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The man in this Priyanka Gandhi’s wedding photo is neither a maulana nor MP Shafiqur Rahman Barq. - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
June 15, 2020
A photo of Priyanka Gandhi’s wedding is being shared on social media with a claim that maulana and MP Shafiqur Rahman Virk (SP MP Shafiqur Rahman Barq) can be seen performing Islamic rituals at the wedding. Let’s fact-check the claim made in the post.
Maulana and MP Shafiqur Rahman Barq performing Islamic rituals at Priyanka Gandhi’s wedding.
Fact: The man in the photo is neither a maulana nor MP Shafiqur Rahman Barq. He is Pandit Iqbal Kishen Reu, who performed the marriage of Priyanka Gandhi according to Kashmiri Pandit traditions. Hence the claim made in the post is FALSE.
On doing Google Reverse Image Search, the same photo was not found in the search results. But it was found that a similar photo was tweeted by Priyanka Gandhi in 2019 with the text – ‘Morning puja on the day of my wedding (22 years ago)’. When searched with keywords, an India Today article on ‘Priyanka Gandhi-Robert Vadra wedding’ can be found in the search results. In the article, it can be read that ‘the same priest that married her grandmother will grace this occasion too’. But no details about the priest were given. In the ‘Daily O’ article, it was written that ‘the family priest, Iqbal Kishan Reu, performed the rites’. So, when searched with that name on Google, an article on the ‘Kashmiri Pandit Network’ website was found. In the article, it can be read that Pandit Iqbal Kishen Reu was a practising Kul Purohit and performed the marriage of Priyanka Gandhi with Robert Vadra according to Kashmiri Pandit’s traditions. More articles regarding the marriage can be found here and here.
The ‘Alt News’ had also spoken to an ex-journalist and confirmed that the man in the photo is Iqbal Kishan Reu, a Kashmiri Pandit, not a maulana. More photos from the puja event were posted by multiple users on social media, which can be found here.
To sum it up, the man in this Priyanka Gandhi’s wedding photo is neither a maulana nor MP Shafiqur Rahman Barq. He is Iqbal Kishan Reu, a Kashmiri Pandit.
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The man in this video is not Nick Gardner, who climbed Scotland’s 282 Munros - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
September 8, 2023
A video of an alleged 81-year-old scaling a crevasse without any rope is being shared on social media, claiming him to be a man named Nick Gardner. Let’s fact-check this claim through this article.
Claim: These visuals show an 81-year-old man named Nick Gardner scaling a crevasse.
Fact: Although there is a real person named Nick Gardner who, at the age of 82, finished climbing Scotland’s 282 Munros (Mountains higher than 3000 Feet), the man seen in this video is not him. He is a Russian rock climber named Andrey Andronovich Didukh. Hence, the claim made in the post is Misleading.
To learn more about the viral video, we performed a reverse image search on a few of its keyframes on the internet. This search led us to a few articles and videos (here, here, and here) that feature the same person who appears in the viral clip. His name is Andrey Andronovich Didukh; reportedly, he is a Russian rock climber who is in his 70s. In one of the videos available on YouTube, he can be seen scaling a rock identical to the one in the viral clip.
One user identified the location of the video as Krasnoyarsk. Taking this as a hint, we performed a quick Google search, revealing that the rocks in the viral video are known as the Rock Pillars (here and here). These are located near the Russian city of Krasnoyarsk. In one of the pictures Andrey uploaded on Instagram, he can be seen posing in front of the same “Rock Pillar.”
A post shared by Андрей Дидух (@dedpauk_andronich)
Further, we performed a keyword search on the internet to learn about the alleged 81-year-old climber Nick Gardner (his Instagram). This led us to several reports (here, here, and here) on this person.
As per the reports from last year, he was 82 years old. Nick lives in Scotland and completed a unique challenge last year: climbing the 282 Scotland Munros (mountains higher than 3000ft.)  Reportedly, he started mountain climbing after his wife went into “full-time care” after being diagnosed with Alzheimer’s and Osteoporosis.
The post misquoted him as the climber, while it was actually Andrey, the Russian climber who is featured in the video. You can see the difference between both of them in the following collage.
To sum up, the man in this video is not Nick Gardner, who climbed Scotland’s 282 Munros.

source: news-factly

created: September 8, 2023

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

author: Sai Krishna Muthyanolla


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The man making these statements against Muslims in the video is Madhya Pradesh BJP MLA Rameshwar Sharma, not the collector of Indore - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
March 21, 2023
A video is being shared on social media claiming it is the visuals of Indore collector’s strong response to Muslims who allegedly raised anti-India slogans in Ujjain. The man in the video is seen challenging anti-nationals to spend a few days in Taliban-occupied Afghanistan and warns that whoever raises anti-India slogans will be crushed by the government. Let’s verify the claim made in the post.
Claim: Video showing Indore collector’s controversial statements against Muslims for allegedly raising anti-national slogans in Ujjain.
Fact: The man making these statements against Muslims in the video is Madhya Pradesh BJP MLA Rameshwar Sharma, not the collector of Indore. Hence, the claim made in the post is False.
On reverse image search of the screenshots of the video and by searching with relevant keywords on the internet, a video with similar visuals was found published by the ‘ETV Bharat’ official Facebook handle on 23 August 2021. ‘ETV Bharat’ reported it as the visuals of Madhya Pradesh BJP MLA Rameshwar Sharma making controversial comments against Muslims for allegedly raising anti-national slogans in Ujjain.
Reporting the complete details, ‘ETV Bharat’ and ‘Jan Satta’ published articles in August 2021. Responding to a matter of anti-national slogans raised by some people during the Muharram celebration in Ujjain, Rameshwar Sharma told media, “If you had your mother’s milk, spend a few days living in Taliban ruled Afghanistan and show. This country will be run by the constitution made by Babasaheb. Whoever raises anti-India slogans will be crushed. Those who like Taliban must go to Taliban.”
The present collector of the Indore district in Madhya Pradesh is Dr. Ilayaraja T (IAS). On comparing the images of Rameshwar Sharma and of Indore Collector Ilayaraja, it can be confirmed that the man making controversial statements against the Muslims in the video is BJP MLA Rameshwar Sharma, not the collector of Madhya Pradesh’s Indore district.
To sum it up, the man making controversial statements against Muslims in the video is Madhya Pradesh BJP MLA Rameshwar Sharma, not the collector of Indore.


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The man next to Tom Cruise in this photo is not the child from the 1996 movie Jerry Maguire - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
April 20, 2023
A collage of two pictures of Hollywood actor Tom Cruise, one with a child in 1996 and the other one allegedly with the same child now grown up, is viral on social media. Let’s check the facts behind this picture through this article.
Claim: The child from the movie Jerry Maguire now looks older than Tom Cruise in their latest photo together.
Fact: The persons in these two photos of the collage are two different people. The top picture is a still from the 1996 movie Jerry Maguire; the name of the actor sitting next to Tom Cruise is Jonathan Lipnicki and the image at the bottom features Tom Cruise with filmmaker Christopher McQuarrie. Hence the claim made in the post is False.
To know the details behind each picture, we performed a reverse image search on Yandex. The top photo led us to an article which contained the same photo titled ‘You won’t believe what the kid from ‘Jerry Maguire’ looks like now.. ‘ Jerry Maguire (here and here) is a 1996 film starring Tom Cruise, Renée Zellweger and Cuba Gooding Jr. among others.
The child actor in the photo is Jonathan Lipnicki, and you can see in the image below to know how he looks now. Jonathan is 32 years old now; he uploads his pictures on his Instagram profile, on which he also penned a note on the 25th anniversary of Jerry Maguire.
After establishing how Jonathan looks now, it is evident that the man in the bottom picture is not him. The person in it is actually filmmaker Christopher McQuarrie, who directed two Mission Impossible films and is the director of the upcoming two instalments of the franchise starring Tom Cruise. This picture was taken during the world premiere of Mission Impossible: Fallout in 2018 in Paris and is available on Getty Images.
To sum up, the photo of Christopher McQuarrie is falsely shared as the latest photo of the child actor in the movie Jerry Maguire.


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The man playing Garba in the video is Vikas Mahante, PM Modi's lookalike, at a Navratri event in Mumbai - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
November 9, 2023
A video of a group of people playing Garba is being shared with the claim that the man in the video is Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Let’s verify the claim made in the post.
Claim: The video shows Prime Minister Narendra Modi playing Garba
Fact: The man in the video is Vikas Mahante, PM Modi’s lookalike, at a Navratri event in Mumbai.  Hence, the claim made in the post is FALSE
On conducting a reverse image search using the video’s keyframes, we came across posts on different platforms alleging that the individual in the video was Prime Minister Modi (here, here, and here). Some responses under an X post included screenshots identifying the person as Vikas Mahante. The setting and the outfit worn by the man in the screenshots showed a resemblance to those in the viral video.
Subsequent research led us to Vikas Mahante’s social media profiles (here and here) where he shared videos and photos from a Navratri event that was held in Kora Kendra, Mumbai recently.
In further research, we learned that Vikas Mahante is an actor who played the role of Modi in Films. Also, there are no official reports about PM Modi playing Garba.
To sum up, the man in the video is Vikas Mahante, PM Modi’s lookalike, at a Navratri event in Mumbai

created: November 9, 2023


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The man posing with Bhagwat Mann in this photo is not Sidhu Moosewala’s Murder suspect Goldy Brar - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
May 31, 2022
A photo is being widely shared on social media claiming it as Punjab CM Bhagwat Mann’s picture with Goldy Brar, a Canada based gangster who claimed responsibility for singer & Congress leader Sidhu Moosewala’s Murder. This post shared a screenshot of a Facebook post purportedly made by gangster Goldy Brar and alleges it was an old post of him congratulating Bhagwat Mann. Let’s verify the claim made in the post.
Claim: Punjab CM Bhagwat Mann’s picture with Goldy Brar, the gangster who claimed responsibility for Sidhu Moosewala’s Murder.
Fact: The photo shared in the picture shows Bhagwat Mann posing along with a Mohali based businessman Goldy Brar. He is not the gangster Goldy Brar who claimed responsibility for the Murder of Sidhu Moosewala. Hence, the claim made in the post is MISLEADING.
On reverse image search of the photo using relevant keywords, we found the same photo posted by a Facebook user named Goldy Brar, on 10 March 2022. Lately, when his photo went viral linking to the murder of Sidhu Moosewala, this Facebook user shared a video on 29 May 2022 and clarified that he was not the Canada-based gangster Goldy Brar who claimed responsibility for the Sidhu Moosewala’s Murder. He said, “I am Goldy Brar, son of Rajinder Singh from village Jandwala. My picture is being misused on social media in connection with today’s tragic incident of the murder of Sidhu Moose Wala. I will take proper legal action against those”.
While he was giving an interview to the ‘Daily Ajit’ news website, he mentioned his full name as Manjit Singh Goldy Brar. Reporting the clarification given by Manjit Singh Goldy Brar, several news websites published articles. They can be seen here and here.
A few hours after the killing of Popular Punjabi singer and Congress politician Sidhu Moosewala, a Canada-based gangster Satwinderjit Singh, alias Goldy Brar, claimed responsibility for the Murder. Several news websites published articles reporting the original picture of gangster Goldy Brar. They can be seen here and here. On comparing these pictures with the photo shared in the post, it can be confirmed that the man posing with Bhagwat Mann in the photo is not Sidhu Moosewala’s murder suspect Goldy Brar.
To sum it up, the man posing with Bhagwat Mann in the photo is not Sidhu Moosewala’s Murder suspect Goldy Brar.


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The man posing with PM Modi in this photo is not Gujarat conman Kiran Patel - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
March 30, 2023
A photo is being shared on social media claiming it as an old picture of Prime Minister Narendra Modi along with Gujarat conman Kiran Patel who allegedly posed as a top PMO official and duped the Jammu and Kashmir administration. Mentioning that the photo was taken in 1993, the post claims that the man who was posing beside Modi while keeping his hands in his pockets was Kiran Patel. Let’s verify the claim made in the post.
Claim: 1993 photo showing PM Narendra Modi posing along with Gujarat conman Kiran Patel.
Fact: The man who was posing beside Narendra Modi, with his hands in his pockets, is BJP leader and the present Union Minister, G. Kishan Reddy. The photo was taken in 1994 when Narendra Modi was invited to the US by the American Council of Young Political Leaders (ACYPL). The photo has nothing to do with Gujarat conman Kiran Patel. Hence, the claim made in the post is False.
On reverse image search of the photo shared in the post, the same photo was found in an article published by ‘The Indian Express’ on 26 November 2014. Crediting the photo to Press Trust of India (PTI), The Indian Express provided a description below the photo stating-“Seen here Narendra Modi (2nd from left) outside the White House in Washington in 1994 along with G Kishan Reddy (1st from left), currently BJP State President, Telangana.”
Several news websites published the same photo describing that the man posing with his hands in his pockets is BJP leader and the present Union Minister G. Kishan Reddy. They can be seen here and here.
When we searched for further sources, we found the same picture in a collage of images posted by G. Kishan Reddy on Facebook on 25 September 2014. Sharing the pictures, Kishan Reddy said, “20 years ago in 1994 Sri Narendra Modi, Prime Minister of India, visited USA on the invitation of ACYPL (American Council of Young Political Leaders).” Further, he said, “I was part of his team along with Sri Ananth Kumar Union Minister for fertilizers and Chemicals and today he is visiting USA again as the proud Prime Minister of India. Let us greet him to make this historic movement in Indo-US relation. Here are a few pictures from my memory-lane which I feel to share with you to reminisce the occasion.” Ahead of Narendra Modi’s first visit to the US after becoming Prime Minister of India, Kishan Reddy shared these images on his Facebook page.
To sum it up, the man posing with Narendra Modi in this photo is BJP leader G. Kishan Reddy, not the Gujarat Conman Kiran Patel.


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The man seen burning the Indian National Flag in these photos has already been arrested - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
August 2, 2022
Images of a man burning the Indian National flag are being shared on social media through a post. The said post calls out for the man’s arrest. Let’s fact-check the claim.
Claim: Police are yet to arrest this man who is seen burning the Indian national flag.
Fact: This incident occurred in Tamil Nadu’s Nagapattinam in 2016. The man who burnt the Indian National Flag was Dilipan Mahendran, and the police arrested him. Hence the claim made in the post is MISLEADING.
A reverse image search of the post’s photo led us to a news report on the incident by The News Minute. Reportedly, the man seen burning the flag in the pictures has done that to express his frustration against the system. This incident took place in Tamil Nadu in 2016. Multiple news organizations have reported the incident, and we found that his pictures went viral on social media after posting them on his Facebook profile. These reports can be read here, here, and here.
This man, Dilipan Mahendran, was later arrested by the police and booked under the Prevention of Insults to National Honour Act and IT Act. Even though Dilipan was arrested in 2016, it is still being claimed that he has not been arrested for the past three years even after posting the images on social media.
To sum it up, the man seen burning the Indian National Flag in these photos has already been arrested, contrary to what the post claims.

created: August 2, 2022


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The man seen delivering hateful remarks against Hindus in this video is not a Muslim - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
October 26, 2023
A video clip is viral on social media platforms featuring a man allegedly named Baba Javed Hussain from Haridwar. It is claimed that he is making hateful comments about Hindus. In this fact-checking article, we will investigate the authenticity of these claims.
Claim: A video showing a man named Baba Javed Hussain from Haridwar, making hateful comments about Hindus.
Fact: The Uttarakhand police revealed that the man in the video is not Baba Javed Hussain but is actually a Hindu man named Dilip Bhagel. He was allegedly paid by an unknown individual to make these derogatory statements. Therefore, the claim made in the post is False.
To investigate the validity of the viral video, we initiated a keyword search on the internet. These efforts led us to a tweet by the Uttarakhand Police, who had posted about the issue at hand. In their post, they stated that they had taken note of the viral video, conducted an investigation, and found out that the man in the video was actually given intoxicants by someone and was made to use abusive language about the Hindu community.
ट्विटर पर वायरल वीडियो का संज्ञान लेकर हरिद्वार पुलिस ने जांच में पाया कि कथित साधु को एक व्यक्ति द्वारा नशीला पदार्थ देकर उनसे हिन्दू समुदाय के विरुद्ध अपशब्द बुलवाकर वीडियो प्रसारित किया। कथित साधु के विरूद्ध वैधानिक कार्यवाही की गयी है। उक्त व्यक्ति के विरूद्ध भी की जा रही है। pic.twitter.com/uHaSMNQiTf
The Uttarakhand Police stated that legal action was initiated against both the man in the video and the individual who made him utter these derogatory statements. Additionally, the police tweeted a video of the same man who confessed to being named Dilip Bhagel.
Swatantra Kumar Singh, the SP of Haridwar city, confirmed the police’s investigation results, stating that the man in the video was arrested. He explained that the man, Dilip, is not a Muslim but a Hindu. He was given money by an unknown person, allegedly a YouTuber, and was persuaded to make the incendiary statements.
"When the accused, whose video was going viral, was apprehended and questioned, we found that the person was not a Muslim person, but a Hindu man and a YouTuber gave the man money and asked him to say these things": Swatantra Kumar Singh, SP City Haridwar pic.twitter.com/aAMSkPEhUE
The Kotwali Haridwar police station has registered a case under section 505(2). We have accessed a copy of the FIR, which can be seen here.
To sum up, the man in the viral video is not a Muslim named Baba Javed Hussain from Haridwar but a Hindu.

created: October 26, 2023


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The man sitting on the stairs along with an old woman in this photo is Bhupalpally District Collector Abdul Azeem. - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
September 4, 2020
A photo of a man sitting alongside an old woman on the steps of a building entrance is being shared widely on social media with a claim that the man in the photo is a Judge at the District Court in ‘Bhuvanapalli’, Telangana. It is being claimed that Judge Abdul Haseem came downstairs to meet the old woman as she was unable to climb the stairs and resolved her 2-year pending issue. Let’s fact-check the claim made in the post
Photo of Bhuvanapalli (Telangana) District Court Judge Abdul Haseem sitting on stairs along with an old woman and resolving her pending issue.
Fact: The man in the photo is not a District Judge and there is no ‘Bhuvanapalli’ district in Telangana. While the incident is true, the man in the photo is ‘Jayashankar Bhupalpally’ District Collector Abdul Azeem. Hence the claim made in the post is FALSE.
When the image in the photo was run through Google Reverse Image Search, the same photo was found in an article published by ‘The Hans India’ in February 2020. In the article, it can be read that the person sitting along with the old woman in the photo is ‘Jayashankar Bhupalpally’ District Collector Abdul Azeem. He saw the old woman sitting on the steps and enquired about her issue. When she informed him about her old-age pension issue, ‘the Collector immediately spoke to the DRDO Sumathi ensured the sanction of pension to Mangamma’.
This incident was also reported by other news agencies too. The same picture is also available on the official website of the district.
Also, on the official website of Jayashankar Bhupalpally district, the profile of Mohd Abdul Azeem IAS can be seen. So, it can be concluded that the man in the photo is not a District Judge. There is also no district with the name – Bhuvanapalli in Telangana.
To sum it up, the man sitting on the stairs along with an old woman in this photo is Bhupalpally District Collector Abdul Azeem.

created: September 4, 2020


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The man speaking about the criminalization of politics in this video is not IPS Officer Shailja Kant Mishra. - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
September 25, 2020
A video of a man speaking about the criminalization of politics is being shared on social media with a claim that the man in the video is Shailja Kant Mishra, 1977 batch IPS Officer, Director General of Police – Uttar Pradesh. Let’s fact-check the claim made in the post
Video of IPS Officer Shailja Kant Mishra talking about the criminalization of politics.
Fact: The man in the video is not IPS Officer Shailja Kant Mishra. He is Nitish Rajput, who calls himself an ‘Entrepreneur, Business Head, and Digital Creator’. Hence the claim made in the post is FALSE.
On the video published in the post, the social media handles ID – ‘nitishrajpute’ can be seen. So, when we searched for that ID on Instagram, the profile of ‘Nitish Rajput’ was found. He is the man in the video. He posted the same video on his Instagram profile on 26 July 2020. He also posted the same video on his YouTube channel. He calls himself an ‘Entrepreneur, Business Head, and Digital Creator’. An article on him can be read on the ‘Hindustan Times’ website. The article mentions that his age is 28 years, so he cannot be an IPS Officer of 1977 batch. Also, it is not mentioned anywhere that he is an IPS officer.
There is a retired IPS Officer Shailja Kant Mishra, who is currently the Vice-Chairman of U.P Braj Teerth Vikas Parishad. Some articles on him can be read here and here. The details regarding the current DGP of Uttar Pradesh can be found here.
To sum it up, the man speaking about the criminalization of politics in this video is not IPS Officer Shailja Kant Mishra. He is Nitish Rajput, an entrepreneur and digital creator.

created: September 25, 2020


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The man thrashed by the police in the video is not the accused in the Hyderabad veterinary doctor rape-murder case - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
December 2, 2019
A video is being shared widely on social media with a claim that Mohammad Pasha, the accused in the Hyderabad veterinary doctor rape-murder case, is being beaten up by the police in the video. The same video taken from another angle is also being shared with the same claim. Let’s try to analyze the claim made in the post.
Mohammad Pasha, the accused in the Hyderabad veterinary doctor rape-murder case, is being beaten up by the police in the video.
Fact: The man in the video is not the accused in the Hyderabad veterinary doctor rape-murder case. The video is related to an alleged rape case in Chittoor. Hence the claim made in the post is FALSE.
The four people accused in the Hyderabad veterinary doctor rape-murder case are Mohammad Areef, Jollu Shiva, Jollu Naveen, and Chintakunta Chennakeshavulu.
When the screenshots of the video were run through the Google Reverse Image Search, the similar visuals were found in a YouTube video uploaded by the ‘NTV Telugu’ channel on 26 November 2019, i.e. before the Hyderabad incident. In the video, it can be found that the accused was being beaten by the police for allegedly raping a 10-year-old girl.
Also, ‘The Hindu’ has published an article on this incident with the title: ‘Accused in rape case thrashed by cops, public in Chittoor”.
To sum it up, the man thrashed by the police in the video is not the accused in the Hyderabad veterinary doctor rape-murder case.
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created: December 2, 2019


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The man threatening a girl in this video is not a Muslim. - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
August 1, 2022
A post is being shared on social media where a man can be seen threatening a girl with a knife. The post claims that the man is a Muslim and the girl is a Hindu. Let’s verify the claim.
Claim: A Muslim man threatened a Hindu girl with a knife in Madhya Pradesh’s Indore.
Fact: This incident did take place in Indore, however, the man threatening the girl was captured and booked under Arms Act.  His name is Piyush Rawat as per the F.I.R copy. He is not a Muslim. Hence the claim made in the post is MISLEADING.
After searching on the internet with relevant keywords, we found multiple reports of the incident in Indore. Reports on this incident can be read here, here and here. We can see the same man from the video in the thumbnail of an article published by ABP live.
Reportedly, the name of the man seen in the video is Piyush, and he was forcing a girl to marry him. A passerby had made this video & shared on social media. The police apprehended Piyush based on the video evidence and registered a case against him under the Arms Act. We have accessed a copy of the  F.I.R from the website of the Madhya Pradesh police and found his name to be Piyush Rawat, son of Bharat Singh Rawat. The F.I.R copy can be viewed here. From all this, we can conclude that the man is not a Muslim.
To sum it up, the man threatening a girl with a knife in this video is not a Muslim.

created: August 1, 2022


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The man touching the feet of Sonia Gandhi in the photo isn’t Manmohan Singh - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
April 30, 2019
Many Facebook users are sharing a post with the picture of Sonia Gandhi and Manmohan Singh alleging that the latter is touching the feet of the former. Let’s try to analyze the claims made in the post.
Manmohan Singh had touched the feet of Sonia Gandhi.
Fact: The man with the orange turban in the photo is a Congress representative, not Manmohan Singh as alleged in the post. Hence, the claim is FALSE.
When the picture in the post was run through Google Reverse Image search, it was found in the Getty images library. The description seen below the photo is “a representative touches the feet of Sonia Gandhi as Congress General Secretary Rahul Gandhi looks on during the Indian Youth Congress’s national level convention of Elected Office Bearers in New Delhi”. So, it is clear from it that the man with the orange turban in the photo isn’t Manmohan Singh, he is a Congress representative.
This event took place in 2011 and it was attended by Sonia Gandhi, Manmohan Singh and Rahul Gandhi. In it, Manmohan Singh can be seen wearing a blue turban.
To sum it up, the man with the orange turban seen touching the feet of Sonia Gandhi isn’t Manmohan Singh.


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The man wearing gold in the image is a businessman from Pakistan, not related to Tirupati Balaji Temple Priest. - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
June 11, 2019
A post with an image of a man covered with gold ornaments is being shared on Facebook with a claim that he related to the priest in the Tirupati Balaji Temple and the marriage of the priest’s daughters. Let’s try to analyze the claim made in the post.
The man wearing gold in the image is related to priest in the Tirupati Balaji Temple. And his daughters can be seen wearing 125 kg gold in the image.
Fact:  The name of the person wearing gold in the image is Amjad Saeed (also known as Gold Man / KaKa 222), a businessman in Rawalpindi. Hence the claim made in the post is FALSE.
When the image in the post is cropped and ran through Yandex Reverse Image Search, it is found that the name of the person in the image is Amjad Saeed. Further information about him can be found on his Facebook account, where he frequently comes on Facebook live. He runs a gold and artificial jewellery business in Rawalpindi (Pakistan).
In the post, there is also an image of three girls wearing large amounts of gold. The original source of that image was not found but it was shared multiple times in the past with different claims like Bihar Don’s Daughter Marriage, Tirupati Laddu Contractor Daughter’s Marriage, etc. This image has been in circulation for more than 3 years.
To sum it up, the man wearing gold in the image is a businessman in Pakistan, not related Tirupati Balaji Temple Priest.
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The man who set himself ablaze in the video is a Mongolian coal mine union leader, not a Mongolian Minister - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
February 22, 2022
A video is being shared on social media claiming it as visuals of a Mongolian Minister setting himself ablaze in a press meet. This post claims that the Minister of Public Works in Mongolia had set himself on fire after he failed to keep his promise to build one lakh units of low-income houses in one year. Let’s verify the claim made in the post.
Claim: Video of Mongolian Minister setting himself ablaze in a press meet after he failed to keep his promise to build one lakh units of low-income houses.
Fact: The person who set himself ablaze in the video is a Mongolian coal mine union leader, not the Mongolian Minister of Public works. Protesting the sale of Mongolia’s coal mines to China, the union leader had set himself on fire in a press meet. This incident took place in November 2015. 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 in an article published by ‘The Daily Mail’ news website on 16 November 2015. This article reported it as visuals of a Mangolian coal mining union leader setting himself ablaze during a press meet in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia.
When we searched for further details of the incident, it is found out that the man who set himself ablaze in the press meet is S. Erdene, Chairman of the Board of Mongolian Solidarity Labor Union in Mongolia. The union leader had self-immolated protesting the Chinese takeover of Mongolia’s coal mining. Before setting himself ablaze, S. Erdene reportedly said, “The government no longer supports our company, families of the workers are forced to starve. This is why I will burn myself for the people of Mongolia and our children”. Erdene had reportedly suffered serious burns and was immediately taken to the hospital.
Reporting the details of the incident, several other news websites have published articles in 2015. They can be seen here and here. Lately, there were no news reports of a Mongolian Minister setting himself ablaze for failing to keep his promise on building low-income houses for the poor in the country.
To sum it up, a 2015 video of a Mongolian coal mine union leader setting himself ablaze is being shared with a false narrative.

created: February 22, 2022


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The man who stabbed a girl in Mukherjee Nagar is not a Muslim - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
March 29, 2024
A series of screenshots and a video (here, here and here) related to a stabbing incident in Delhi have been circulating on social media. The incident involved a man named Aman attacking a girl with a knife in Delhi’s Mukherjee Nagar. The posts claimed that Aman is a Muslim and the girl is a Hindu, suggesting a religious motive for the attack. This fact-check article verifies this claim.
Claim: The man who attacked a girl in Delhi’s Mukherjee Nagar is a Muslim.
Fact: The North West Delhi Police have identified the attacker as Aman Singh, son of Brij Kishore Singh, who is Hindu. Thus, the claim made in these posts is False.
To verify the viral claim, a keyword internet search was conducted using the details provided in the posts. This search led to several news reports (here and here) about the incident, which reportedly occurred on 22 March 2024. Multiple news outlets have shared (here and here) a CCTV video of the attack.
According to the Times of India, the attacker was identified as a 22-year-old man named Aman, who attacked a woman after she ‘mocked’  him.
The incident occurred in Mukherjee Nagar, Delhi.
A big applause for the bystanders who intervened and helped. 👏👏👏 https://t.co/pBGvBdaK3I
To further confirm the religious identity of the attacker, we reached out to the office of DCP North West Delhi. SI Rajesh and his team informed us that the attacker is not Muslim. His name is Aman Singh, and his father, Brij Kishore Singh, is Hindu. They also revealed that the girl’s name is Sana. Aaj Tak also reported, after contacting Delhi Police, that the Deputy Commissioner of Police, North West Delhi, Jitendra Meena, confirmed that the boy is a Hindu and the girl is Muslim.
To sum up, the claim that Aman, the man who attacked a girl in Delhi’s Mukherjee Nagar, is a Muslim is False.


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The man who was assaulted by the Temple priest in this video is not a Christian - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
March 11, 2022
A video is being shared on social media claiming it as the visuals of a temple priest attacking a Christian man for asking him to believe in Jesus and get converted into Christianity. The post claims that this incident had taken place in the Secunderabad Ganesh temple. Let’s verify the claim made in the post.
The archived version of the post can be seen here.
Claim: Video of a priest attacking a Christian man as he preached Christianity in the Secunderabad Ganesh Temple.
Fact: This incident did take place recently in the Ganesh temple in Secunderabad, Telangana. But the man who was assaulted by the temple priest is not a Christian. Prabhakar Sharma, one of the priests in the Secunderabad Ganesh temple, assaulted a devotee for entering the sanctum sanctorum of other temples without permission. Valmiki Rao, the devotee who was assaulted, filed an FIR against Prabhakar Sharma in the Secunderabad Gopalapuram Police Station. Gopalapuram PS SHO Sai Eshwar Gaud confirmed FACTLY that the assaulted devotee does not belong to the Christian community. Hence, the claim made in the post is MISLEADING.
On reverse image search of the screenshots in the video, a video with similar visuals was found published by the ‘ETV Telangana’ YouTube channel on 06 March 2022. This video reported that Secunderabad Ganapati Temple priest Sudhakar Sharma had assaulted a devotee for entering the sanctum sanctorum of other temples without permission. These scenes were recorded in the CCTV cameras of the temple.
Reporting the complete details of the incident, several news websites published articles and videos. They can be seen here, here, and here. The incident took place on 27 February 2022.  These news websites reported the assaulted devotee as one Valmiki Rao. The assaulted devotee had approached the Secunderabad Gopalapuram police station and lodged a complaint against priest Sudhakar Sharma. Police arrested Sudhakar Sharma and further interrogation was underway.
FACTLY contacted Gopalpuram PS SHO Sai Eshwar Gaud for further clarification regarding the religious identity of the assaulted devotee. Sai Eshwar Gaud confirmed FACTLY that the attacked devotee Valmiki Rao belongs to the Munnuru Kapu community of the Hindu religion. He clarified that there is no communal angle in this incident. We will update the article once the FIR was available on the TS Police website.
To sum it up, the man who was assaulted by the Secunderabad Ganesh Temple priest in this video is not a Christian.


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The man who was seriously injured in this video did not die after the collision at the water slide - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
June 5, 2022
A video through a post is being widely shared on social media claiming that a man was killed in a Water Park in Jhalawar district in Rajasthan. Let us fact-check the claim made in the post.
Claim: Video of a Man who died in a water park in Jhalawar district.
Fact: The man in the video did not die after the collision. The young man’s life was saved after he was immediately taken to the SRG hospital. He was later discharged from the hospital and no case is filed against anyone yet. The incident happened recently in Mukundra Water Park in Jhalawar district, Rajasthan. Though there was a similar case of a youth who was hit (he was killed) in Ajmer, this video in Jhalawar district is different. Hence, the claim made in the post is MISLEADING.
When reverse image search is done on the screenshots of the video, a video report with similar visuals was found uploaded by Dainik Bhaskar. According to the video report, the young man’s life was saved after he was immediately taken to the hospital. He was later discharged from the hospital and no case is filed against anyone yet. Though there was a similar case of a youth who was hit (he was killed) in Ajmer, this incident in Jhalawar district is different.
According to reports, the incident happened recently in Mukundra Water Park in Jhalawar district, Rajasthan. The young man from Ramganjmandi who was standing in the pool collided with the woman coming down the water slide. The young man faints and it causes a serious head injury. The people present nearby take him out of the pool. The man was taken to SRG hospital for treatment. He was later discharged. Photos of ‘Mukundra Hotels & Resorts’ on google maps is similar to the one in the video.
To sum it up, the man who was seriously injured in this video did not die after the collision under the water slide.


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The Manipur Congress president did not write a letter to Rahul Gandhi, blaming Congress for the current crisis - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
July 10, 2023
A news clip of India Today is being shared on social media in which an anchor can be seen reporting that a regional party leader of Manipur wrote a letter to Rahul Gandhi, blaming the Congress party for the current Manipur crisis. Sharing this clip through a post on social media, it is claimed that’ Manipur Congress President has written a letter to Rahul Gandhi saying that Congress is responsible for the current problem by infiltrating Rohingyas & Bangladeshi for its vote bank.‘ Let’s verify this post through this fact-checking article.
Claim: Manipur Congress party president wrote a letter to Rahul Gandhi, blaming Congress for the current crisis.
Fact: The viral video is an edited version of a news report published by India today. In the full version, it was reported that Naorem Mohen, the General Secretary of the Manipur Patriotic Party, wrote the letter to Rahul Gandhi. Hence, the claim made in the post is Misleading.
Firstly, taking a closer look at the news clip, we noticed that a quote that reads ‘Crisis outcome of policy by Congress’ was attributed to a person named Mohen. Also, at 0:14 seconds of the news clip, the anchor says Naorem Mohen is the person who wrote the letter to Rahul Gandhi.
Taking this as a clue, we ran a keyword search on the internet, which led us to news reports (here and here)from last month.
Reportedly, a person named Naorem Mohen, who is the General Secretary of The Manipur Patriotic Party, wrote an open letter to Rahul Gandhi in which he attributed the current political crisis to the continuation of a British policy by the Congress Party. We also found a longer version of the India Today news report, of which the viral clip is a part. In the report, it is clearly mentioned that Naorem Mohen is the person who wrote the letter to Rahul Gandhi.
You can find the letter in this news report published by India Today. You can learn more about Naorem Mohen by clicking on this article published by GroundReport.in.
To sum up, the Manipur Congress president did not write a letter to Rahul Gandhi, blaming Congress for the current crisis.


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The married couple in this photo with a big age difference are not father and daughter - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
April 19, 2022
A post with a collage of images is being shared on social media claiming that a man has fallen in love with his daughter and recently married her in Gujarat. The post shared a picture of a middle-aged man getting married to a young girl and also a picture of the marriage registration certificate. Let’s verify the claim made in the post.
Claim: Picture of a man who got married to his own daughter in Gujarat.
Fact: The married couple with a big age difference in the photo were not father and daughter. Dinesh Kumar, a resident of Botad city in Gujarat’s Bhavnagar district has recently married Zapadia Shitalben from the Surendra Nagar district of the same state. Both the bride and groom belong to two different families. Hence, the claim made in the post is FALSE.
On reverse image search of the bride and bridegroom photo shared in the post, similar pictures of the married couple were found in several articles recently published by the local Gujarati news websites. They can be seen here and here. These articles reported that a young girl married a father-aged man in the name of love. According to these articles, Dinesh Kumar, a resident of Gujarat’s Bhavnagar district got married to Zapadia Shitalben from the Surendra Nagar district of the same state.  This marriage reportedly took place in Botad city in Gujarat.
Reporting the complete details of this incident, a few news articles published the same marriage registration certificate picture as shared in the post. When one observes the marriage registration certificate carefully, one could see that the name of the bridegroom and the bride’s father’s name mentioned on the marriage certificate are different. According to the family particulars mentioned on the marriage registration certificate, it can be confirmed that the bride and groom in the picture belong to two different families.
To sum it up, the married couple in this photo with a big age difference are not father and daughter.


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This photoshopped picture claiming massive crowd is not from Modi's Siliguri meeting - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
April 15, 2019
An image is being shared on Facebook by many users claiming that huge crowds of over 10 lakh have attended the Modi’s public meeting at Siliguri. In the image, it can be seen that Modi and Shah are sitting on the stage and looking at the huge crowd before them.  Let’s try to check the authenticity of the image posted on Facebook
Massive crowd of over 10 lakh at Modi’s Siliguri meeting
The image is photoshopped. The original photo of was not taken at the Siliguri meeting, but, in 2017, at the swearing-in ceremony of the new government in Himachal Pradesh. Hence the claim made in the post is FALSE
When searched for “Modi’s Siliguri Meeting” on Google, photos of the Siliguri meeting can be found on Modi’s official Twitter account. From the photos, it can be found that the above image was not taken at that meeting as Modi was wearing a white kurta in the Siliguri meeting, instead of the brown one shown in the image.
To find out the details of the picture posted on Facebook, the picture is run through Google Reverse Image Search. The original photo was found in the search results, so the image posted on Facebook is photoshopped. But the details of the original photo were not found.
Then, the original photo is run through Yandex Reverse Image Search. In the search results, a link to a Twitter post with similar images posted by the official BJP Twitter account can be found. The tweet reads: “Swearing-in ceremony of the new government of Himachal Pradesh.” In the photo, it can be seen that Modi was wearing a brown kurta (similar to the image posted on Facebook) and the huge flag was present in the crowd (similar to the original photo).  So, it can be concluded that the original photo that is photoshopped was taken in 2017 at the swearing-in ceremony of the Himachal Pradesh government.
Finally, the photo was not taken at the Siliguri meeting and the image is photoshopped.


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The men wearing gold in these images are not Balaji Temple Priests - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
July 9, 2019
On Facebook, a post with a collage of men wearing gold ornaments is being shared with a claim that they are priests in the Balaji Temple. Let’s try to analyze the claim made in the post.
The men wearing gold in the images are priests in the Balaji Temple.
Fact: Two out of five men in the collage turned out to be businessmen. Hence, the claim that the men wearing gold in the images are Balaji Temple priests stands to be FALSE.
When the images in the collage are cropped and are individually subjected to Reverse Image Search technique, no information was found about them. Further research reveals that this kind of news has been in circulation since 2014. In one of the Facebook posts, a user put a comment about the man in the photo-1 of the collage saying that the man belongs to U.P. and he is famous during Kanwar Yatras. With this information, when googled further, no exact photo of the one in the post was found, but it was found that the man in the photo-1 is Sudhir Kumar Bittu, also known as ‘Gold Man’. He is a businessman by profession. When verified if he is a priest at Balaji temple, no supporting information was found.
In the process of our search, when looked on YouTube with the keywords “Gold men in India”, the man in photo-5 (when moved in the clockwise direction) was seen in a video. From the video, it was found that he is Samrat Moze of Pune. When looked for more information about him, it was found that he is a politician from the Nationalist Congress Party. It is clear that he is also not a priest at the Tirupati Balaji temple.
When Factly looked for information regarding the other three photos in the collage, nothing was found about them. But it can be concluded based on available information that the men wearing gold in these images are not Balaji Temple Priests.
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The message claiming three positive Coronavirus cases in Kothapet (Hyderabad) is fake - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
March 16, 2020
A message is being shared widely on social media with a claim that three positive Coronavirus cases were reported in Kothapet (Hyderabad). The message is in the name of Lion Rajanikanth Koka (Hyderabad City Head, Indian Media Council). Let’s try to analyze the claim made in the post.
Details of three Coronavirus positive cases reported in Kothapet (Hyderabad).
Fact: Dr G Srinivasa Rao (Director of Public Health, Telangana) has told FACTLY that the viral message is not true. Also, Rachakonda Police has tweeted that a FIR has been filed in the Chaitanyapuri PS (Kothapet area) on the person who spread the fake news. Hence the claim made in the post is FALSE.
FACTLY has contacted Dr. G Srinivasa Rao (Director of Public Health, Telangana) to check whether there is any truth in the viral message. He has replied to FACTLY that it is ‘false’ news. Also, Rachakonda Police has tweeted that an FIR has been filed in the Chaitanyapuri PS (Kothapet area) on the person who spread the fake news that Coronavirus positive cases were reported in SRL Colony, Satyangar Colony, and Laxminagar Colony (areas mentioned in the viral message). They also tweeted that they ‘have already initiated criminal proceedings and investigation is on. Culprits will be brought to justice.’
Please don't spread #misinformation about Corona virus.@Chaitanyapurips pic.twitter.com/T9H7YAw1Ga
Also, FACTLY has found a screenshot of a personal chat where Lion Rajanikanth Koka regrets sharing the message and asks not to forward the message. (FACTLY was not able to ascertain the authenticity of the screenshot). FACTLY tried to contact Mr. Rajanikanth and this article will be updated when a response is received.
To sum it up, the message claiming three positive Coronavirus cases in Kothapet (Hyderabad) is fake.
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The message ‘COVID-19 Medical kit Required at home’ is not from Tata Health - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
June 15, 2020
A message with the title ‘Covid Medical kit required at home’ is being shared by many users on social media. The message has the particulars of that medical kit and describes the three stages of COVID-19. A link to ‘Tata Health’ is given in that message suggesting that these recommendations are issued by Tata Health. Let’s check if Tata Health had issued any such recommendations.
Details of COVID-19 Medical kit for home usage and the three stages of COVID-19 issued by Tata Health.
Fact: ‘Tata health’ has clarified that the link in the message belongs to their company but the message was not issued by them. Hence the claim made in the post is FALSE.
When a twitter user has tagged Tata Health requesting it to confirm the authenticity of the message, Tata Health clarified that the message was not issued by them.
We are sorry but the above message received by you is not from Tata Health. Kindly inform the same to the group from where you received this message.
In another tweet, Tata Health issued a ‘Disclaimer’ that unverified information is being circulated with their website link, and clarified that Tata Health is not associated with those messages in any way.
Please consult a doctor online or at a hospital nearby regarding doubts and queries related to COVID-19 before resorting to unverified information.
Visit: https://t.co/jVFldNOCws#SehatAapkiSaathHamaara pic.twitter.com/G2bsXPjfuO
Also, when searched for the stages of COVID-19 given in the message, it was found that no renowned institute or organization has made such a classification of stages mentioned in the message. But it was found that recently, scientists have described three distinct phases of COVID-19 disease progression in patients and they are as follows –
Also, the viral message claims that inhaling steam, hot water gargling as the methods for recovery from COVID-19, but FACTLY has earlier debunked these claims and those articles can be read here and here.
To sum it up, message with details of Covid-19 Medical kit for home usage and the three stages of COVID-19 is falsely attributed to Tata Health.
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The message - ‘Four kidneys available for donation. Contact these numbers’ is fake - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
July 23, 2020
A message is being shared widely on social media with a claim that there are four kidneys available for donation. The message mentions three phone numbers for contacting the donors’ relatives. Let’s fact-check the claim made in the post.
Four kidneys available for donation. Contact the given numbers.
Fact: The same message is being shared on social media at least from October 2017. Two of the given phone numbers are not working and the person on the other number had already clarified that the message is fake. Hence the claim made in the post is FALSE.
When we searched for further details regarding the message, it was found that the same message is being shared on social media at least from October 2017. But, back then, it was shared (archived) only with one phone number.
When ‘Check4Spam’ contacted the given number (983XXXXXXX) back in 2018, the person has clarified that the message is ‘totally wrong’ and ‘fake’. The same message has also been debunked by ‘SM Hoax Slayer’ in 2018. The ‘SM Hoax Slayer’ reported that the given phone number belongs to Dr. Sandeep Garg, a Nephrologist belonging to Meerut. FACTLY has also tried to contact him and this article will be updated upon his response.
The other two phone numbers given in the message are not working. Also, when a similar message (archived) with another phone number (which is also not working now) went viral on social media in August 2017, a complaint was filed with cybercrime police in Karnataka. The same message (archived) is still being shared on social media in 2020.
To sum it up, the message – ‘Four kidneys available for donation. Contact these numbers’ is fake.
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The message regarding new communication regulations issued by the Government of India is fake - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
April 16, 2020
A message purportedly from the Government of India saying that there would be new communication regulations in the country is making rounds on social media. As per the regulations in that message – all calls will be recorded, social media accounts will be monitored, and phones will be connected to the ministry. But, FACTLY has found that the Government of India has not issued those communication regulations. Also, in the message, it is mentioned that those new regulations were issued by the Minister of Communication and Digital Economy. But, in India, there is no such Ministry (There is ‘Ministry of Communications’). So, the message is fake. As the message went viral, the Press Information Bureau (PIB) has also clarified that no such thing is being done by the Government.
Sources:
Claim – Facebook post (archived)
Fact –
1. PIB post – https://www.facebook.com/pibfactcheck/photos/a.103726557827113/140783794121389/?type=3&theater
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The message that a worker of Prince hotel in Hyderabad has tested positive for Coronavirus is fake - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
March 12, 2020
A message with the information that a worker of Prince hotel in Mehdipatnam (Hyderabad) has tested positive for Coronavirus is making  rounds on social media for the past few days. Let’s check the veracity of the claim made in the post.
A worker of Prince hotel in Mehdipatnam has tested positive for Coronavirus.
Fact: The message is fake. In Telangana state, till date, only one confirmed case of Coronavirus is reported and the person who tested positive for the virus is a Software Engineer. So, the claim is FALSE.
When searched if any case of Coronavirus was reported in Mehdipatnam, no news reports confirming it were found. On visiting the ‘Ministry of Health and Family Welfare’ website for the number of confirmed cases of Coronavirus reported in the Telangana state, it was found to be one.
In Telangana, the confirmed case of Coronavirus is a Software Engineer from Bangalore. And, the case was reported on 2 March 2020 i.e. prior to the date (8 March 2020) on which the Facebook post about the worker of Prince hotel was posted. So, the message is a fake one.
Yesterday, Telangana Health Minister Etela Rajendra has said that there is no case of Coronavirus in the state now. The person who had earlier tested positive for the virus has now been tested negative and will be discharged soon.
To summarize, the message that a worker of Prince hotel in Mehdipatnam, Hyderabad has tested positive for Coronavirus is fake.
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The message that ‘BBMP will be spraying medicine in the air after 10 PM tonight to kill COVID-19’ is fake - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
March 19, 2020
A message purportedly from BBMP (Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike) requesting people not to come out of their houses after 10 pm tonight till 5am tomorrow as it will be spraying medicine in the air in order to kill COVID-19 is going viral on social media. Let’s check the authenticity of the claim in the message.
BBMP (Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike) will be spraying medicine in the air after 10 PM tonight in order to kill COVID-19.
Fact: The BBMP Commissioner and the Mayor have clarified that the message is just a rumor and the BBMP has no such plans to spray any medicine for COVID-19. So, the claim is FALSE.
On checking the Twitter account of BBMP Commissioner to know if BBMP is planning to spray any medicine for COVID-19 in Bengaluru city, a tweet by him on 18 March was found. In his tweet, B.H. Anil Kumar (Commissioner of BBMP) has said that the message is just a rumour and the BBMP has no plans to spray any medicine for COVID-19. The same can also be found in a tweet by BBMP Mayor M. Goutham Kumar.
When a similar message went viral across the country saying that the Government of India will spray Coronavirus vaccine gas, the Press Information Bureau (PIB) has debunked the claim and clarified that the Government is doing no such thing and the message is ‘fake’.
Also, when a similar message went viral in Oman saying that the Government of Oman is spraying Coronavirus pesticide in the country to combat the spread of COVID-19, the Ministry of Health (Oman) has said that it is a rumour and no such operation is planned.
To sum it up, the message that BBMP (Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike) will be spraying medicine in the air to kill COVID-19 is just a rumour.
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The message which says opening the 'Argentina is doing it' video hacks your phone is a Hoax - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
July 18, 2020
A viral post warning people not to open a video file on WhatsApp titled ‘Argentina is doing it’ is going around social media.  The message claims that opening the video would hack the phone within 10 seconds. The message also claims that the video is about Argentina flattening the COVID-19 curve. It is further claimed that CNN also warned users about such a message.  Let’s fact-check the post through this article.
Do not open the video file titled ‘Argentina is doing it’ as it would hack the phone in 10 seconds. CNN also warned users about this hoax.
Fact: Similar message claiming that they would hack one’s phone were circulated before. Multiple fact-checkers have debunked those messages as a hoax in the past.  The Spanish police back in 2017 also debunked it as fake. Hence the claim is FALSE.
When we ran a search on google with the keywords ‘Argentina is Doing It’, numerous fact-checking articles confirming the viral message as a hoax popped up. Also when we searched on the CNN website about such a warning, we found nothing.
A similar viral message with the name ‘Martinelli’ had gone viral back in 2017. Spanish police officials had tweeted debunking it as a hoax in 2017. This message was similar the one going viral currently except that the name of the video in the 2017 message was ‘Martinelli’. The rest of the message was the same.
Circula por #WhatsApp📱 este mensaje advirtiendo sobre el "vídeo de Martinelli"👉🏻#Stopbulos, ✋🏻no lo compartas https://t.co/TtAb0aYNUE pic.twitter.com/R4aOovWAo3
Multiple fact-checking websites like Boomlive and Snopes have debunked the viral post earlier.
To sum it up, an old viral hoax is now being circulated with a different video name. Also, CNN has warned users about any such video.
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The message with new rules of communication in the context of Ayodhya verdict is a ‘rumour’: UP Police - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
November 9, 2019
A message with twelve points terming them to be the new set of rules for communication in the context of the Ayodhya verdict is doing the rounds on social media widely. Let’s check the authenticity of that message.
In the context of the Ayodhya verdict, a new set of rules for communication will come into effect.
Fact: Uttar Pradesh Police have clarified that the message with new rules of communication in the context of Ayodhya verdict is a ‘rumour’. So, the claim is FALSE.
When searched if there is any rollout of a new set of rules for communication in the context of Ayodhya verdict, a tweet by the Ayodhya Police was found. The tweet had a news clip in it that carried news about Ayodhya Police terming few messages on social media as fake. The message with twelve points terming them to be the new set of rules for communication in the context of Ayodhya verdict is one among them. The Police have termed that message as a ‘rumour’ being circulated on social media platforms. The Ayodhya Police Cyber Cell has also asked people not to share any misinformation on social media as legal action will be taken against them for doing so.
#UPPInNews #ayodhyapolice @Uppolice @adgzonelucknow @igrangeayodhya@dgpup @IpsAshish @UPPViralCheck
#UPPAgainstFakeNews @aajtak @ABPNews @ZeeNews pic.twitter.com/gVPRKY6fS3
The Meerut Police also clarified that, among the twelve rules in the message, the points with serial no.s 1, 2 and 5 are false.
#UPPolice @Uppolice @adgzonemeerut @dgpup
@igrangemeerut pic.twitter.com/sIhYMQ305C
To conclude, the Uttar Pradesh Police have termed the message with new rules of communication in the context of Ayodhya verdict as a ‘rumour’.
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created: November 9, 2019


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The migrant woman in the photo is being sent to her home in a car arranged by Congress volunteers - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
May 20, 2020
A collage of two photos is being shared widely on social media with a claim that the migrant woman in the photo, who interacted with Rahul Gandhi, has come to the spot in a luxury car. It is being claimed that the migrants seen in the photo are Congress party members who have come in luxury cars for the photo-op. Let’s fact-check the claim made in the post.
Congress party members posing as migrant workers came in a luxury car to meet Rahul Gandhi.
Fact: The photo of the woman in the post was taken after Rahul Gandhi met the migrants. Congress volunteers have arranged vehicles for around 25 migrants to take them to their homes. The photo of the woman in the luxury car was clicked on her way home in the vehicle arranged by the volunteers. Hence the claim made in the post is FALSE.
On 16 May 2020, Rahul Gandhi has interacted with some migrant labourers who were walking to their homes through Delhi. The first photo is related to that interaction. The same photo can be found in a tweet by ‘ANI’.
Delhi: Congress leader Rahul Gandhi today interacted with migrant labourers who were walking on Sukhdev Vihar flyover to return to their home states. pic.twitter.com/IgU3k474tn
In another ‘ANI’ tweet, it can be read that, after Rahul Gandhi’s interaction with the migrants, Congress Party volunteers have arranged some vehicles for around 25 migrant labourers to take them to their homes. So, the lady was being taken to her home in the vehicle arranged by the volunteers. As Police have allowed only two people to go together, Delhi Congress leader said that the migrants were sent in groups of two. So, she did not come in a luxury car and it is not her car. The same photo can be found in a tweet by a Congress leader. The news video related to the incident can be watched here, where the migrants say that they were being sent to their homes.
Delhi: Congress leader Rahul Gandhi interacted with migrant labourers who were walking near Sukhdev Vihar flyover to return to their home states. Party volunteers later arranged vehicles to take them to their homes. A labourer, Monu says "Coming from Haryana,have to go to Jhansi" pic.twitter.com/SMbnejiZpK
To sum it up, the migrant woman in the photo is being sent to her home in a car arranged by Congress volunteers.
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The Migrant Workers issue – What is done so far?
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
May 28, 2020
Lakhs of migrant workers walking back to their home states on national highways is probably the biggest humanitarian crisis in India for a long time. But what is the issue of migrant workers? How many such migrant workers are there? What have the governments done for them?
On 24March 2020, Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced a complete nation-wide lockdown in an effort to contain the spread of COVID-19. The initial idea was to impose a lockdown for a period of 21 days, which in due course was extended 3 more times, with the current 4 phase of lockdown extending until 31May 2020.
The lockdown effectively meant all commercial activities except those dealing in essential services have been restricted i.e most of the businesses, factories, trade, construction activities etc. have come to a halt. The lockdown also included the ban on travel i.e road transport, trains as well as air travel. The current phase of lockdown saw considerable easing of restrictions in most areas and commercial activity has restarted. However, the severe restrictions in the initial phases meant that migrants working in the unorganized sector across the country started walking long distances in the hope of reaching their home states.
In fact, within few days of the imposition of the lockdown, news reports started emerging of the migrant workers especially, those in the unorganized sector travelling by foot or by hitchhiking to go back to their native places.
Loss of Income & Uncertain future – major causes for the plight of migrant workers
Migrant workers are among the most affected section of the society due to the lockdown measures. The prevailing situation of the migrant workers is a result of many factors.
Majority of the migrant workers are daily wage labourers or other contract workers whose income is reliant on availability of work. Majority of these workers are employed in the Construction and Manufacturing industry while others are employed across the unorganized sector.
The country-wide  lockdown resulted in temporary closure of all economic & industrial activity. This meant non-availability of work for these migrant workers and hence no source of income. Without major savings, majority of these migrant workers are facing a situation of potential starvation without work.
Apart from lack of food, housing is also a cause for concern. These migrant workers come from rural areas and live in cities for work. They do not have any permanent residence and are put up in temporary accommodation near construction sites or factories. Closure of activity also meant that many of them had no shelter.
An uncertain future is another important factor that has driven many of them on the walk back home. With no credible information on the re-opening of the economy, many of them want to be back with their families.
Facing the aforementioned challenges, migrant workers consider returning back to their native place as a safer option for survival rather than staying back in the cities.
The closure of public transport added to the woes of the migrant workers, forcing them to take the journey back home by walk, personal transport or by hitchhiking on the way.
The United Nations Human Rights Commission has expressed  concern about the plight of migrant workers in India in the wake of the lockdown.
In the status report submitted by the Central Government to the Supreme Court, it has stated that the migrant workers were apprehensive about their survival and moved due to the panic created by fake news that the lockdown would extend for a longer period of time. The court expressed its satisfaction with the responses provided by the government.
Ambiguity on the number of Migrant Workers
Over the last two months, migrant workers have been travelling from various states back to their native places, especially to Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, West Bengal & Jharkhand. Even now, as India enters the last few days of Lockdown 4.0, the reverse migration is still going on unabated as per reports coming from various parts of the country.
However, there is no clarity on number of such migrants in India, for the central and the respective state governments to effectively plan for relief measures.
Although India has passed a legislation four decades ago to safeguard and regulate the condition of service of Inter-state labourers through the ‘The Inter-state Migrant Workmen (Regulation of Employment and Conditions of Service) Act,1979’, there is no centralized database yet as far as migrant workers is concerned.
Responding to a question in Lok Sabha on 23 March 2020, the Minister for Labour and Employment stated that there is no register maintained with details of migrants, and further emphasized that in view of the dynamic nature of the workforce, it is not feasible to maintain any such database.
Further in this response and also in response to another question, the ministry has estimated the size of the migrant workforce at over 10 crores as of 2016. This was based on an extrapolation of the workforce as per 2011 census and pegging the share of migrant workforce at 20% of the total workforce.
While this is an estimation of the workforce, the total inter-state migrant population as per 2011 census is 5.42 crores.
In the case of Labour Ministry data, it counts the entire workforce who are working in a place other than their native place. This data includes professionals, employees and others apart from the migrant labourers and those migrants who migrated within a state. The census data on the other hand is about the total inter-state migrant population and is not just the workforce.
Since the current crisis is specific to migrant labourers working in the unorganized sector, no reliable estimates are available about their number.
As per a report of World Economic Forum, which based its numbers on 2011 census, there are around 13.9 crore internal migrants within the country (both inter-state and intra-state migrants). The report further stated that Uttar Pradesh and Bihar are the largest source states followed by Madhya Pradesh, Punjab, Rajasthan, Uttarakhand, Jammu & Kashmir and West Bengal. Most of the migrants reported Delhi, Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, Gujarat, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Karnataka and Kerala as the destination states.
As per the status report submitted by Central Government to the Supreme Court of India regarding government’s response to COVID-19, around 4.14 crore people have migrated to other states for work. Further, the government has roughly estimated the number of people travelling barefoot across India due to the lockdown as 5-6 lakhs.
Provision of relief camps among the initial actions taken by Central Government
The initial response of the Central government in the wake of the emerging migrant worker crisis was focused on directing the states and employers to provide relief to the migrant workers.
The MHA issued certain directions on 29March 2020 to restrict the movement and provide relief. Among other things, the directions included the following.
What about Transport?
In spite of these directions by the Central government and action taken by some states to mitigate the problems of the workers,  the movement of the migrant workers to their home states did not stop. Many are still walking on the roads and using other personal means of transport to reach their homes.
After these developments, the State governments and the Centre have made special travel arrangements for the migrants to return back to their home states.
As per an update provided by MHA on 25May 2020, more than 44 lakh migrants have travelled in more than 3,274 Shramik Special trains to reach their respective home state. IRCTC has also updated stating that more than 74 lakh free meals and over 1 crore water bottles were provided to the migrants.  Furthermore, around 40 lakh migrants travelled in buses to reach their home state.
The National Migrant Information System (NMIS)
On 16May 2020, the Central Government has announced the launch of National Migrant Information System. It is an online database created by National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) and aids in streamlining the movement of migrant workers.
What was part of the initial relief package?
On 26March 2020, the Centre had announced its first major COVID-19 relief package. Although there was no specific relief allocation done for the migrant workers, there were cash transfers and steps for food security announced for the poor of which migrants were considered to be a part.
Furthermore, Centre has approved the advance release of Rs. 11,092 crores to all the states under States Disaster Risk Management Fund (SDRMF), a part of which can be spent on food and shelter for homeless people including migrants who were stranded due to lockdown.
Supreme Court takes cognizance of the plight of Migrant workers
During the earlier days of lockdown, hearing a PIL filed in the Supreme Court on behalf of the migrant workers, a Bench headed by Chief Justice SA Bobde, has stated that:
Supreme court also quashed another PIL, which sought directions to District Magistrates to identify, provide shelter & free food and transport to the migrant workers already on the move. The court observed that it was the responsibility of the respective State governments.
However, recently on 26May 2020, the Supreme court took suo-moto cognizance of the issues of migrant labour and directed the Centre and the State to immediately provide adequate food, shelter and transport to the migrant workers who are stranded.
Apart from this direction, the court has issued notices to Centre and State Governments to submit their responses urgently and stated that the next hearing would take place on 28 May 2020.
Free Food Grains & increased allocation to MGNREGS – Centre’s relief to Migrants
Addressing the nation on 12May 2020 , Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced that the government has come up with a  comprehensive relief package of Rs. 20 Lakh Crores. Following this, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman announced the details of the package over the next few days.
The First Tranche of Economic Relief package was announced on 13May 2020. However, there was no mention of  relief to the migrant workers.
Relief to migrant workers was addressed in the Second Tranche of Economic Relief Package announced on 14May 2020. This package included providing free food grains as well as an affordable housing rental scheme. ‘One Nation, One Ration Card’ scheme was also announced which provides migrants  their quota of PDS irrespective of the state that they are currently in.
On 17 May 2020, the Fifth and Final Tranche of Economic Relief package was announced. Under this an additional allocation of Rs. 40,000 crores was announced for MGNREGS to provide returning migrants with work in their native states.
On 20 May 2020, the Cabinet approved food grain relief to the migrant workers, announced earlier by the Finance Minister.  The total expenditure incurred by the Government of India towards this is Rs. 3,109.52 crore which includes food subsidy to the tune of Rs. 2,982.27 crore and expenditure towards inter-state transportation and others to up to Rs. 127.25 crores. As highlighted earlier, 8 crore migrants stand to benefit from this food relief.
More efforts needed to assuage the pain of Migrant workers
As per government’s announcement on 25 May 2020,  than 44 lakh migrants traveled by train and another 40 lakh migrants used bus to reach their home states. However, reports of migrants walking on highways or hitchhiking on their way still continue.  The extent of migrants who are still on the roads and stranded on their way home has not yet been ascertained.
Meanwhile there have been multiple reports of tragic incidents about the migrant workers and families who have lost their lives on their journey back home, through accidents as well as exhaustion. Apart from these tragic incidents, there are reports of migrant workers allegedly having died of hunger on shramik special trains. There are also reports of route diversions of these special trains resulting in migrants reaching their home states after a delay of many days.
Furthermore, different means of providing transportation and permissions by states have also added on to the woes of the migrants.
While the reverse migration of the migrant workers has morphed into a humanitarian crisis, solutions to larger questions on their future & livelihoods are yet to be figured out. The solutions have to be found amidst the chaos of the COVID-19 crisis.
In-spite of the efforts of respective state governments, center, NGOs and other members of civil society, many migrants are still seen on the roads underscoring the need for more coordinated efforts.
Featured Image: Migrant Workers issue


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The minaret shape appearing inside this bottle is no miracle; it's just basic science - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
April 5, 2023
A video of a minaret shape appearing inside a cold drink bottle is widely shared on social media. The post which shares this video claims that it is the minaret of ‘Mecca Madina.’ Some other videos (here and here) on YouTube are being shared with a similar claim that the shape of a Minaret appears inside the bottle when placed against the Sun; some even say that it is a miracle (here). Let’s fact-check this claim through this article.
Claim: The minaret of Mecca appears in a water bottle (Mountain Dew Bottle) in Uttar Pradesh; it’s a miracle.
Fact: We filled up a similar-sized Mountain Dew bottle with water and projected light on it, and found that the same shape appeared inside the bottle. This is no miracle. The rationale is that it is just the reflection of the outer surface of the bottle projected inside the bottle filled with water. Hence the claim made in the post is Misleading.
We searched the internet to see if any crystal replicas were being used to trick us into believing that the Minaret of Mecca of Kaba was inside a bottle. Still, we could not find any information related to it.
We then decided to check the veracity of the claim ourselves. Firstly, we filled up a similar-sized bottle of Mountain Dew with water. Then we used our phone flash as the light source and projected the light from the back of the bottle. A shape similar to the one in the viral videos appeared. You can see the pictures of the shape that we took here.
It does look like a tower or a minaret, but this is simply a reflection of the outer surface of the bottle projected into the water and not an inexplicable miracle.
To sum up, the shape reflected in a bottle filled with water looks like that of a minaret, and this could differ from bottle to bottle based on its characteristics like shape, colour, opacity and size.


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The ‘missing girl’ in the image was already reunited with her family - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
December 17, 2019
On several social media platforms, a video of a girl is being shared widely along with a screenshot. The screenshot comes with a message that the girl in the photo is Sonal Bipin Patel and was seen in Mangalore with Tamil beggars, who said the girl was found by them on a train coming from Mumbai. Also, in the message, the users were asked to forward the video until it reaches the right parent. Let’s try to analyze the claim made in the post.
Photo of girl (Sonal Bipin Patel) seen in Mangalore with Tamil beggars.
Fact: In their tweet on 30 January 2018, Ghaziabad Police said that, with the help of social media, the girl was reunited with her family. So, even after the girl was rejoined with her family, her video is still being shared on social media as a girl seen in Mangalore with Tamil Beggars. So, the claim is FALSE.
For the past two years, the same video was found to be circulating on social media with many other claims and those can be seen here, here and here. The earliest of those versions were found to have circulated in January 2018 and it is- ‘ये बिटीया किसकी हे ये मोहन नगर मे मिली है अगर किसी को जानकारी हे तो बताऐ मे रोकी भदोरिया फोन लगांये  7000818182’. So, when searched on Twitter with the same text, many tweets were found. Out of them, a tweet by ‘@Arjunpchaudhary’ on January 30, 2018, had the reply by Ghaziabad Police on the same day. In their reply, the Police stated that, with the help of social media, the girl was reunited with her family and the information about it was obtained after contacting Rocky Bhadoria. So, the photo of a girl who was reunited with her family in 2018 is still being shared as ‘missing girl found’.
सोशल मीडिया के प्रयासों से उक्त बच्ची अपने परिजनों से मिल गयी है ~ रोकी भदौरिया जी से संपर्क कर जानकारी ली गयी है।आप सभी का धन्यवाद !
Earlier, when the image of another girl was shared with the same claim of ‘girl seen in Mangalore with Tamil beggars’, ‘FACTLY’ had debunked it and that article can be seen here.
To sum it up, the ‘missing girl’ in the image was already reunited with her family.
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created: December 17, 2019


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The money in all bank accounts dormant for 7 years is not seized by the Switzerland authorities - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
June 3, 2022
A post is being shared on social media with a claim that a private bank established 50 years ago was the reason behind Switzerland getting rich and developed. The post claims that the money in the accounts which were dormant for 7 years was seized and transferred to the authorities. Let’s fact-check the claim made in the post.
Claim: Switzerland became rich and developed because the money in the accounts of one of its private banks which were dormant for 7 years was seized and transferred to the authorities.
Fact: The accounts which were dormant for just 7 years are not seized and the money in them is not transferred to the authorities. The time period for such transfer is at least 60 years as per the Swiss law. That too if no claimant comes forward after the publication of information. Also, we could not find any information regarding the Swiss survey in 2000 where 99.2 percent of people opined that the seized money should go towards tourism development. Hence the claim made in the post is FALSE.
When we searched for the information regarding the dormant accounts in the Switzerland banks, a 2015 article by ‘USA Today’ was found in the search results. In the article, it can be read that – “Swiss banking authorities on Wednesday published a list of 2,600 bank accounts that have been dormant for 60 years and have around $45 million in unclaimed assets”. The information regarding the dormant accounts can be seen here.
On the ‘Dormant accounts’ website, it can be read that – “As of 1 January 2015, the Swiss Banking Act, the Banking Ordinance as well as the Guidelines of the Swiss Bankers Association (currently under revision) demand that assets of bank clients with a total value exceeding CHF 500 have to be published after having been without contact for 10 years and dormant for another 50 years, e.g., after a total of 60 years. These assets will be liquidated and transferred to the Swiss federal government if no beneficiary has submitted a justified request within a given delay. The procedure also applies to safe deposit boxes with a value of more than CHF 500 or unknown value.” So, the accounts which were dormant for just 7 years are not seized and the money in them is not transferred to the authorities. More information can be found here and here.
Also, we could not find any information regarding the Swiss survey in 2000 where 99.2 percent of people opined that the seized money should go towards tourism development. However, in a recent referendum in 2016, “the Swiss have rejected, 76.9% to 23.1%, a proposal for the government to pay every adult citizen a minimum income of 2,500 francs a month and every child 625 francs”. Some of the reasons for the rejection were “the cost of the proposal, the alternate ways of financing it, including additional taxation and cuts in existing social sector and welfare payments”. It should be noted that the recent referendum was also not about the use of seized money.
In the 1990s, there was an issue regarding the dormant accounts of Jewish people killed in the holocaust. In the ‘USA Today’ article, it can be read that – “A class action lawsuit in the United States brought on behalf of the heirs of Jewish account holders of Swiss banks was settled in 1998. A fund to compensate Holocaust survivors and their families was closed down in 2013 after it paid out $1.24 billion, Swissinfo said”. More information regarding the Swiss Holocaust accounts can be read here, here, and here.
The information regarding the functioning of Swiss banks and their secrecy can be seen here, here, here, and here.
To sum it up, the money in all the bank accounts dormant for 7 years is not seized by the Switzerland authorities.


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The Moroccan child in this image did not become the Education Minister of New Zealand - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
October 31, 2022
A collage containing the images of a girl child and a woman are being widely shared claiming that both the images show the same person, and she has become the education minister of New Zealand after 20 years. Another post claims that she’s the education minister of France. Let’s verify the claims made in these posts.
Claim: Photo collage featuring the childhood and current images of New Zealand/France Education Minister.
Fact: First photo belongs to a Moroccan girl named ‘Fouzia’ who was 8 years old when the photograph was taken in 2006. Second photo shows ‘Najat Vallaud-Belkacem’, the former education minister of France (2014-17). Even though Najat was born in Morocco and helped her family with sheep, the girl in the viral photo is not her. Also, she never worked as New Zealand’s Education Minister. Hence the claim made in the post is FALSE
Photo 1:
We ran a reverse image search using the image of the child and found that it is featured on a website of  ‘We are Water Foundation’.
According to Le Monde, this photo was taken by UNICEF photographer ‘Giacomo Pirozzi’ in 2006 in Morocco. The image shows ‘Fouzia’ who is 8 years old at that time. UNICEF specifies that she had gone to school for a year but later discontinued due to financial problems.
Photo 2:
Similarly, reverse image search of the the second photo in the collage led us to same photo available on the Getty images website. The description of the image states- ‘French Education Minister Najat Vallaud-Belkacem leaves a weekly cabinet meeting on October 29, 2014, at the Elysee presidential palace in Paris”.
In an interview, she said, “Reports in the French press that I was a child shepherd hold a grain of truth: I was born in Morocco and lived in Bni Chiker, a mountain hamlet in the north. My early childhood was spent as a country girl living with near and extended family, all under one roof. We were quite poor. I helped my grandfather with the goats, drew water from a well, and spent most of the day in flip-flops.”
Even though Najat is from Morocco and helped his family with sheep, the girl child in the viral photo doesn’t show her. Moreover, Najat never worked as New Zealand’s education minister and the current Educational Minister of New Zealand is a man named “Chris Hipkins”.
To sum it up, both the images in the viral post shows two different unrelated people.

created: October 31, 2022


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The movement of gym equipment in this park is not due to any Ghost - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
June 15, 2020
Video of a gym equipment moving on its own at a park is being widely shared on social media claiming that people’s souls had started wandering in Delhi. But FACTLY has found that the video was taken at a park in Jhansi (UP). When the video went viral claiming a ghost was exercising, Jhansi Police tweeted that due to the excessive amount of grease, the equipment is moving for a few seconds after it is touched once. They said in that tweet that some miscreants have recorded the video after touching the exercising equipment for once and there is no paranormal activity. Jhansi Police in another tweet, have also uploaded a longer video which shows the equipment moving for a while after it is touched by a policeman.
Sources:
Claim –
1. Facebook post (Archived)
Fact –
1. Jhansi Police Tweet1 – https://twitter.com/jhansipolice/status/1271646518521413632
2. Jhansi Police Tweet2 – https://twitter.com/jhansipolice/status/1271701267232903168
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The ‘MR-VAC’ (Measles-Rubella) vaccine does not cause infertility - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
August 1, 2019
A post is being shared on social media with a claim that the MR-VAC vaccine, which has a side-effect of infertility, is being given to only Muslim girls in Kerala. Let’s try to analyze the claim made in the post.
MR-VAC (Measles-Rubella Vaccine) has a side-effect of infertility and the vaccine is being given to only Muslims girls in Kerala.
Fact: The government is giving the vaccine to all the children in the age group of 9 months to 15 years, irrespective of the religion and the State to which the child belongs. The Ministry of Health clarified that the vaccine does not have a side-effect of infertility or autism. Also, the WHO recognizes MR-VAC as the vaccine for Measles-Rubella. Hence the claim made in the post is FALSE.
In one of the photo, it can be seen that the claim is about the MR-VAC (Measles-Rubella vaccine). So, when searched for the details on the claim that the MR-VAC is being given to only Muslims in Kerala, it was found in the ‘Measles-Rubella Vaccine: National Operational Guidelines 2017 (Second Edition)’ document that the government aims to provide MR-VAC vaccine to all the children in the age group of 9 months to 15 years in the country. There is no discrimination based on religion and the State.
But, it can also be found that some people were against this vaccination due to the fear of risking their children’s health. Newspaper articles can be found which reported that people were skeptical about the vaccine even before the launch of the campaign and few people even called the vaccine as ‘Modi-RSS Vaccine’.
So, when searched for the side-effects of the MR-VAC vaccine, the side-effects of the vaccine can be found on the ‘Serum Institute of India Pvt. Ltd.’ (manufacturer of the vaccine) website; but infertility is not one of them. The quality of the vaccine can also be found to be recognized by WHO. Also, putting rest to all the infertility myths, the Ministry of Health tweeted in April that “no vaccine given under Universal Immunization Programme (#UIP) can lead to infertility or impotency.”
No vaccine given under Universal Immunization Programme (#UIP) can lead to infertility or impotency. These & many other myths related to vaccines are completely incorrect. OPV does not cause infertility or impotency and measles/MR vaccine does not lead to autism in children.
It can be found that the Ministry of Health released a document to address the concerns of parents and also, telecasted some advertisements featuring Amitabh Bachchan where he says that all the rumours on this vaccine are false and the vaccine is safe.
To sum it up, the MR-VAC vaccine does not cause infertility. The vaccine is being given to the children (9months to below 15 years) across the country.
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created: August 1, 2019


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The national curriculum of Saudi Arabia did not incorporate the Ramayana and Mahabharata - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
January 19, 2024
A claim circulating on social media suggests that Saudi Arabia has incorporated the Ramayana and Mahabharata into its educational curriculum. The post presents an image implying that Union Minister Smriti Irani signed an agreement with her Saudi counterpart to support this assertion. In this article, we fact-check the validity of the claim put forth in the post.
Claim: Saudi Arabia has incorporated the Ramayana and Mahabharata into its educational curriculum.
Fact: Saudi Arabia did not incorporate the Ramayana and Mahabharata in their national curriculum. The viral image featuring Smriti Irani is related to the recently signed Bilateral Haj Agreement 2024 between India and Saudi Arabia. Hence, the claim made in the post is FALSE.
No reliable reports confirm the inclusion of the Ramayana and Mahabharata in Saudi Arabia’s educational curriculum. If such a development had occurred, the media would have most likely covered it.
As for the viral image featuring Smriti Irani purportedly signing an agreement, it is related to the recently signed Bilateral Haj Agreement 2024 between India and Saudi Arabia. The image captures the moment when Smriti Irani, along with her Saudi counterpart, signed the agreement. Multiple news articles reporting on the event also featured this image (here & here). It appears that the image is inaccurately portrayed, falsely suggesting that she signed an agreement to incorporate Hindu epics into the Saudi Arabian curriculum.
Glad to have joined Hon'ble Minister @smritiirani ji on this occasion in Jeddah, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Confident that Indian pilgrims will get excellent services in this year Hajj as well. https://t.co/ZFXOLulUuT pic.twitter.com/QPi0Uxvt2j
Old claim :
The viral assertion has been circulating since at least 2021 (here & here) following a tweet by Padma Shri Awardee Nouf AlMarwaai. She posted a screenshot of her son’s school exam, featuring questions about Hindu epics and Buddhism. This sparked a discussion, with Indian media reporting that Saudi Arabia had included Hindu epics in its curriculum. The information reemerged on social media in October 2023.
Nevertheless, in the wake of the controversy surrounding her tweets, Nouf Almarwaai clarified in 2021 itself that her son is enrolled in an international school, and the questions were included as part of their curriculum, sanctioned by Saudi Arabia’s Ministry of Education. She explicitly affirmed that it does not represent the national curriculum of Saudi Arabia.
International schools in Saudi Arabia have the autonomy to determine their curriculum:
Based on this clarification provided by Nouf Almarwaai, after further research regarding the curriculum of schools in Saudi Arabia, we came across a journal published on Research Gate. As per this journal, we learned that in Saudi Arabia there are  (i) public (government) and Quranic schools; (ii) private schools teaching in Arabic medium with intensive English courses; (iii) International schools teaching in English medium. We further learned that a course is devoted to Arabic and Islamic studies in these international schools. This supports Almarwaai’s assertions that the curriculum featuring Hindu epics is associated with international schools and not part of the Saudi national curriculum.
Furthermore, our internet search led us to a tweet by Ibrahim Al-Sulaiman, a renowned columnist from Saudi Arabia, in which he affirmed that private international schools in Saudi Arabia have the autonomy to determine their curriculum and operate within their established frameworks. He also tweeted that it is inaccurate to assume that the curriculum in these schools aligns with that of private and local government schools.
In a separate tweet, Saudi professor Omar Al-Sabiyy mentioned that, based on his 25 years of teaching experience, all subjects are instructed in Arabic. All these establish that Hindu epics were not made a part of the Saudi Arabia Educational curriculum.
To sum it up, the national curriculum of Saudi Arabia does not incorporate the Ramayana and Mahabharata.

created: January 19, 2024


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The new EVMs (M3) can accommodate upto a maximum of 384 candidates - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
March 31, 2019
Ever since the nominations for the Lok Sabha General Elections 2019 are closed for constituencies in the state of Telangana, there have been speculations that the Election Commission will use ballot papers in Nizamabad constituency (where 185 candidates remain in fray), as EVMs can accommodate only 64 candidates. Lets analyze the the claim being made.
The archived version of the post can be found here.
The Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs) can only accomodate up to 64 candidates.
While the pre-2006 (M1) and post-2006 EVMs can accommodate up to a maximum of 64 candidates (including NOTA), the upgraded post-2006 EVMs (M3) can cater to 384 candidates. Hence, the claim stands FALSE.
The Nizamabad Lok Sabha constituency in Telangana has seen large number of nominations being filed as irate farmers demanding appropriate support for their crops have filed tens of nominations. Of the 185 nominations that were deemed valid, it is reported that 178 of these are filed by the protesting farmers. There there have been speculations that the Election Commission (EC) is going back to use ballot paper in the Nizamabad constituency as the older EVMs can accommodate only 64 candidates. There hasn’t been any official confirmation from the EC, but media reports indicate that the elections will be conducted using the upgraded post-2006 EVMs (M3) that can cater to 384 candidates (including NOTA).
While the pre-2006 (M1) and post-2006 EVMs can accommodate up to a maximum of 64 candidates (including NOTA), the upgraded post-2006 EVMs (M3) can cater to 384 candidates. All the details about the EVMs can be found in the latest version of the manual on Electronic Voting Machine and VVPAT.
Sheyphali Sharan, the official spokesperson of ECI has tweeted regarding the misinformation being spread on social media about EVMs and urged not to heed to such factually incorrect statements.
Finally, the claim that Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs) can only accomodate up to 64 candidates is False and the upgraded post-2006 EVMs (M3) can cater up to 384 candidates (including NOTA).