dussehra in Miraj town of Sangli district. There are no recent news reports of a march by the devotees of Lord Ram to declare India as a Hindu Rashtra. Hence, the claim made in the post is FALSE.
When reverse image search is done on the screenshots of the video with relevant keywords, the same video is found on YouTube. The YouTube video was uploaded on 27 October 2019 by ‘Akshay Shinde’, with the title, “Durgamata Daud Miraj Division.” Miraj is a city in the Sangli district of Maharashtra, and not from Ayodhya which is in UP.
Taking the cue that the video could be from Miraj, we found several video reports when searched on google with relevant keywords. ‘Durgamata Daud’ is an annual religious procession organized by Shiv Pratishthan Hindustan during Dussehra in Miraj town of Sangli district. Several videos of the procession in Maharashtra with similar attire can be seen here, here, and here.
At 0:03 seconds in the video, one can see hoarding of a shop in the background of the procession, named ‘Laxmi Sports’. In Google Maps, a store named ‘New Shree Laxmi Sports’ was found in Miraj, Sangli district. The hoarding matches with the one seen in the viral video.
Further, Paramhans Acharya Maharaj demanded that India be declared a ‘Hindu Rashtra’, or else he said that he would take a ‘Jal samadhi’ in Ayodhya’s Sarayu river on 02 October 2021. Having been placed under house arrest, he put out a statement that he would agitate for ‘Hindu Rashtra’ on 07 November 2023 at Ramlila Maidan. However, there are no recent news reports of a march by the devotees of Lord Ram to declare India as a Hindu Rashtra.
To sum it up, an old video of a religious procession in Maharashtra is shared as devotees of Lord Ram marching in Ayodhya to declare India as Hindu Rashtra.

created: November 5, 2021


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Old report about Raj Thackery’s wife getting injured due to dog bite is being shared without any context - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
May 7, 2022
A social media post accompanying a news report of MNS chief Raj Thackeray’s wife Sharmila getting badly injured, after their pet bit her face is being widely circulated as if it is a recent incident. Through this article let’s fact-check the claim made in the post.
Claim: Recent news report of Raj Thackery’s wife bitten by their pet dog.
Fact: This is an old news that dates back to 2015, when Raj Thackery’s wife Sharmila was bitten by their pet dog after she accidentally stepped on her. She had received 65 stitches and she even had undergone an emergency surgery. The viral video is an excerpt of Aaj Tak’s report of the incident in 2015. This old report is now being shared without any context. Hence the claim made in the post is MISLEADING.
While it is true that Raj Thackery’s wife was indeed bitten by their pet dog, the incident is about seven years old. Google search with relevant keywords yielded multiple news reports which reported the incident back in 2015 (here & here).
As per these reports, Thackery’s wife Sharmila was bitten by their pet dog after she accidentally stepped on the dog. The injury was so bad, that Sharmila had received 65 stitches and in fact, she even had undergone emergency surgery.
The news report shared in the viral post is an excerpt of Aaj Tak’s report on this incident back in 2015. However, this report is now being shared without any context. Raj Thackery is in the news recently protesting against the use of loudspeakers at Mosques.
To sum it up, an old news report about Raj Thackery’s wife getting injured due to a dog bite is being shared without any context.


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Old reports are being circulated out of context, linking them to current political developments - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
March 20, 2023
In the run up to the 2024 Lok Sabha General elections and several states going to assembly elections in 2023 & 2024,  multiple videos, like news reports, opinion polls, exit polls, etc. are being shared in the light of the forth coming elections.  Through this article, let’s fact-check the veracity of such series of viral posts.
Video 1:
This viral news report about AIMIM chief Asaduddin Owaisi campaigning in seven Muslim concentrated seats in West Bengal is being shared on social media platforms, accompanying it with  ‘#Breaking News’ hashtag, as if the news clip is recent one.
Claim: Recent news clip about AIMIM contesting Muslim dominated areas in West Bengal.
Fact: This is an old news clip, related to 2021 General elections in West Bengal. Republic Bharat telecast this clip on 27 March 2021, analysing the winning prospects of different parties, following AIMIM’s decision to field candidates in Muslim dominated areas. The news clip has nothing to with the recent political developments. Hence the claim made in the post is FALSE.
The viral news report does not show any recent political development, but an old report, that dates back to March 2021. Republic Bharat, telecast this report on 27 March 2021, in the light of the ongoing general elections.
The report analyzes the winning prospects of different parties, following Owaisi’s decision to field their candidates from the Muslim dominated areas. AIMIM official twitter handle also shared few glimpses of Asaduddin Owaisi’s political gathering in Murshidabad, as part of election campaign.
Thus, it is clearly evident that the viral news clip is an old report covering the 2021 West Bengal general elections and is being shared now without any context.
To sum it up, old news reports are being circulated out of context, linking them to current political developments.


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Old ‘Republic Bharat’ news report shared as recent news on the Russia-Ukraine conflict - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
January 10, 2023
A video is being shared on social media claiming it as latest news report of ‘The Republic Bharat’ news channel informing the possibility of a nuclear attack in the Russia-Ukraine war. The purported video of the ‘Republic Bharat’ channel reports that Russia has informed India and China about the possibility of a ‘Dirty Bomb’ attack on their country from Ukraine. Let’s verify the claim made by the post.
Claim: Latest news report of the ‘Republic Bharat’ channel informing the possibility of a ‘Dirty Bomb’ attack in the ongoing Russia-Ukraine war.
Fact: The video shared in the post was published by the ‘Republic Bharat’ news channel on 26 October 2022. The video is two months old and does not talk about recent updates on the ongoing Russia-Ukraine war. Hence, the claim made in the post is MISLEADING.
When we searched for this video using relevant keywords on the internet, a video with similar visuals was found published by the ‘Republic Bharat’ news channel on 26 October 2022. The extended version of the video shows a debate conducted by the ‘Republic Bharat’ news channel on the possibility of a nuclear attack in the Russia-Ukraine war.
In October 2022, Russia alleged that Ukraine plans to use a Dirty Bomb  on their country. Reporting the news of Russia informing Chinese and Indian Defence Ministers about Ukraine’s plans to use a ‘Dirty Bomb’, ‘Republic Bharat’ channel conducted a debate on the possibilities of a nuclear attack in the Russia-Ukraine war. Several other news websites have also published articles reporting Russia’s concerns over Ukraine using a ‘Dirty Bomb’. They can be seen here and here.
The latest updates on the Russia-Ukraine conflict can be seen here. The video shared in the post is two months old and does not talk about recent updates of the ongoing Russia-Ukraine war.
To sum it up, an old news report of ‘Republic Bharat’ channel is shared as recent news on the Russia-Ukraine conflict.

created: January 10, 2023


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Old Rs.500 notes issued under different RBI Governors can have the same serial number - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
September 25, 2022
A photo comparing two old 500-rupee currency notes with the same serial number but with two different former RBI Governors’ signatures is being shared on social media. This post claims it is an unusual thing to have the same serial number on two different banknotes issued during the periods of Y. V. Reddy and D. Subbarao as the governors of RBI. Alleging it was a scam under the UPA government, this post claims that former Finance Minister Chidambaram was arrested for knowing this secret. Let’s verify the claim made in the post.
Claim: Old 500-rupee currency notes having the same serial number but with the signatures of two different RBI governors indicates a scam by the UPA government.
Fact: The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) while answering a FAQ stated that there is a possibility of two or more bank notes having the same serial number but clarified that those identical banknotes would either have a different Inset Letter or year of printing or signature of a different Governor of RBI, which could distinguish the features of old and new currency notes. Before the demonetisation in November 2016, RBI continued the legal tender of all banknotes in the denomination of Rs.500/- issued from the year 2000. Hence, the claim made in the post is FALSE.
On reverse image search of the photo shared in the post, we found that the photo was being circulated on social media at least since November 2016, after the demonetisation move by the BJP government. Several news websites published articles about these banknotes with the same serial number but of different RBI signatures but did not confirm whether these are real or counterfeit notes.
When we searched to check whether banknotes having the same serial number but with the signatures of two different RBI governors indicates a scam, we found that the RBI has issued a clarification regarding this issue while answering a Frequently Asked Question. While answering a question quoting, “Is it possible to have two or more banknotes with the same serial number?”, RBI said, “Yes, it is possible to have two or more banknotes with the same serial number, but they would either have a different Inset Letter or year of printing or signature of a different Governor of RBI. An Inset Letter is an alphabet printed on the Number Panel of the banknote. There can be notes without any inset letter also”. So, different RBI governors’ signatures on the same serial numbered banknotes itself is a distinguishing security feature to identify the old and new notes.
In 2009, while announcing the issue of new Rs. 500 denomination banknotes with `’E’ Inset Letter and bearing the signature of then RBI Governor Dr. D. Subbarao, RBI stated, “The Reserve Bank of India will shortly issue Rs.500/- denomination banknotes with `E’ inset letter in both numbering panels in Mahatma Gandhi Series – 2005 bearing the signature of Dr. D. Subbarao, Governor.  Except for the change in the inset letter, the design of these notes to be issued now is similar in all respects to the banknotes in Mahatma Gandhi Series – 2005, with additional/new security features issued on October 21, 2005.  All banknotes in the denomination of Rs.500/- in Mahatma Gandhi series issued by the Bank from the year 2000 will continue to be legal tender”. RBI in another press release issued in 2011 re-emphasised that all the Rs. 500/- denomination banknotes issued in the past will continue to be legal tender.
Former Finance Minister Chidambaram was arrested in 2019 related to the INX media case. In 2014, after Raghuram Rajan took over the charge as the Governor of RBI, Rs. 20, Rs. 50 and Rs. 500 denomination notes with the signature of former RBI Governor Dr. D. Subbarao surfaced in the market. Amid these reports of goof-up in the printing of notes, RBI issued a press note in 2014 stating that the new notes bearing the signature of former Governor D Subbarao are legal tender, and said the process of changing the signature is underway. In a report published by the Comptroller and Auditor General of India (CAG) in 2015, CAG stated that this signature printing mistake done by the Bank Note Press (BNP) in Dewas incurred an expenditure loss of Rs. 36.69 crores. Before the demonetisation in November 2016, of all Rs. 500-denomination notes issued from the year 2000 continued to be legal tender.
To sum it up, old Rs. 500  denomination banknotes issued under different RBI Governors can possibly have the same serial number. It doesn’t indicate a scam.

created: September 25, 2022


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Old Satellite image falsely shared as that of the Beirut city after recent explosion - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
August 10, 2020
On ‘4 August 2020’, a massive explosion took place in the port of Beirut, the capital city of Lebanon. A collage of two photos is being shared on social media claiming it as before and after images of the destruction caused by the explosion in Beirut city. Let’s verify the claim made in the post.
Image of Beirut city after the destruction caused by the recent explosion.
Fact: Image that was shared as the condition of Beirut city after the Explosion was found on Google Earth since 2011. Hence the claim made in the post is FALSE.
On reverse image search, it is found that both photos in the post are related to the Beirut city of Lebanon. But, the photo that was shared as the condition of Beirut city after the explosion was found in a thread posted in a forum in 2013. When we searched for the same image on Google Earth Pro installed on a desktop, we found the exact same image of the Beirut city on it in 2011.
When searched for the satellite pictures of Beirut city after the explosion , we found the satellite pictures of Beirut city before and after the blast in an article published by the ‘Space.com’ news website. In the website, it is mentioned that a SkySat spacecraft, operated by SanFrancisco based company ‘Planet’, captured this detailed images of both before and after the blast in the port of Beirut. These satellite pictures can be found in a tweet made by the official twitter account of ‘Planet’ company. ‘The Guardian’ and ‘BBC’ news websites have also published articles comparing the before and after pictures of the blast in Beirut city. They can be seen here and here.
Before and after SkySat imagery shows the impact of yesterday’s explosion in Beirut.
Imagery captured on May 31, 2020 and today, August 5, 2020. pic.twitter.com/8zCLDOZn4w
To sum it up, satellite image of Beirut city before the explosion is falsely shared as that captured after the explosion.
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Old satirical news article is misconstrued as good morning messages will attract 18% GST - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
January 27, 2021
A post accompanying a newspaper clipping that claims that good morning messages are going to be charged 18% GST is being shared on social media platforms. Through this article let’s fact-check the claim made in the post.
Claim: Good morning messages are going to be charged 18% GST.
Fact: This is an old satirical article published in the Delhi edition of Navabharat Times back in 2018 on the occasion of Holi. At the end of this particular article, it is mentioned ‘बूरा न मानो होली है’. There are no circulars or official information in this regard on the GST and Ministry of Finance website. Hence the claim made in the post is FALSE.
We could not find any circular or official information in this regard on the GST and Ministry of Finance website. Also, we could not find any latest news articles or news reports in this regard.
Further Google search with relevant keywords led us to a 2018 news video that debunked the claim. As per this report, this article was initially published on 02 March 2018 in the Delhi edition of Navbharat Times on the occasion of Holi with an intention of pun. The news video has mentioned that at the end of this satirical article, it is stated ‘बूरा न मानो होली है’
Another news article which debunked the news when it went viral back in 2018 can be read here. With all this, we can conclude that an old satirical news article is misconstrued as good morning messages will attract 18% GST.
To sum it up, old satirical news article is misconstrued as good morning messages will attract 18% GST.

created: January 27, 2021


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Old Satirical Poster on PM Modi resurfaces amidst his US Visit - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
June 22, 2023
A photo of a famous TV series ‘Money Heist’ poster with the text that reads, “MR N Modi. We only rob banks. You rob the whole nation,” is being shared on social media with a claim that it was displayed in New York. This claim coincides with PM Modi’s three-day visit to the US. Let’s fact-check this claim through this article.
Claim: A poster branding PM Modi as a nation robber has been put up in New York.
Fact: This poster is almost a year old and was put up in Hyderabad before the BJP National Executive Meeting in July 2022. Hence, the claim made in the post is False.
A reverse image search of the viral photo on Google led us to several news reports that featured the same viral photo. Reportedly, a banner criticising PM Modi was displayed in July 2022 before the Bharatiya Janata Party’s national executive meeting in Hyderabad.
The Quint reported, “On 3 July, a billboard mimicking Money Heist came up at LB Nagar – where the BJP has strong presence in local bodies and where the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) had held an infamous march in 2020 – stating, “We only rob bank. You rob the whole nation.” The hoarding addressed PM Modi. Additional news reports on this topic can be found here and here.
Meanwhile, PM Modi, who is currently on a three-day visit to the US, will be meeting President Joe Biden at the White House today.
To sum up, this poster is old and has no connection to PM Modi’s ongoing US visit.


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Old scuffle video of YSRCP leaders falsely shared as visuals of AP Congress leaders' fight during Independence Day celebrations - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
August 25, 2021
A video is being shared on social media claiming it as visuals of AP Congress leaders scuffle during the recent Independence Day flag hoisting ceremony in Karimnagar. Let’s verify the claim made in the post.
Claim: Video of AP Congress leaders hitting each other during the recent Independence Day flag hoisting ceremony in Karimnagar.
Fact: The video shows an old incident that took place during the 2014 Independence Day celebrations in Karimnagar. This scuffle took place between the YSR Congress Party (YSRCP) leaders in Karimnagar district, Telangana. YSRCP women leader Susheela, along with her husband was seen hitting the then YSRCP Karimnagar district President Bhaskar Reddy in the video. This video has nothing to do with the Congress leaders and Andhra Pradesh. Hence the claim made in the post is FALSE.
On reverse image search of the screenshots in the video, similar visuals were found in a video published by the ‘ETV Andhra Pradesh’ news channel on 15 August 2014. The description of the photo states, “Spat Between YCP Leaders @ Flag Hoisting In Karimnagar”.
When we searched for more details using these keywords, we found that the ‘NDTV’ news website had reported this incident through an article on 15 August 2014. This incident reportedly took place during the 2014 Independence Day flag hoisting ceremony in Karimnagar. According to the article, YSRCP women leader Susheela had hit the then YSRCP Karimnagar district President Bhaskar Reddy during the Independence Day flag hoisting ceremony in Karimnagar. This article reported that Susheela was angry with Bhaskar Reddy for not informing her about party events and denying her the post of the district women’s wing chief.
Reporting the complete details of this incident, several news websites published articles in 2014. They can be seen here and here. From all these pieces of evidence, it can be concluded that the video shared in the post is an old one and has nothing to do with the AP Congress leaders.
To sum it up, an old scuffle video of YSRCP leaders is being shared as visuals of AP Congress leaders hitting each other during the recent Independence Day celebrations.


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Old Snowfall Video of Jammu & Kashmir’s Daksum Shared as Recent - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
September 24, 2023
A video purporting to show a snowfall event is being widely shared on social media claiming that it shows a fresh snowfall in the Daksum Kokernag region of Jammu & Kashmir on 22 September 2023. Let’s verify the claim made in the post.
Claim: Visuals offresh snowfall in the Daksum Kokernag region of Jammu & Kashmir on 22 September 2023.
Fact: This video was recorded in May 2023 in Daksum area of Jammu and Kashmir. Media and weather reports confirm that no fresh snowfall was reported in this area on 22 September 2023. Hence, the claim made in the post is MISLEADING.
A reverse image search of the viral video led us to the same video, previously uploaded on Facebook by a user named Sajad Wani on 08 May 2023 as the visuals of fresh snowfall at Daksum.
When the video started circulating on social media, claiming to show footage from 22 September 2023, Sajad Wani clarified that he had originally uploaded this video in May 2023, as a Facebook reel, and requested users to abstain from sharing this footage as recent visuals of the snowfall, to avoid any confusion.
To corroborate the information, we reached out to Sajad Wani, who confirmed that the video was indeed recorded in May 2023. It is pertinent to note that Kashmir experiences spring from April to early May. Furthermore, supporting news reports and videos confirmed snowfall in some parts of Kashmir, including the Daksum Kokernag region in May 2023. Simultaneously, weather reports revealed no evidence of snowfall in that area on 22 September 2023. Local media outlets have also debunked the viral video as misinformation, solidifying the fact that no fresh snowfall was witnessed in the area as of now.
To sum it up, an old video is being recirculated and misrepresented as recent footage of snowfall in the Daksum-Kokernag region of Jammu & Kashmir.

created: September 24, 2023


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Old speeches are being shared in the context of the ongoing Israel-Palestine conflict - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
October 14, 2023
Amid the ongoing conflict between Israel and Palestine, multiple old videos are being shared on social media claiming they show recent speeches of an Irish politician and Hamas militant spokesperson regarding the ongoing war. They can be seen here and here. Let’s verify the claims made in these posts.
Claim: Recent speeches of Ireland politicians and Hamas spokesperson regarding the ongoing war between Israel and Palestine.
Fact: The two videos shared in these posts are old and unrelated to the ongoing conflict between Israel and Palestine. Hence, the claims made in these posts are False.
Video 1:
A video is being shared on social media claiming it shows visuals of an Ireland Minister expressing his support to Palestine and accusing Israel of violating international laws on a daily basis.
On reverse image search of the screenshots of the video, a video with similar visuals was found published on the official YouTube channel of Ireland’s Sinn Féin Party’s official YouTube channel on 13 July 2023, with the description, “Why should another generation of Palestinians be made wait for the world to act? – Matt Carthy TD.” Matt Carthy is a TD for the Cavan Monaghan constituency and the Sinn Féin Party’s official spokesperson on Foreign Affairs and Defence. The statements made by Matt Carthy in the Oireachtas, the bicameral parliament of Ireland, can be seen here.
Lately, Ireland’s Minister for Foreign Affairs, Michael Martin, announced to the media that the country remains committed to providing humanitarian aid to Palestine amid the ongoing conflict. However, the video shared in the post is old and unrelated to the ongoing conflict between Israel and Palestine.
Video 2:
Another video is being shared on social media claiming it is the recent visuals of Abu Obaidah, a spokesperson of Izzuddin Al-Qassam Brigades, the armed wing of the Palestinian militant group Hamas, thanking the Iran government for providing weapons, money, and other equipment for attacking Israel.
On reverse image search of the screenshots of the video, a video showing similar visuals was found published by the ‘Aljazeera Mubasher’ news site on 15 December 2014, with the title, “A festival in Gaza on the anniversary of the launch of the Hamas movement.” The Arabic description of the video states, “Al-Qassam Brigades commemorates the launch of the Hamas movement with a popular festival and a military parade.”
An article published by Israel’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, on 17 December 2014, included the transcript of the military wing spokespersons’ comments. The statement in the report states- “At the end of the military parade (Sunday, 14 December), Abu Ubaida, spokesman for Hamas’ armed wing, the al-Qassam Brigades, gave a speech in which he praised Iran, thanking it for the weapons, funds, missiles and other aid which contributed to Hamas “victory” in the conflict with Israel this summer (Operation Protective Edge).”
To sum it up, old speeches of an Ireland politician and a Hamas military wing spokesperson are shared now in the context of the ongoing Israel-Palestine conflict.

created: October 14, 2023


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Old sting operation video is falsely shared as ‘Payal Rohatgi caught while demanding money to post pro-BJP tweets’ - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
October 22, 2019
A news video of CNN IBN, showing Payal Rohatgi and Sangram Singh, is being shared widely on social media. The video is being shared with the following text – “Modi bootlicker Payal_Rohatgi was caught in a sting operation where she agrees to post pro-BJP and anti-Muslim tweets. She asks for Rs.25 lakhs in cash and Rs. 5 lakhs in cheque. Hinduism ke naam pe musalmano par nafrat pahelane ke liye 30 lakhs. This is how BJP uses unemployed ‘celebrities’ to promote their hate agenda”. Let’s analyze the authenticity of that claim.
Video of Payal Rohatgi getting caught in a sting operation demanding money to post pro-BJP and anti-Muslim tweets.
Fact: In 2012, Cobrapost and CNN IBN conducted sting operations on various top Bollywood personalities to find out the prevalence of black money in the industry. During that time, Payal Rohatgi and her then-boyfriend Sangram Singh were also subject of those sting operations and the video in the post belongs to one of those sting operations. So, the claim made in the post is FALSE.
The video in the post has the logo of CNN IBN (now renamed as CNN News 18) on it. When searched for that video on YouTube, the same sting operation video was found on the YouTube channel of ‘News18 Lokmat’. The video had the timestamp of July 10, 2012, and from the description of the video, it was found that when Cobrapost’s undercover reporter met Payal Rohatgi as a film financier and discussed regarding offering her roles in the films, Payal had asked black money as payment to sign those contracts.
The information in the ‘Hindustan Times’ article with the title ‘Bollywood biggies caught in black money sting operation’ mentions that when Payal Rohatgi and her boyfriend Sangram were approached by a fake producer asking them to act in his film, they have demanded a fee of Rs. 30 lakh each and have stated that they would want Rs. 25 lakh in cash and Rs. 5 lakh in cheque.
To summarise, an old sting operation video is being falsely shared as ‘Payal Rohatgi caught while demanding money to post pro-BJP tweets’.
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created: October 22, 2019


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Old time-lapse video of a blizzard burying a garden attributed to the recent blizzard in Buffalo, New York - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
January 6, 2023
A video is being shared on social media claiming it is a 48-hour time-lapse video showing the recent blizzard in Buffalo city of New York State in the United States. The time-lapse video shows a neighbourhood gradually engulfed by snow during a winter storm. Amid a deadly blizzard causing the death of at least 28 persons in Buffalo city of New York recently, this video is going viral on social media. Let’s verify the claim made in the post.
Claim: A 48-hour time-lapse video showing the recent blizzard in Buffalo city of New York.
Fact: The video shared in the post is being circulated on the internet at least since January 2016. Several media reports stated it as the 48-hour time-lapse video showing a blizzard that hit Northern Virginia in January 2016. The video does not show the recent blizzard that hit Buffalo city in New York. Hence, the claim made in the post is FALSE.
When we searched for this video using relevant keywords on the internet, a video with similar visuals was found published by a YouTube channel on 25 January 2016. This YouTube user described it as a one-minute time-lapse video that captured the 48-hour blizzard of winter storm Jonas that hit Northern Virginia between the 22nd and 24th of January in 2016.
Mentioning it as a video shot by him, this YouTube user stated, “The camera was set up on our front porch in Northern Virginia, USA, and captured 1 frame every 30 seconds.  I further compressed it down to 1 frame every 90 seconds to produce this video which culminates with the beautiful sunrise on Sunday morning.  You can even see Venus rising in the east just before sunrise.  The final measurement on the yardstick was 31 inches or 79 centimeters.  It is very interesting to see how the snow compresses somewhat right before sunrise.”
The ‘Daily Mail’ published an article in 2016, reporting the details of this time-lapse video. ‘Daily Mail’ reported it as a time-lapse video showing a neighbourhood disappearing under nearly three feet of snow during the winter storm Jonas in January 2016. The time-lapse video reportedly shows the sheer amount of snow engulfing a garden in Herndon town in Northern Virginia.
To sum it up, an old time-lapse video of a blizzard burying a garden in Northern Virginia is shared as recent visuals from Buffalo, New York.

created: January 6, 2023


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Old Train accident images are now being shared as those from an accident in Kanpur - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
July 5, 2019
A post with some accident photos is being shared on Facebook with a claim that a train accident happened at Kanpur on the posted date (i.e. July 2, 2019). Let’s try to analyze the claim made in the post.
The photos show the recent Rajdhani train accident at Kanpur. People were jumping off the running train.
Fact: The images in the post were taken from two different accidents, which happened in 2014 and 2018. Also, no train accident (derailment or fire accident) was reported in this month at Kanpur. Hence the claim made in the post is FALSE.
In the post, there are three distinct types of photos: Two photos show a fire accident, one photo shows a derailed train, and the other photo shows an injured woman.
Fire accident photos:
When the photos were run through Google Reverse Image Search, they were found to be related to a fire accident which happened last year near Birlanagar station in Gwalior. According to an article in ‘Rediff’, the ‘22416/Andhra Pradesh AC SF Express’ train travelling from New Delhi to Vizag has caught fire due to some issue in an air-conditioning unit. The photos in the post can be seen in the articles (Patrika and Rediff) published related to this accident.
Also, when checked if this train passes through Kanpur, it was found that the train route does not touch the city.
Train Derailed Photo:
When the photo was reverse-image searched on Google, it was found to be related to an accident in June 2014. In ‘The Hindu’ newspaper article, a photo similar to the posted photo was published with the title, ‘Rescue work in progress after 12 coaches of the Delhi-Dibrugarh Rajdhani Express derailed near Chapra in Bihar.’ The exact photo can be found in a website called ‘ProKerala’ with the title, ‘Delhi-Dibrugarh Rajdhani Express derailed.’ This train passes through Kanpur but the accident happened in Bihar. So, this photo is not related to an accident in Kanpur.
Injured Woman Photo:
When this image was searched using Yandex Reverse Image Search, it was found in a tweet with a description that she was brutally attacked by TMC goons in West Bengal. It was tweeted in April 2018. The information related to the incident was not found but it can be conclusively said that the photo was not taken in this year. So, it is also not related to an accident this year.
Com: #RakhiRoy, #CPIM candidate for Zila Parishad elections in #Arambagh, #WestBengal was brutally attacked by #TMC goons. Condemns this horrific attack and demands immediate action. pic.twitter.com/2y1Tl6kIZi
To sum it up, the train accident photos are related to accidents which happened in 2014 and 2018 and have nothing to do with Kanpur. In fact, no train accident is reported from Kanpur this month and old images are now being shared again.
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Old training video of Pakistani Women commandos shared as a training video of the Indian army - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
September 22, 2022
A video is being shared on social media claiming it is a training video of the Indian army. This video shows a group of uniformed women soldiers jumping above a moving thread of blaze as part of their training. Let’s verify the claim made in the post.
Claim: Training video of Indian army.
Fact: The video shared in the post shows an old training video of Sindh police women commandos in Pakistan. The video shared in the post is old and had nothing to do with India. Hence, the claim made in the post is FALSE.
On reverse image search of the screenshots in the video, a video with similar visuals is found published by a few Pakistani media channels and users in August 2019. They can be seen here and here. These social media pages shared the video describing it as a training video of Pakistani commandos.
When we searched for further sources, we found the same video on the Facebook page of a Pakistan-based news and media website, Karachi Walay. This news website published the video reporting it as the training visuals of Sindh women commandos in Pakistan. A few other news websites have also published the video with a similar description in 2019.
A few other training videos and pictures of women commandos in the Special Security Unit (SSU) Sindh Police can be seen here, here and here. From all these pieces of evidence, it can be concluded that the video shared in the post shows a training video of Pakistani women commandos, not of the Indian army.
Earlier, when similar unrelated videos were shared as training videos of the Indian army, FACTLY published fact-check articles debunking those claims. They can be seen here and here.
To sum it up, an old training video of Sindh police commandos in Pakistan is being shared as a training video of the Indian army.

created: September 22, 2022


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Old truncated video clip shared as ‘Merkel refused to shake hands with Modi in the aftermath of NRC’ - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
January 9, 2020
A post with a video clip showing Angela Merkel refusing to shake hands with Modi and walking away is being widely shared on social media with a claim that the incident took place as an aftermath of National Register of Citizens (NRC). Let’s analyze the authenticity of that claim.
Video of Angela Merkel refusing to shake hands with Modi in the aftermath of National Register of Citizens (NRC).
Fact: The video clip in the post is a truncated video of a joint press meet of Modi and Angela Merkel in 2015. So, the claim is FALSE.
When searched on YouTube with the text ‘Modi and Merkel meeting’, many search results of it were obtained. Among them, a video of ‘Narendra Modi’ YouTube channel had Modi and Merkel in the same dresses as shown in the clip posted. The video is that of a joint press meet of Modi and Angela Merkel in 2015. In that video, after Modi and Merkel have given a joint speech, Modi offers a hand to shake with Merkel, but she walks from her podium suggesting him to move towards the flags of ‘India and Germany’ and then poses to the photographers shaking hands with Modi. The video is truncated in such a way to seem that Merkel is turning down Modi’s offer to shake a hand.
To conclude, an old and truncated video clip is being shared as ‘Merkel refused to shake hands with Modi in the aftermath of NRC’.
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created: January 9, 2020


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Old ‘TV9 Bharatvarsh’ video shared as recent news of NIA receiving an e-mail threatening to kill Narendra Modi - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
February 3, 2023
A video is being shared on social media claiming it as the latest news report of ‘TV9 Bharatvarsh’ that talks about the National Investigation Agency (NIA) receiving an e-mail threatening to kill PM Narendra Modi. Let’s verify the claim made in the post.
Claim: Latest ‘TV9 Bharatvarsh’ video reporting about NIA receiving an e-mail threatening to kill PM Narendra Modi.
Fact: The video shared in the post shows an old news report published by the ‘TV9 Bharatvarsh’ on 01 April 2022. Several other news websites have also reported this news of NIA receiving an e-mail threatening to Kill PM Narendra Modi, in April 2022. The video does not show the latest press report. Hence, the claim made in the post is MISLEADING.
When we searched for this video using relevant keywords on the internet, we found the same video published on the ‘TV9 Bharatvarsh’ YouTube channel on 01 April 2022. ‘TV9 Bharatvarsh’ in this video reported that the Mumbai Branch of NIA had received an anonymous e-mail threatening to assassinate PM Narendra Modi.
The sender of the e-mail claimed to have 20 kgs of RDX, and in the e-mail, the sender threatened to kill Narendra Modi using the same. Several other news websites have also published articles reporting this information in April 2022. A few of those news reports can be seen here and here. From all these pieces of evidence, it can be concluded that the video shared in the post shows an old ‘TV9 Bharatvarsh’ report published in April 2022.
To sum it up, an old ‘TV9 Bharatvarsh’ video is shared as recent news of NIA receiving an e-mail threatening to kill Narendra Modi.

created: February 3, 2023


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Old unidentified dead body photo falsely linked to the ongoing farmers’ protests - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
December 29, 2020
A photo is being shared on social media claiming it as the picture of a farmer who died while protesting in Delhi opposing the new farm laws introduced by the Government of India. Let’s verify the claim made in the post.
Claim:  Photo of the farmer who died while protesting against the Centre’s new farm laws.
Fact: Photo shared in the photo is an old one. This photo is on the internet at least since 2018. This photo has nothing to do with the ongoing farmers’ protest against the Centre’s new farm laws. 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 to be uploaded on social media by a few users during 2018 and 2019. These posts can be seen here, here and here. The posts mention that a dead body of an unidentified person aged about 70 years was found in Bohri chowk of Tar Tarn, and request everyone to share the post to ascertain the identity of the person. Though we couldn’t find any further information about the dead body, it is concluded that this photo is not of a person from the ongoing farmers’ protests as it is available on social media at least since 2018.
According to the news reports, at least 22 to 25 farmers have died during the protests against the new agriculture amendment laws passed by the Government of India. News articles and media reports about the farmers’ death in these protests can be read here, here and here.
To sum it up, an old photo of an unidentified dead body is being falsely shared linking it to the ongoing farmers’ protest.
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created: December 29, 2020