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This video claiming Mosque demolition in Allahabad by the Modi government is false. - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
August 6, 2021
A video is being widely shared claiming that an Allahabad (now Prayagraj) Mosque had been destroyed. We have also received a similar video on our WhatsApp tipline (+91 92470 52470) to check the veracity of the video. The video even claims that the Mosque was demolished by the Modi Government and no media had picked up the story. Let us fact-check the claim made in the post.
Claim: Video of Allahabad Mosque demolished by Modi government.
Fact: The video does not belong to Allahabad (now Prayagraj). Some of the images used in the video are of clashes between Tablighi factions in Bangladesh in 2018. Though we could not confirm where remaining images in the video belonged to, no such mosque demolition had taken place in Allahabad. Hence, the claim made in the post is False.
When reverse image search is done on the screenshots of the video, an article with one of the images was found. The article published on 02 December 2018 is titled, ‘One killed, over 200 injured in Tablighi Jamaat’s factional clashes.’ Fierce clashes had occurred between two factions of Tablighi Jamaat in Bishwa Ijtema grounds in Bangladesh on 01 December 2018. According to a news report, the two factions fought over the venue, the Ijtema grounds. The rift had been brewing among Tablighi members over the nomination of Indian preacher Maulana Muhammad Saad Al Kandhalvi.
Some images found in several reports here and here are similar to the images in the video. These reports do not talk about any mosque demolition in Allahabad (now Prayagraj).
Though we could not confirm where the remaining images in the video belonged to, it is clear that no such mosque demolition had taken place in Allahabad as there were no recent news reports about any such incidents in Allahabad (now Prayagraj). In 2018, Muslims removed parts of two mosques in Allahabad to make way for Kumbh pilgrims. This was done voluntarily by the Muslims living there.
To sum it up, this video claiming mosque demolition in Allahabad by the Modi government is false.

created: August 6, 2021


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This video claiming to depict Arab men dancing in a Hindu temple in Dubai has been digitally altered - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
February 29, 2024
The Bochasanwasi Shri Akshar Purushottam Swaminarayan Sanstha (BAPS) Swaminarayan Sanstha has constructed a grand Hindu stone temple on a 27-acre site in Abu Mureikhah, near Al Rahba in Abu Dhabi. Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated it on 14 February 2024. In this context, a video (here & here) depicting a few Arab men playing music and dancing is being widely shared across social media platforms with the claim that the video is from a temple in Dubai. This article aims to fact-check the claim made in the post.
Claim: Video depicting Arab men dancing in a Hindu temple in Dubai.
Fact: The original video featured traditional Arab music performed by a group of men. Upon close examination, it becomes apparent that there is a lack of synchronization between their dance performance and the music being played. This discrepancy is evident in their hand movements while playing musical instruments and the resulting sound. This suggests that the original audio has been replaced with a Lord Krishna song. However, we were unable to independently verify the time, date, and context of this performance. Hence, the claim made in the post is FALSE.
To verify the authenticity of the viral claim, we conducted a reverse image search on the internet using the key frames of the viral video. This search led us to a similar video titled “Arabian Dance” on YouTube, posted on 15 February 2024. In this video, the original audio is audible, revealing that the people are playing traditional Arabian music and dancing accordingly. We also found a similar video with the caption “Traditional Arabic Dance” posted by another user, which also features the same traditional Arabian music. However, we were unable to independently verify the time, date, and context of this performance.
Upon careful observation of the viral video, it becomes apparent that there is a lack of synchronization between their dance performance and the music being played. This discrepancy is evident in their hand movements while playing musical instruments and the resulting sound. This indicates that the original audio has been edited with a Lord Krishna song and is being shared as Arab people dancing in a Hindu temple.
Subsequently, to learn more about traditional Arabian music and dance, we conducted an internet search and found several videos (here, here & here)  where people’s dance form is identical to that in the viral dance video, and the music resembles a similar style.
To sum it up, this video, claiming to depict Arab men dancing in a Hindu temple in Dubai, has been digitally altered.

source: news-factly

created: February 29, 2024

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

author: Sai Krishna Muthyanolla


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This video claiming to show the leaked footage of Malaysia Airlines flight MH 370 before it went missing is edited. - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
December 11, 2023
A video circulating on social media claims to show new leaked footage of the missing Malaysia Airlines passenger plane MH370. In this video, a flying plane can be seen surrounded by three smaller flying spherical objects before all of them vanish into thin air in a flash. Let’s fact-check this claim through this article.
Claim: Leaked footage of the missing Malaysia Airlines flight MH370.
Fact: This is a VFX video that contains a still image of clouds in the background. This video has existed on the internet since 2014.  Generally, a video shot using satellites (this video is also being claimed to be shot using a satellite on the internet) should look dynamic as the camera mounted on a satellite would also be moving with it since a satellite is an object that revolves around the earth. Hence, the claim made in the post is False.
To learn more details about the viral video, we performed a keyword search on the internet, revealing that this video is pretty old and has existed on the internet since May 2014.  The original video (archived) from 2014 titled “Satellite Video: Airliner and UFOs” was uploaded on a now-deleted YouTube channel named RegicideAnon, and the video’s description does not identify the plane as MH370.
After this video resurfaced recently as the footage of the missing MH370 plane, a Reddit user, who is a VFX artist, exposed that the cloud portion of the video is stock footage, a 2D still image (also here), providing evidence from textures.com.
Further investigation led to Jonas, a concept artist and illustrator, who claimed to have shot the cloud pictures that are used as a background in the viral video. His video on YouTube provides a detailed comparison, confirming the use of his stock footage (the still images available on textures.com) shot in 2012 in the fake video. He clearly explains that the video was made by compositing a plane fly through his photos, even saying that the hoax video was not really done in a convincing manner.
Corridor Crew, a group of VFX artists, explained that if the video were shot from a satellite, the camera would not remain still, debunking the satellite claim.
Janne Ahlberg of HoaxEye also stated (here and here) that a satellite video would capture the object from the top, not the angle seen in the viral clip.
To sum up, the viral video is a digitally created one. Analysis of stock footage, comparison with original sources, and expert opinions reveal that the video is a fabrication.

created: December 11, 2023


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This video clip from ‘The Bear’ film was not nominated for the Guinness Book of World Records - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
March 15, 2023
A video of a bear surviving a chase from a lioness is being shared on social media claiming it is a video nominated for the Guinness Book of World Records. Let’s verify the claim made in the post.
Claim: Video of a bear surviving a chase from a mountain lion that was listed in the Guinness Book of World Records.
Fact: The video shows a clip from the French film ‘The Bear’ which was released in 1988. The film was nominated under different categories in the Academy Awards and BAFTA Awards and it won the best feature film at the 1990 Genesis Awards. However, the film did not get listed in the Guinness Book of World Records in any of the categories. Hence, the claim made in the post is False.
On reverse image search of the screenshots of the video, a video with similar visuals was found published by a YouTube channel on 31 October 2007. This YouTube channel described it as a video clip from the L’Ours film which released in 1988.
The French film ‘The Bear’ (originally titled as L’Ours) was directed by Jean-Jacques Annaud and was based on the novel “The Grizzly King”. When we searched to check whether ‘The Bear’ film was listed in the Guinness Book of World Records, we could not find ‘The Bear’ film being listed in any of the categories on the Guinness Book of World Records website.
‘The Bear’ film was nominated under different categories in Academy, BAFTA and other awards. The film even won the best feature film at the 1990 Genesis Awards. But the film did not get listed in the Guinness Book of World Records as mentioned in the post.
To sum it up, this video clip from ‘The Bear’ film was not nominated for the Guinness Book of World Records.


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This video clip of Shah Rukh Khan is from the movie Don-2, not from the yet-to-be-released movie Pathan - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
December 16, 2022
A post with a video clip is being shared on social media claiming that it is from Shah Rukh Khan’s upcoming movie Pathaan. Shah Rukh Khan and Priyanka Chopra can be seen in conversation in this clip. When Priyanka asks how he feels inside the jail, he responds, ‘ ya, it’s okay. I am just unhappy with the colour of this uniform‘. The post description claims that this scene is from Pathaan and that the jail uniform is in Saffron colour, and they (the makers of Pathan) hate it. The post ends with a call to action for the boycott of the film Pathan.
Claim: The scene shown in the viral video is from the movie Pathaan, in which Shah Rukh Khan says he does not like the colour of his saffron jail uniform.
Fact: The viral post’s video clip is from the film Don-2, which was released in 2012. It features Shah Rukh Khan and Priyanka Chopra in the lead roles. The film Pathaan is scheduled to release in January 2023, featuring Deepika Padukone, Shah Rukh Khan, and John Abraham in lead roles. Hence the claim made in the post is FALSE.
We searched on the internet with relevant keywords for movie scenes with Priyanka Chopra and Shah Rukh Khan, which led us to a jail scene from the movie Don-2, which is available on YouTube.
The visuals in the viral post match with the scene from the timestamp 2 minutes 30 seconds. It’s the same conversation between Shah Rukh and Priyanka in which he says he is unhappy with the colour of his jail uniform. Don-2 was released in 2011. Pathaan is slated to release in January 2023, and the post incorrectly attributes a scene from Don-2 to Pathaan.
We found another scene on YouTube from this film revealing the jail’s location in Malaysia. Orange is one of the colours of the uniforms that the inmates of Malaysian jails wear. You can see prisoners in Malaysia wearing Orange colour uniforms in the articles here, here, and here.
To sum up, the clip shared in this post is from a scene in Don-2, not from the yet-to-be-released movie Pathaan.

created: December 16, 2022


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This video clip showing Modi saying 'BJP can never make India strong' has been digitally altered - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
May 1, 2024
Two phases of the ongoing 2024 general election have concluded, and Prime Minister Modi is actively campaigning across the country for the BJP. Against this backdrop, a video allegedly featuring Prime Minister Modi, in which he appears to say, “BJP can never make a strong India,” is being widely shared. This article will examine the accuracy of the statement made in the video.
Claim: Video footage showing Modi saying that “BJP can never build a strong India.”
Fact: In Rajasthan’s Jalore during the 2024 Lok Sabha election campaign, Modi asserted that the ‘Congress can never make India strong.’ However, this portion of his speech has been digitally altered, substituting “Congress” with “BJP.” Hence, the claim made in the post is FALSE.
The video clip originates from Modi’s election campaign in Rajasthan’s Jalore during the 2024 Lok Sabha elections. However, the viral video has been digitally modified. A Google search using pertinent keywords led us to news reports that covered Modi’s speech at a rally in Jalore.
In his address, Modi criticized the Congress party, claiming it is incapable of governing the country. He continued, saying, “In the first phase of voting, half of Rajasthan has already punished Congress. Rajasthan, a state brimming with patriotism, recognizes that ‘Congress can never make India strong.”
Here, the segment where Modi mentioned “Congress” has been digitally removed and substituted with “BJP,” indicating that he stated, “BJP can never make India strong.” News articles covering these remarks by Modi can be found here and here.
To sum up, this video clip showing Modi saying ‘BJP can never make India strong’ has been digitally altered.


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This video depicting Dr. Gangwani endorsing medicine for Prostatitis has been digitally manipulated - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
February 2, 2024
A video promoting medicine for Prostatitis, purportedly developed by scientists from America and France and available at a 50% discount, is being widely shared on social media. The video shows Dr. Gaurav Gangwani endorsing the product, and the post includes a link to a website selling the medicine. In this article, we aim to verify the authenticity of the video shared in the post.
Claim: Video showing Dr. Gaurav Gangwani endorsing medicine for Prostatitis.
Fact: This website offering medicines for Prostatitis is fraudulent. The video showing Dr. Gaurav Gangwani endorsing medicine for Prostatitis is digitally created by overlaying a different audio onto a video of  Dr. Gangwani explaining the grades or stages of Varicocele. We could not find any video on his social media platforms promoting medicine for Prostatitis, purportedly developed by scientists from America and France. Hence, the claim made in the post is FALSE.
The viral video identifies the individual showcased as Dr. Gaurav Gangwani; a Urologist purportedly affiliated with the Health Ministry. Upon conducting an online search, we found a doctor named Gaurav Gangwani, who self-identifies as an Interventional Radiologist and is affiliated with Lilavati Hospital in Mumbai on his social media profiles.
On his YouTube channel titled ‘Dr. Gangwani’s Vascular Clinic’, he offers insights into minimally invasive options for various conditions such as breast fibroadenomas, thyroid nodules, varicocele, varicose veins, enlarged prostates, uterine fibroids, gangrene, and other ailments. He aims to provide alternatives to surgery for these conditions.
Nevertheless, we could not find any video on his social media platforms promoting medicine for Prostatitis, purportedly developed by scientists from America and France, as asserted in the viral video. Furthermore, it seems that the audio in the viral video does not synchronize with the doctor’s lip movements.
Upon further search, we discovered a video featuring Dr. Gangwani explaining the grades or stages of Varicocele. The viral video may have been created by digitally editing this footage, and overlaying a different audio onto the original content. The gestures of the doctor in this video match with those observed in the viral video.
Furthermore, the domain of the website provided in the post was registered in Iceland on 17 January 2024 and is set to expire within a year. This timeframe suggests that the website may be fraudulent, and intended for fraudulent activities.
Earlier, a video of  Dr. Gangwani was digitally altered similarly portraying him endorsing a medicine for Varicose Veins. When the video gained widespread attention, Dr. Gangwani explicitly stated that he had no connection with the sale and that the video had been digitally manipulated.
Additionally, we have contacted Dr. Gangwani for clarification regarding the recent viral video, and any updates based on his response will be updated in this fact-check.
To sum it up, this video depicting Dr. Gangwani endorsing medicine for Prostatitis has been digitally manipulated.

created: February 2, 2024


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This video does not depict Congress workers preventing Uddhav Thackeray from speaking - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
May 1, 2024
A video is circulating on social media along with a claim that it shows Congress has insulted Uddhav Thackeray. The video appears to show Uddhav Thackeray being interrupted while speaking on stage (here & here). The accompanying text alleges that Congress workers from Wardha obstructed Uddhav from speaking at a rally. This article fact-checks the claim made in the post.
Claim: Video shows Congress workers interrupting Uddhav Thackery while speaking on stage.
Fact: The footage is from the Maha Vikas Aghadi’s election meeting in Wardha, Maharashtra. It shows Uddhav Thackeray in a hurry, intending to keep his speech short, even as those around him encouraged him to speak for a longer time. Hence, the claim made in the post is FALSE.
The viral video clip is from Maha Vikas Aghadi’s (MVA) recent election campaign in Wardha, Maharashtra. Contrary to the claim made in social media posts, it does not show Uddhav Thackeray being insulted.
Firstly, the exchange between Uddhav Thackeray and others doesn’t imply any obstruction to his speech. According to the Marathi conversation, Thackeray himself requests, “Let me speak for a few minutes because I’m short on time,” and those around him urge him to extend his speaking duration. Thackeray then agrees, stating he will speak for a maximum of 5 minutes. This clearly indicates that nobody obstructed his speech.
Additionally, a YouTube search using relevant keywords led us to several news reports showing a longer version of the same event. According to these videos, Uddhav Thackeray went on to speak for at least another ten minutes without interruption.
According to another such report, while MVA candidate Amar Kale from Wardha was speaking, someone interrupted him, mentioning, “Uddhav Thackeray has a flight to catch and needs to leave early.” Subsequent footage shows Amar Kale encouraging Uddhav Thackeray to speak at the rally. Although Thackeray mentions he can only speak for 5 minutes, others on stage are urging him to speak for at least 15 minutes.
News reports also highlighted the incident, stating that while other leaders of the coalition urged Uddhav Thackeray to speak, Thackeray appealed to the public that he would speak only for five minutes. Thus, from all these reports, it is evident that Uddhav Thackeray was in a hurry and intended to keep his speech brief, while the people around him encouraged him to speak for a longer period.
To sum up, this video does not show Congress workers preventing Uddhav Thackeray from speaking at a campaign meeting in Wardha.


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This video does not mention that the Muslim population increased by 15 lakhs in 5 years - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
October 9, 2023
A video with a caption, that the Muslim population increased by 15 lakhs in 5 years is being shared on social media. Let’s verify the claim made in the post.
Claim: Muslim population increased by 15 lakhs in 5 years.
Fact: The video shows statistics from various reports and says that most people in the world are leaving their original religion and adopting Islam. However, nowhere in the video, it was mentioned that the Muslim population increased by 15 lakhs in 5 years. Hence, the claim made in the post is Misleading.
On a relevant keyword search, we found the original video on the Aaj Tak YouTube channel. We found that the data shown in the video is acquired from various international research reports published between 2015 and 2023. Nowhere in the video, it was mentioned that the Muslim population increased by 15 lakhs in 5 years. Instead, the video mentions that as per a recent Pew article, 13 lakh people converted from other religions to Islam, and 8,80,000 people converted to other religions from Islam based on an article published by Pew in 2017, showing statistics of cumulative changes due to religious switching during 2015-2020.
The rest of the video shows the statistics projecting the religious composition of England and Wales which states that people opting for no religion is increasing. Further, projections from the World Population Review which predict that Islam will have nearly caught up to Christianity, the most popular religion in the world by 2050 are shown.
The video reiterates the same claim by showing the total fertility rate by religion during 2010-2015, published by Pew Research. By showing this, the video concludes that according to the data on religious conversion, in 200 years, only the population of Islam and people opting for no religion will remain dominant.
To sum up, this video does not mention that the Muslim population increased by 15 lakhs in 5 years.

created: October 9, 2023


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This video does not show a Canadian official declaring the ban on RSS - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
September 22, 2023
Amidst ongoing diplomatic tensions between Canada and India, a video has been circulating on social media claiming that Canada has banned the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS). Through this fact-check article, we aim to probe the authenticity of this claim.
Claim: A video shows a Canadian official declaring a ban on RSS in Canada.
Fact: The video features Stephen Brown, CEO of the National Council of Canadian Muslims (NCCM), an independent organisation; he is not a government official. Furthermore, he is calling for a ban but not declaring it. Therefore, the claim made in the post is False.
To evaluate this claim, we started by dissecting the video; during his speech, the man in the clip mentions NCCM, which prompted us to include this in our keyword search on the internet. This search directed us to the NCCM YouTube channel, where we found the original, longer video (also here and here) featuring the same speech(from here).
The NCCM is a non-governmental organisation (according to their website), and Stephen Brown, seen in the video, is the CEO. A press conference organised by the NCCM and the World Sikh Organization of Canada is the source of the viral video.
Here, Stephen called for the ban of the RSS and presented three additional demands in light of revelations concerning the assassination of Hardeep Singh Nijjar (Canada alleged the involvement of the Indian government in this case).
Thus, while Brown does call for a ban on the RSS, this video is being shared as if a Canadian official was announcing a ban on RSS.
We also searched the website of the Canadian Ministry of External Affairs to see if any official announcement was made on the ban of RSS, which did not yield any credible information as of today, i.e. 22 September 2023. There are also no news reports to back this claim.
To sum up,  the claim that the viral video portrays a Canadian official declaring a ban on RSS is false. Instead, it features the CEO of a community organisation in Canada making a personal call for such a ban.

created: September 22, 2023


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This video does not show a dead baby resurrected to life after her mother’s prayer to Jesus - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
June 7, 2022
A video is being shared on social media claiming it as the visuals of a dead baby resurrected to life after her mother’s prayers to Jesus. According to the post, the baby was declared dead after birth. This post claims that the baby was brought back to life after her mother’s prayers to Jesus. Let’s verify the claim made in the post.
`Claim: Video of a baby resurrected to life after her mother’s prayers to Jesus.
Fact: The baby seen in the video was not stillborn. The video shows an old incident that took place in Fiera De Santana hospital in Bahia, Brazil. The Hospital Foundation of Feira de Santana issued a press statement clarifying that the baby was naturally born and the video was taken while the mother was praying in thanksgiving for her son’s life. Hence, the claim made in the post is FALSE.
On reverse image search of the screenshots in the video, videos with similar visuals were found posted by several Facebook and YouTube users in 2020. A few of them can be seen here and here. These users shared this video mentioning it as an incident that took place in Bahia, Brazil. A YouTube user shared the video mentioning that the incident had taken place in Fiera De Santana hospital in Bahia and clarified that the baby was not stillborn. He informed in the description that the Fiera De Santana hospital has issued a press statement and clarified that the resurrection news spreading along with this video is fake.
When we searched for further sources using relevant keywords, we found several news articles reporting the actual truth of the video. They can be seen here and here. These news articles reported that the baby was born by natural delivery and doing well in the mother’s arms. This video was reportedly taken while the baby was crying listening to the mother’s thanksgiving prayer in Fiera De Santana hospital.
The press statement issued by the Fiera De Santana hospital states, “A video that circulates on social media of a baby, who would have been stillborn, and after the mother’s prayers came back to breathe and cried is Fake News. The Hospital Foundation of Feira de Santana, a municipality of the Municipality that manages the Hospital Inácia Pinto dos Santos (Women’s Hospital), clarifies that the information is not true. The child was not stillborn. According to information from the Maternal and Child Complex at Inácia Pinto dos Santos Hospital, the newborn was born naturally this weekend and was doing well in the mother’s arms”. Further, the Hospital management said, “When she began to pray in thanksgiving for her son’s life, in a natural reaction, the baby began to cry. After analyzing the published video, Fundação Hospitalar clarifies that it was all Fake News”.
To sum it up, this video does not show a dead baby resurrected to life after her mother’s prayer to Jesus.


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This video does not show a phone explosion because of human farting - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
May 23, 2023
A video is being shared on social media claiming it shows the visuals of a man stripping his trousers after the phone in his back pocket exploded because of his farting. Sharing the video, the post says that the Hydrogen and Methane gases in a human fart can cause a spark and warns people to be cautious when they fart with phones in their back pockets. Let’s verify the claim made in the post.
Claim: Video of a man stripping his trousers after the phone in his back pocket exploded after he farted.
Fact: The video shared in the post shows an old incident of a man stripping down his pants after a power bank in his pocket caught fire at the OR Tambo International Airport in South Africa. The power bank explosion was reportedly caused because of overheating. The methane and hydrogen gases in bacteria-produced farts are combustible. But the accident shown in the video was not caused because of a human fart. Hence, the claim made in the post is FALSE.
On reverse image search of the screenshots shared in the post, a video with similar visuals was found published by the ‘Independent’ news website on 09 March 2020. Sharing the video, the news website reported that a man was forced to strip down to his pants at the Tambo International Airport after an electronic device in his pocket caught fire because of excessive heating.
A few other news articles that reported this incident that took place at the Tambo International Airport in South Africa can be seen here and here. As per the reports, Lwando Mashiamahle was waiting for his girlfriend, who was queuing to buy a plane ticket, when a power bank in his trouser pocket overheated and burst into flames. Speaking about the incident to ‘News 24’, Lwando Mashiamahle said, “It felt quite hot in my pocket but I thought it was normal, like sometimes your phone heats up when you’re using it, but I never thought it could explode“.
The methane and hydrogen gases in bacteria-produced farts, also called flatulence, are flammable. As per the reports, in rare cases, a build-up of flammable gasses in the intestines had caused explosions during intestinal surgeries. But the accident shown in the video was not caused because of human farting.
To sum it up, this video does not show a phone explosion because of human farting.


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This video does not show a strange creature found in a sea; it is a 3D model created for a TV Show. - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
May 24, 2023
A social media post shares a video of a creature lying on a table, describing it as a strange human-like creature captured in a Sea. Through this article, let’s find out the fact behind this video.
Claim: Visuals of a strange human-like creature captured in a sea.
Fact: This is a 3D modelled creature designed for the HBO Max TV Show ‘Raised by Wolves.’ Hence the claim made in the post is False.
Upon conducting a reverse image search on keyframes from the video, we discovered a TikTok post by Smooth-On, a company known for manufacturing casting materials. The TikTok video showcased the same visuals as the viral video, but with a different context. The description of the TikTok video explicitly mentioned that it featured a creature created for the HBO Max TV show “Raised By Wolves” at the Dreamsmith. Dreamsmith is a company that produces props, 3d Printed models etc. (here and here)
We then skimmed through the official Instagram page of Dreamsmith and found that it was indeed created by them in collaboration with another artist named Furio Tedeschi. Tedeschi posted two videos (here and here) on Instagram and tagged Dreamsmith. These two videos are the same ones  the viral post shares.
To sum up, visuals of a 3D modelled creature created for a TV show are falsely claimed as a strange creature found in a sea.


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This video does not show cricket players offering Namaz in the middle of a match - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
December 7, 2022
A video is being shared on social media claiming it to be visuals of cricket players offering Namaz during a match. Let’s verify the claim made in the post.
Claim: Video of cricket players offering Namaz in the middle of a match.
Fact: The video shared in the post shows West Indian and Sri Lankan players lying down on the ground after a swarm of bees entered the ground in Antigua, West Indies. This incident took place during the three-match ODI series between Sri Lanka and West Indies cricket teams in March 2021. The video does not show players offering Namaz on the cricket ground. Hence, the claim made in the post is FALSE.
On reverse image search of the screenshots of the video, a video with similar visuals is found in a tweet made by a user on 14 March 2021. This Twitter user reported it as visuals of a bees attack during the West Indies vs Sri Lanka cricket match.
Bee 🐝 attack in #WIvSri#INDvENGt20 #Cricket pic.twitter.com/KgA5as5myR
When we searched for further sources, we found details of this incident in an article published by the ‘India TV’ news website on 15 March 2021. India TV article reported that the third ODI between West Indies and Sri Lanka was briefly halted after a swarm of bees entered the ground in Antigua, West Indies. Sharing a photo showing similar visuals, the article provided a description below the photo stating, “Sri Lanka and West Indies players lie down on the ground after a swarm of bees entered the ground in Antigua.”
Reporting the same, a few other news websites have also published articles in March 2021. They can be seen here, here and here. Pakistan cricket player Muhammad Rizwan offered Namaz on the field a couple of times between drinks breaks during the matches with India and South Africa. But the video shared in the post shows players lying down on the ground because of a bee attack.
To sum it up, an old video showing cricket players lying down on the ground because of a bees attack is shared as them offering namaz.

created: December 7, 2022


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This video does not show doctors removing maggots from the eyes of former Israel Prime Minister Ariel Sharon - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
November 10, 2023
A video is being shared on social media claiming it shows doctors removing maggots formed inside the eyes and ears of former Israel Prime Minister Ariel Sharon. The post alleges it shows recent visuals of Ariel Sharon while he was on a sick bed before death. Let’s verify the claim made in the post.
Claim: Recent video of doctors removing maggots from Israel’s former Prime Minister Ariel Sharon eyes before his death.
Fact: The former Prime Minister of Israel Ariel Sharon died in 2014 after being in a coma for eight years following a massive heart stroke in 2006. The video shared in the viral post is an old video of former Faisalabad DSP Anwar Sandal, recorded during his hospitalization at Lahore’s Sarjmeed Hospital in 2021. The video is from Pakistan and has nothing to do with Ariel Sharon. Hence, the claim made in the post is False.
When we searched for the details of the claims made in the post, we found that former Prime Minister of Israel, Ariel Sharon, passed away in January 2014. He had been in a coma for eight years following a severe heart stroke in 2006. Several news websites published articles reporting about Ariel Sharon’s death in 2014. They can be seen here, here, and here.
In 2010, Israeli artist Noam Braslavsky unveiled a life-sized art installation at the Kishon Gallery in Tel Aviv. The artworks show former Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon in a comatose state, lying in a hospital bed. There is no footage of Ariel Sharon captured during his medical treatment.
On reverse image search of the screenshots of the video, we found that the video has been circulating on social media at least since 2021. In the extended version of the video, the doctor was seen capturing the video while speaking in Urdu. He says the patient was a former police officer.
When we searched for further sources using relevant keywords, videos showing similar visuals were found published by a few YouTube channels in October 2021 stating that the visuals show Former Faisalabad DSP Anwar Sandal during his treatment at the Sarjmeed Hospital in Lahore. Several news sites reported about this video of DSP Anwar Sandal in October 2021. They can be seen here, here, and here. From all these pieces of evidence, it can be concluded that the video is from Pakistan and has nothing to do with former Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon.
To sum it up, an unrelated video from Pakistan is shared as the recent visuals of doctors removing maggots from the eyes of Israel’s Former Prime Minister Ariel Sharon.

created: November 10, 2023


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This video does not show Muslim women singing Ram bhajan at a Masjid in Dubai - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
March 9, 2021
A video is being shared on social media with a claim that it shows Muslim women singing Ram bhajan at a Masjid in Dubai. Let’s fact-check the claim made in the post.
Claim: Video of Muslim women singing Ram bhajan at a Masjid in Dubai.
Fact: The video was not taken at a Masjid in Dubai. It is related to an event at Prashanthi Nilayam, which is located at Puttaparthi in Andhra Pradesh. The event was held in front of the ‘maha-samadhi’ of ‘Sri Sathya Sai Baba’. Some of the devotees in the video belong to Bahrain, Iran, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Syria, Turkey and United Arab Emirates. Hence the claim made in the post is FALSE.
When the screenshots of the video were run through Yandex Reverse Image Search, many similar visuals were found in the search results. Most of the results were related to ‘Sathya Sai Baba Bhajans’. Those results can be seen here, here, and here.
So, when we searched with the relevant keywords, an extended version of the posted video was found on the ‘Sri Sathya Sai Official’ YouTube channel with the title – ‘” SARVA DHARMA SWAROOPA SAI ” – ARABIAN CHOIR – 10 JULY 2012’. In the description of the video, it is written – ‘A “Prashanthi” pilgrimage by the Region 94 of the Sai Organisation comprising the countries from Middle East and Gulf has enveloped Prasanthi Nilayam with Islamic Fervor. Devotees from Bahrain, Iran, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Syria, Turkey and United Arab Emirates, provided an Arabic flavour in Prasanthi Nilayam’.
Prashanthi Nilayam is located at Puttaparthi in Andhra Pradesh. The bhajan in the video took place at Sai Kulwant Hall (in front of the ‘maha-samadhi’ of ‘Sri Sathya Sai Baba’) in Prashant Nilayam. The pictures related to Sai Kulwant Hall can be seen here, here, and here.
Also, when the video went viral in 2018 with a similar claim, the Sathya Sai Baba International Organisation has clarified to ‘The Quint’ that – ‘while not all the participants seen in the video are Muslims or Arabs, some of them most definitely are.’
To sum it up, the posted video does not show Muslim women singing Ram bhajan at a Masjid in Dubai. It is related to an event at Prashanthi Nilayam, which is located at Puttaparthi in Andhra Pradesh.


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This video does not show Muslims snatching Hindu religious flags during a procession in Haryana - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
September 14, 2023
A video featuring a man taking away a Hindu religious flag from a youth participating in a procession is circulating widely on social media. The post claims that members of the Muslim community snatched the flag and threw it on the ground from a Hindu youth during the procession in the village of Sanoli Khurd, Panipat, Haryana. Let’s verify the claim made in the post.
Claim: Visuals of a Muslim man snatching a Hindu religious flag from a Youth during a procession.
Fact: This incident occurred during a Janmasthami procession in September 2023 in the Sanoli Khurd village of Haryana. Some members of Bajrang Dal entered the Muslim area of the village, waving religious flags and raising slogans. To prevent communal tensions in the village, village sarpanch Sanjay Tyagi and temple committee members intervened. They took the flags away and requested the group to refrain from raising religious slogans. Hence, the claim made in the post is FALSE.
First, we conducted an internet search using relevant keywords to gain more insight into this incident. We discovered media reports by Amar Ujala dated 10th and 12th September 2023. According to these reports, the youth of Sanoli Khurd village in Panipat, Haryana, were engaged in a religious procession on the occasion of Janmashtami. As this procession passed through a predominantly Muslim area, some members of Bajrang Dal arrived with religious flags and reportedly began chanting religious slogans.
To prevent an escalation and avoid confrontation, temple committee members, along with village sarpanch Sanjay Tyagi, intervened, taking away the flags from two Bajrang Dal youths. Bajrang Dal members responded by demanding an apology from the Sarpanch and lodging a complaint with Sanoli Police. We proceeded to contact the SHO of the Sanoli police, Sunil Kumar, inquiring about the incident captured in the viral video. He denied any communal aspect to the event, stating that the person taking the flag away from the youth was Sanjay Tyagi, the village sarpanch.
In an interview with Vishwas News, Sanjay Tyagi said that the villagers had staged a procession on Janmashtami and as the procession came near the Madarsa, some members of the Bajrang Dal joined it and started waving flags and raising slogans. Observing this, a member of the temple committee stopped a Youth, and they (along with him) later removed the flag from his hand. Tyagi stated that he had also requested the group to refrain from raising slogans and to depart from the area. He continued, saying that the individual from whom the flag was taken was also a local village youth and denied communal angle. He said that he intervened to prevent communal tensions within the village. He further stated that the flag, throughout this event, was not disrespected or mishandled in any way.
To sum it up, the viral video does not show Muslims snatching a Hindu religious flag during a procession in Haryana.

created: September 14, 2023


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This video does not show Muslims torturing Hindus and forcefully converting them to Islam in Pakistan - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
June 16, 2023
A video is being shared on social media claiming it is the visuals of Muslims forcefully converting Hindus into Islam by torturing them with electric shocks in Pakistan. Let’s verify the claim made in the post.
Claim: Video of Muslims torturing Hindus and forcefully converting them to Islam in Pakistan.
Fact: The videoclips shared in the post shows a fake peer torturing children and youth in the name of exorcism in Pakistan. The fake peer Muhammad Ullah was arrested by Peshawar police in 2020. There are several other exorcism videos available on the YouTube channel of Muhammad Ullah. The video does not show forcible conversions of Hindus into Islam. Hence, the claim made in the post is False.
On reverse image search of the screenshots of the video, similar visuals of a peer giving electric shocks to children and youth were found on Facebook. Sharing the videos, these users mentioned that a fake faith healer was arrested in Pakistan for torturing children and youth in the name of exorcism.
When we searched for further sources using these clues, we found an article reporting about this fake peer who electrocuted children in Pakistan. This article reported that a fake peer, who was identified as Muhammad Ullah Buksh Qaddullah, was taken into custody by the Peshawar police accusing him of electrocuting boys and girls in the name of exorcism. Several other news websites have also published articles reporting about the arrest of this fake peer in 2020. They can be seen here and here.
On searching for further sources, we found a tweet published by the Capital City Police Peshawar about the arrest of this fake peer. The Peshawar police through the tweet stated that Muhammad Ullah was arrested for allegedly torturing children in the name of exorcism. Neither Peshawar police nor any other news site said that Muhammad Ullah was arrested for forcibly converting Hindus to Muslims.
کرنٹ لگا کر بچوں کے جن نکالنے والا جعلی پیر گرفتار
سوشل میڈیا پر وائرل ہونے والی جعلی پیر کی ویڈیو کے بعد پشاور پولیس نے اچینی بالا کے علاقے میں کارروائی کرتے ہوئے جعلی پیر محمد اللہ ولد قدرت اللہ کو گرفتارکر لیا،
ایف آئی آر درج کرکے مزید تفتیش شروع کردی گئی ہے.@Aadiiroy pic.twitter.com/mEqfLm6ODx
On comparing a screengrab of the video shared in the post with that of the images shared by the Peshawar Police, it can be confirmed that the man electrocuting children and youth in the video was Muhammad Ullah. Many such videos of Muhammad Ullah torturing children were published on the YouTube channel of Muhammad Ullah. A few of those videos can be seen here, here, and here.
To sum it up, this video does not show Muslims torturing Hindus and forcefully converting them to Islam in Pakistan.


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This Video does not show Nova Kakhovka Dam Explosion in June 2023 - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
June 7, 2023
A video of an explosion of a structure is being shared on social media as the visuals of the Nova Kakhovka Dam explosion in Ukraine, which led to massive flooding in June 2023 (here and here). Let’s fact-check this claim through this article.
Claim: This video shows visuals of the Nova Kakhovka Dam explosion in Ukraine in June 2023.
Fact: The viral video is from November 2022 and shows the explosion that occurred during that time, not the June 2023 Nova Kakhovka Dam explosion. Hence the claim made in the post is Misleading.
Although the viral video shows the occurrence of an explosion on the Nova Kakhovka Dam, our research revealed that this video dates back to November 2022 and is not related to the recent explosion of the Nova Kakhovka Dam.
Through a reverse image search using keyframes from the viral video, we discovered that it originated in November 2022, not in June 2023, as claimed. Multiple news reports (here, here, and here) published during that time described the video as footage of the Nova Kakhovka Dam being damaged due to an explosion.
Maxar Technologies, a space tech company, released satellite images that clearly showed the extent of the damage caused to the dam. The incident was attributed to the ongoing tensions between Russia and Ukraine.
New #satellite images (November 11, 2022, 10:25am local time) show significant damage to the Nova Kakhovka dam, near #Kherson, #Ukraine, with sections of the dam and sluice gates destroyed. https://t.co/msSBBI6h7h pic.twitter.com/yYkXOM1SIf
Media outlets reported that Russia was behind this blast, while Russia blamed Ukraine for the destruction. Nevertheless, the evidence confirms that the viral video existed on the internet months before the June 2023 explosion of the Nova Kakhovka Dam.
To sum up, a video from November 2022 is falsely attributed to the recent damage to the Nova Kakhovka dam.


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This video does not show oxygen tankers being sent to India from Saudi Arabia or Pakistan - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
April 30, 2021
A video is being shared widely on social media with a claim that it shows oxygen tankers being sent to India from Saudi Arabia. The video is being shared is being in the context of the current medical oxygen requirement in the country to treat COVID-19 patients. Let’s fact-check the claim made in the post.
Claim: Video of oxygen tankers being sent to India from Saudi Arabia.
Fact: The video shows empty tankers being sent from Mumbai to Visakhapatnam to load them with liquid medical oxygen. The same video was also shared as oxygen tankers from Pakistan. While it is true that 80MT of liquid oxygen was shipped from Saudi Arabia and necessary support was offered by Pakistan, the video is neither related to Saudi Arabia nor Pakistan. Hence the claim made in the post is MISLEADING.
When the screenshots of the video were run through Google Reverse Image Search, the same video was found to be uploaded on YouTube by several media agencies. ‘ANI News’ has posted the video with the title – ‘‘Ro-Ro’ service: ‘Oxygen Express’ train leaves for Visakhapatnam Steel Plant from Mumbai’, on 19 April 2021. The same video was also found to be tweeted by ‘Central Railway’ and ‘Piyush Goyal’ (Minister of Railways) with a similar description on 19 April 2021. The tankers in the video are empty and they are being sent to Visakhapatnam to load them with ‘liquid medical oxygen’. More details can be read here and here.
Railways is running its first Oxygen Express in its fight against COVID-19. The Ro-Ro service with 7 empty tankers departed from Kalamboli, Maharashtra for Vishakapatnam today, where it will be loaded with Liquid Medical Oxygen. pic.twitter.com/Y3tF1pe4vE
The official Twitter account of the Indian Embassy in Riyadh (‘India in Saudi Arabia’) has tweeted on 24 April 2021 that 80 MT liquid oxygen is being shipped from Saudi Arabia in partnership with the Adani group and M/s Linde. While it is true that oxygen has been shipped from Saudi Arabia, the posted video is not related to it.
Embassy of India is proud to partner with Adani group and M/s Linde in shipping much needed 80MT liquid oxygen to India. Our hearfelt  thanks to Ministry of Health Kingdom of Saudi Arabia for all their help, support and cooperation.@MEAIndia @drausaf @SaudiMOH @HMOIndia pic.twitter.com/6j8NuGwtCB
Videos of Oxygen supply to India from Pakistan?
The same video (archived) is being shared on social media with a claim that it shows oxygen tankers being sent from Pakistan to India. The news reports about Pakistan offering support to India can be read here and here. But the posted video is not related to Pakistan.
Earlier, another video also went viral with a similar claim. FACTLY has debunked it and written a fact-check article, which can be read here.
To sum it up, an unrelated video is being shared as oxygen tankers being sent to India from Saudi Arabia and Pakistan.


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This video does not show PM Modi admitting to stealing in his childhood - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
June 23, 2021
A video accompanying a post is being widely shared on social media claiming that Prime Minister Modi had said that when he used to steal smaller things in his childhood if his mother had stopped him then, he would not have become such a big robber. Let us fact-check the claim made in the post.
Claim: Video of PM Modi admitting to stealing in his childhood.
Fact: This video has been conveniently clipped from a longer speech by PM Modi in Siliguri, West Bengal on 10 April 2021 where he was narrating a story about a robber in the context of criticising TMC-led West Bengal government. Modi was referring to a robber and about his mother not stopping him from stealing during his childhood.  This has been shared without context to give the impression that Modi is talking about himself. Hence the claim made in the post is MISLEADING.
When reverse image search was done on the screenshots of the video, a video uploaded by the official YouTube channel of Prime Minister Narendra Modi was found. The YouTube video was streamed live on 10 April 2021 from a public meeting in Siliguri at West Bengal. At the 39.40 timestamp of the YouTube video, Modi says, “Brothers and sisters when we were children, we all heard about the story about a big robber who was sentenced to death. When asked about his last wish, he said that he wants to meet his mother. Then the government arranged for him to meet her, but when he met his mother, he bit his mother’s nose. When people asked him why he did like this, he replied saying that when he was a child, he used to steal small things and at that time if his mother had stopped, he would not have become such a robber.”
The part from the 40.39 timestamp, where Modi is referring to the robber talking about his mother not stopping him from stealing during his childhood has been cropped and shared without context to give the impression that Modi is talking about himself. This 10 second part from 40.39 had been conveniently taken and shared in the post.
The story was narrated by Modi when he was criticising West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee for “tolabaji” (extortion) and alleged that TMC workers take cut money as commission to help people avail benefits of state-run welfare schemes. News articles related to this speech can be seen here and here. Even earlier in 2019, PM Modi said that the TMC government has imposed ‘TTT’- Trinamool Tolabaji Tax in West Bengal, according to this article.
To sum it up, this video does not show PM Modi admitting to stealing in his childhood.


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This video does not show PM Modi pushing Maharashtra CM Eknath Shinde - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
December 15, 2022
A video clip of PM Modi with the CM of Maharashtra, Eknath Shinde, is being shared on social media, with a claim that the PM allegedly pushed Eknath Shinde because he was in the frame for a picture. The post’s description reads, ‘It doesn’t matter if you are head of a state. You’ll be pushed back if you come in his frame.’ Let’s fact-check this video through this article.
Claim: PM Modi pushes Eknath Shinde to get a photo without him.
Fact: These visuals of PM Modi and Eknath Shinde were captured during the flagging-off ceremony of the Vande Bharath Express that connects Nagpur and Bilaspur. The full video is available on PM Modi’s Youtube channel. After the train left the platform, the PM could be seen patting the back of Eknath Shinde and shaking his hand after the Maharashtra CM took a backstep. Even though the viral video has the same visuals, it is being shared with a misleading narrative that the PM was pushing Eknath Shinde. Hence, the claim made in the post is FALSE.
We searched the internet with relevant keywords and were led to a video news report by ‘Times Now’ (also read). Uploaded on 01 December 2022, this Youtube video is titled – ‘PM Modi Reaches Nagpur, Flags Off Vande Bharat Express In Maharashtra...’ The leaders are wearing the same attire as in the viral video. With this hint, we further refined our search and found a YouTube video of the event’s stream on PM Modi’s Youtube channel.
In the full-length video at 4:28 sec, Eknath Shinde can be seen moving back, after which PM looks at him, pats his back, and shakes hand with him. The same visuals are also present in the viral video. However, the PM’s actions are being misquoted as him pushing the Maharashtra CM for intruding on his photo frame.
To sum up, the posted video does not show PM Modi pushing Maharashtra CM Eknath Shinde.

created: December 15, 2022


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This video does not show the police apprehending the knife attacker in Nice, France - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
October 30, 2020
A social media post with a video claiming to be that of police apprehending the Nice attacker is being widely shared. Through this article let’s fact-check the claim made in the post.
Claim: Video of police apprehending the Nice attacker.
Fact: The video is actually of a 2019 incident which happened in Grenoble, France in which a man who brandished knives got apprehended by the police. This video has nothing to do with the latest knife attack in Nice, France. Hence the claim made in the post is FALSE.
Reverse image search of the screenshots of the video in the post led us to a 2019 news article in which a similar video is featured. According to the news article, a man was arrested in front of Grenoble station, France for brandishing knives in both the hands. This proves that the video in the post is not of the latest attack in Nice, France.
In the wake of the latest knife attack in Norte-Dam church in Nice, France in which three people were killed,  posts like these are being widely shared across platforms.
To sum it up, 2019 video of a man who was apprehended by the police in Grenoble, France for brandishing knives is falsely linked to latest knife attack in Nice.

created: October 30, 2020


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This video does not show protesting farmers' rehearsal of the proposed tractor parade on Republic day - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
January 19, 2021
A post accompanying a video that shows a rally of tractors decorated with lights is being shared across social media platforms with a claim that it shows preparations for the upcoming tractor rally which the protesting farmers have planned to hold on 26 January 2021. Through this article let’s fact-check the claim made in the post.
Claim: Video showing preparations for the upcoming tractor rally which the protesting farmers have planned to hold on 26 January 2021.
Fact: This video is on the internet at least since December 2020. Many users shared the video as a tractor rally during Christmas in Ireland. Tractor rallies are an annual affair in agricultural areas of Ireland. The protesting farmers on 02 January 2021, announced that they will hold a tractor parade to Delhi on Republic Day, but this video is available on internet much before that announcement.  Hence the claim made in the post is FALSE.
Reverse image search of screenshots of the video led us to a YouTube video that carried visuals similar to the video in the post. The video is uploaded on YouTube on 13 December 2020 and the caption of the video reads ‘Merry Christmas to the farmers’.
Further search led us to a 16 December 2020 Facebook post that shared the same video. As per the description of the post, the video shows the annual Christmas tractor run in Ireland. This establishes that the presence of this video on the internet predates the announcement of the tractor rally by protesting farmers.
Taking a cue from the Facebook video, Google search with relevant keywords led us to a few news articles which reported these rallies.  As per these articles, tractor rallies are an annual affair in agricultural areas of Ireland. According to one such article, a virtual procession took place in Nenagh, Ireland on 19 December 2020 due to COVID-19 restrictions. And the full video of this year’s procession can be seen here.
Farmer unions protesting against the new farm laws have organized tractor rallies on 07 January 2021 at multiple border points, calling it a rehearsal of the proposed march on 26 January 2021. However, the video in the post has nothing to do with this as the video is available on the internet much before the protesting farmers’ announcement of the proposed tractor rally on 26 January 2021.
In the wake of the protesting farmers’ announcement of their plan to hold a tractor parade towards Delhi on 26 January 2021, posts like these are being circulated on social media with misleading claims.
To sum it up, this video does not show protesting farmers rehearsal of proposed tractor parade on Republic day.

created: January 19, 2021


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This Video Does Not Show Rahul Gandhi Consuming Non-Vegetarian Food During the Month of Sawan - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
August 13, 2023
A video depicting Congress MP Rahul Gandhi consuming non-vegetarian food at a restaurant is being widely shared on social media. The description of the video claims that despite Rahul Gandhi identifying himself as a Brahmin and a devotee of Lord Shiva, he appears to disregard Hindu festivals and customs by consuming non-vegetarian food during the holy month of Sawan (Shravan). Let’s verify the claim made in the post.
Claim: Video of Rahul Gandhi eating non-vegetarian food at a restaurant during the holy month of Sawan (Shravan).
Fact: The video shows Rahul Gandhi consuming non-vegetarian food at a restaurant in New Delhi on 18 April 2023. However, the sacred month of Sawan began on 04 July 2023, and will conclude on 31 August 2023. As the video predates the onset of the Sawan month, the claim made in the post is MISLEADING.
A reverse image search of the extracted keyframes from the viral video led us to the complete video, which premiered on YouTube on 23 April 2023. In this video, actor & writer Kunal Vijayakar can be observed interviewing Rahul Gandhi while both are consuming various non-vegetarian foods at Al-Jawahar Restaurant in New Delhi.
Media reports also confirm this visit, which occurred on 18 April 2023.
As per the Hindu Calendar, the month of Sawan began on 04 July 2023 and will continue until 31 August 2023. This month holds special significance for Hindu devotees who seek to please Lord Shiva and pray for his blessings by following various practices. After a span of 19 years, the Sawan month will be observed for two months, known as Adhik Hindu Maas. Although we couldn’t independently verify whether Rahul Gandhi personally abstains from consuming non-vegetarian food during this month, it is evident that the viral video predates the month of Sawan.
To sum it up, the viral video does not show Rahul Gandhi eating non-vegetarian food during the month of Sawan.


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This video does not show Rahul Gandhi making a speech without realizing his mic was off - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
November 30, 2022
A video is being widely shared on social media claiming it as the visuals of Congress leader Rahul Gandhi addressing a rally without realizing his mic was turned off. Sharing the video, this post states, “Mic is off, but comedy is on”. Let’s verify the claim made in the post.
Claim: Video of Rahul Gandhi addressing a rally without realizing his microphone was off.
Fact: Rahul Gandhi, while addressing the Bharat Jodo Yatra rally in Indore, intentionally switched off his microphone to demonstrate how the allegedly the mics are switched off when opposition leaders raise questions about waiving off farmers’ loans, demonetisation, GST, and other issues in the Parliament. A few moments later, Rahul Gandhi turned on his mic and said this is the way their voice gets suppressed in the Parliament. The video shared in the post clipped the before and after visuals of Rahul Gandhi turning off his mic at the rally in Indore. Hence, the claim made in the post is MISLEADING.
When searched for the sources of the video using relevant keywords on the internet, we found that a Twitter user shared an extended version of the video while responding to a tweet made by Rishi Bagree making the same claim. In the extended version of the video, Rahul Gandhi was seen intentionally turning off his mic to demonstrate to people how the voices of Congress party leaders get suppressed when they raise questions about waiving off farmers’ loans, demonetisation, GST and other issues in the Parliament.
When we searched for further sources of this video, we found similar visuals in a video published by the Indian National Congress Party YouTube channel on 27 November 2022. INC published this video describing it as the visuals of Rahul Gandhi’s speech at the Bharat Jodo Yatra rally held in Indore, Madhya Pradesh. During his speech at the rally at Rau in Indore, Rahul Gandhi said, “Not once, but many times I and Congress Party MPs try to raise questions about farmers, waiving off farmers loans, demonetisation and GST in the Lok Sabha. But, whenever we try to raise questions in the Parliament, amazingly our mics will be turned off like this”. For a few moments, Rahul Gandhi was inaudible making only hand and facial gestures. A few moments later, Rahul Gandhi turned on his mic and said, “So, whatever we want to say, like you saw, we will talk continuously but we were inaudible in the house.” Rahul Gandhi intentionally turned off his mic to demonstrate how mics allegedly get turned off when opposition leaders try to raise questions against the government.
Rahul Gandhi did a similar act during the Bharat Jodo Yatra rally held in Maharashtra’s Nanded on 10 November 2022. The video shared in the post clipped before and after visuals of Rahul Gandhi turning off his mic to demonstrate how opposition leaders’ voices get suppressed in the Parliament.
To sum it up, this video does not show Rahul Gandhi making a speech without realizing his microphone was off.

created: November 30, 2022


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This video does not show robots dancing at Disneyland, Shanghai. - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
April 27, 2023
A video shared on social media allegedly shows Chinese-made robots dancing at Disneyland in Shanghai. The post claims that a ticket to watch this five-minute-long dance performance costs 499 yuan, which is 5,600 rupees in Indian currency. Let’s verify the claim made in this post.
Claim: A video of China-made robots performing a classical dance at Disneyland in Shanghai.
Fact: The performers in this video aren’t robots. They are classical dancers Sophia Salingaros and Isha Parupudi. The original version of this viral video of them performing Bharathanatyam was uploaded on a YouTube channel named ‘IndianRaga.‘ Hence the claim made in the post is False.
To learn more details about the video, we performed a keyword search on the internet, leading us to the original video uploaded on Youtube in 2017.
A channel named IndianRaga uploaded this video titled ‘Vahana Alarippu: Bharatanatyam Dance | Best of Indian Classical Dance.‘ The original video is 23 seconds longer than the viral video and has an entirely different audio track. Contrary to the post’s claim, this performance features two classical dancers, Sophia Salingaros and Isha Parupudi. Nowhere in this video’s description was it mentioned that this was performed at Disneyland, Shanghai.
To sum up, this video does not show robots performing classical Chinese dance at Disneyland, Shanghai.


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This video does not show security personnel stopping Shivraj Singh Chouhan from walking beside PM Narendra Modi - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
November 19, 2021
A video is being shared on social media claiming it as visuals of a security guard stopping Madhya Pradesh CM Shivraj Singh Chouhan from walking beside Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Let’s verify the claim made in the post.
Claim: Video of security personnel stopping Shivraj Singh Chouhan from walking beside PM Narendra Modi.
Fact: The person who stopped the Madhya Pradesh CM Shivraj Singh Chouhan in the video is Bhopal Collector Avinash Lavania, not the security personnel of PM Narendra Modi. Avinash Lavania had stopped Shivraj Singh Chouhan only to discuss an issue related to the inauguration ceremony of the Rani Kamalapati railway station in Bhopal. After the discussion, Shivraj Singh Chouhan was again seen walking along with PM Narendra Modi. Hence, the claim made in the post is FALSE.
On reverse image search of the screenshots in the video, a video with similar visuals was found tweeted by ‘NDTV’ journalist Anurag Dwary on 16 November 2021.  Anurag Dwary clarified that the person who was seen interrupting Madhya Pradesh CM Shivraj Singh Chouhan was Bhopal Collector Avinash Lavania, not the security personnel of PM Narendra Modi. ‘NDTV’ and a few other news websites have published articles reporting this information. They can be seen here and here. This incident reportedly took place during Narendra Modi’s recent visit to Bhopal to inaugurate the Rani Kamalapati railway station.
सुबह से सोशल मीडिया पर ये वीडियो वायरल है जिनको जानता था बता दिया कि ये SPG/PMO के अधिकारी नहीं @CollectorBhopal हैं जो @ChouhanShivraj से कहने आए थे,वाकई सोशल मीडिया पर खबरें यूं हीं दौड़ पड़ती हैं! लगता है किसी को तथ्योंं से मतलब नहीं है बस कुछ साबित करने की जल्दबाज़ी है! pic.twitter.com/x60i6SvTtq
Shivraj Singh Chouhan through a tweet clarified that the person who interrupted his walk with Narendra Modi was Bhopal Collector Avinash Lavania, not the security guard of PM Narendra Modi. Shivraj stated that Avinash Lavania had stopped him to discuss an important issue related to the inauguration ceremony of the Rani Kamalapati railway station in Bhopal. After the discussion with Avinash Lavania, Shivraj Singh Chouhan was again seen walking along with Narendra Modi.
झूठी कांग्रेस! pic.twitter.com/wMuUv1VqgE
The Bhopal Collector Office official Twitter handle had also issued a clarification regarding this video going viral with false claims.
सोशल मीडिया में वायरल हो रही बात कि माननीय प्रधानमंत्री श्री @narendramodi जी के भोपाल दौरे में सुरक्षा अधिकारी द्वारा माननीय सीएम श्री @ChouhanShivraj को रोका गया का मैं पूर्णतः खंडन करता हूँ । – @CollectorBhopal
लवानिया@JansamparkMP
To sum it up, this person interrupting Shivraj Singh Chouhan from walking beside Narendra Modi is the Bhopal Collector Avinash Lavania, not PM Modi’s security personnel.

created: November 19, 2021


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This video does not show Taliban hanging a man from a Black Hawk helicopter - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
September 1, 2021
A video accompanied by a post is being widely shared on social media claiming that the Taliban had hung a man from United States’ Black Hawk Helicopter. The video shows a man dangling from the helicopter. The post even claims that the Taliban is now flying a U.S. Black Hawk helicopter over Kandahar. Let us fact-check the claim made in the post.
Claim: Video of Taliban hanging a man from a Black Hawk Helicopter.
Fact: The man in the video is from the Taliban who was trying to install the Taliban flag near the governor’s building in Kandahar. Whether the helicopter being flown by the Afghan pilot is a Black Hawk helicopter is not yet confirmed by the US Department of Defense. On 31 August 2021, the United States of America had completed the withdrawal of its troops from Afghanistan. According to reports, the United States military had disabled 73 aircraft, 27 Humvees, weapons systems, and other high-tech defence equipment before boarding the final flight from Kabul. The atrocities and human rights violations by the Taliban in Afghanistan are well known across the world, but this video is an unrelated one. Hence, the claim made in the post is MISLEADING.
When reverse image search is done on the screenshots of the video, a tweet was found. The Tweet was made by an Afghani journalist named Bilal Sarwary, who countered the claim made through another tweet that the Taliban was hanging somebody from an American Black Hawk. The Journalist says that the Afghan pilot was known to him and that he confirmed to him that he flew the Black Hawk helicopter. The Taliban person seen was ‘trying to install Taliban flag from air but it didn’t work in the end.’
Over 2-minute video tweeted by the Afghan News Agency Asvaka shows similar visuals of a man dangling from a helicopter. The tweet says the helicopter was Black Hawk which was flying over the governor’s office in Kandahar.
Afghan pilot flying this  is someone I have known over the years. He was trained in the US and UAE, he confirmed to me that he flew the Blackhawk helicopter. Taliban fighter seen here was trying to install Taliban flag from air but it didn’t work in the end. https://t.co/wnF8ep1zEl
Several videos were found on social media with the helicopter and a man dangling from it. The visuals can be seen here, here, and here. None of these visuals discuss a man hanging from the helicopter. A larger and clearer 52-second video shows the man waving his hands while he was dangling from the helicopter.
کندهار تازه صورت حال pic.twitter.com/HM2CP2aZHg
Washington Post’s Fact checker Glenn Kessler had tweeted about this viral claim and stated that Taliban supposedly hanging a man from a Black Hawk helicopter was made-up. It is ‘apparently a Taliban militant hanging from a rope with a Taliban flag’.
Here's how things get twisted on the Internet. You know that image of the Taliban supposedly hanging someone from a BlackHawk helicopter, tweeted all over the place? Just made-up. Not that the video is sourced to "FJ" — @natsecjeff1 But that's not what his original video said… pic.twitter.com/Swb0FIGmXR
A BBC article on the BBC News Afghanistan live page about the same video said that it was a failed attempt to fix a flag over a building. ‘Further footage and still photographs seen by the BBC show that the man flying over the city of Kandahar is very much alive. These images show him wearing the Blackhawk helicopters’ diver’s winch and waving the Taliban flag.’ According to the Hindustan Times article, the man dangling from the helicopter was fixing a flag.
A fact-check article written by Snopes regarding the same claim say that the video ‘appears to show a Black Hawk helicopter previously being used by Afghan Air Force’. But it says that the Department of Defense in the United States had not yet commented on the video.
On 31 August 2021, the United States of America had completed the withdrawal of its troops from Afghanistan. The Taliban then declared victory and independence and took control of the Kabul airport. According to reports, the United States military had disabled 73 aircraft, 27 Humvees, weapons systems and other high-tech defence equipment before boarding the final flight from Kabul.
The atrocities and human rights violations by the Taliban in Afghanistan are well known across the world, even recent reports (here and here) clearly show their brutality. However, according to available evidence, this video cannot be linked to their brutality recently.
To sum it up, this video does not show Taliban hanging a man from a Black Hawk helicopter.

created: September 1, 2021


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This video does not show the arrest of ‘Lucknow Girl’ who beat a cab driver - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
August 11, 2021
A video accompanied by a post is being widely shared on social media claiming that the ‘Lucknow Girl’ had been arrested. In the video, a woman is seen walking with police personnel, who allegedly was arrested because of the power of the Internet. The video is going viral as visuals of a girl from Lucknow slapping a cab driver had gone viral with #ArrestLucknowGirl trending on social media. Let us fact-check the claim made in the post.
Claim: Video shows the arrest of the ‘Lucknow Girl’ who beat a cab driver.
Fact: This video is on the internet since 2016 and has nothing to do with the ‘Lucknow girl’ who beat a cab driver. It shows Anuradha Choudhary, a woman from Rajasthan who has a criminal history of crimes like kidnapping, extortion. The Lucknow police registered an FIR against the girl under IPC sections 394 (voluntarily causing hurt in committing robbery) and 427 (mischief causing damage to the amount of Rs 50). There are no news reports as of now which confirm that the ‘Lucknow girl’ is arrested. Hence, the claim made in the post is FALSE.
When reverse image search is done on the screenshots of the video, a YouTube video with the same visuals was found.  The YouTube video was uploaded on 30 March 2017 with the title ‘Anuradha Choudhary LADY Don Anand Pal Case.’ It can be seen that the first 15 seconds of the YouTube video had been clipped and added to the post. Therefore, this is an old video unrelated to the ‘Lucknow girl’ incident that took place recently in 2021.
Taking a cue that this video is related to a person named Anuradha Choudhary, we searched Google with relevant keywords. A video report by News24 on 18 June 2016 had similar visuals saying that this woman named Anuradha was sentenced to 2 years in jail by Didwana court in Nagaur district, Rajasthan.
Anuradha Choudhary has a criminal history of crimes like kidnapping, extortion. She was a close associate of gangster Anand Pal from Rajasthan, who died in a police encounter in June 2017. A special Delhi Police team arrested her on 31 July 2021 and she is currently in 14-day police remand.
A video of the ‘Lucknow Girl’ slapping a cab driver went viral on social media. This incident happened on 30 July 2021 at the Kesari Kheda traffic crossing in Lucknow’s Krishna Nagar area. The Lucknow police registered an FIR against the girl under IPC sections 394 (voluntarily causing hurt in committing robbery) and 427 (mischief causing damage to the amount of Rs 50). There are no news reports as of now that confirm that the ‘Lucknow girl’ was arrested. News reports state that the police served a notice to her.
To sum it up, this video does not show the arrest of ‘Lucknow Girl’ who beat a cab driver.


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This video does not show the confluence of the rivers Ganga and Yamuna. - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
August 9, 2022
A post with a video is being shared on social media, claiming that it shows the confluence of two water bodies of distinct colours. The post states the location as Prayagraj, and the rivers are Ganga and Yamuna. Let’s fact-check these claims.
Claim: The visuals show the confluence of river Ganga and river Yamuna in Prayagraj.
Fact: This video shows China’s Yellow river merging with the Bohai Sea. Hence the post is Misleading.
Rerverse image search on Yandex with the video screenshots led to a video that claims the waterbodies as the Rivers Amazon and Tapajos. Searching on the Internet with relevant keywords, we found a few videos which say the Amazon river meets the Tapojas river in Brazil.
We looked for clues from the original video to establish and confirm the location. A red coloured flag can be seen on the yacht in the viral video. The flag has yellow spots. We searched on the Internet with relevant keywords and found that it is the flag of China.
Upon searching the internet for river confluences in China, we found news reports by ETV and Wion news about the Yellow River merging with the Bohai Sea. These news reposts can be seen here and here. One water body is brownish, and the other is greenish blue; this matches the colour of the water bodies in the viral video.
A South China Morning Post video confirms that this scene only occurs between July and October when the Yellow river surges. Boat tours are also available for people to witness this event. The Boat from the video report is identical to the Boat in the viral post; even the Chinese flag is in the same position on both boats.
With this evidence, we can conclude that the waterbodies merging in the video are the Yellow river and Bohai sea in China.
However, the Rivers Ganga and Yamuna meeting in Prayagraj is a fact, and the confluence of these two is known as the Triveni Sangam- The confluence of three rivers, Ganga, Yamuna and theriver Saraswathi. This video shows the confluence of these rivers in Prayagraj.
To Summarise, the confluence of the Yellow river and the Bohai Sea in China is shared falsely as the meeting of River Ganga and River Yamuna in Prayagraj.

created: August 9, 2022


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This video does not show the dead body of a child being exhumed from a grave after two years - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
December 15, 2022
A video is being shared on social media where a child’s body can be seen exhumed from a grave. Allegedly, this child has been in the tomb for two years, and was exhumed based on the request of the child who would visit her father in his dreams and ask him to shift her dead remains to another place. Further, it is claimed that the corpse did not decompose at all. Let’s verify this claim through this article.
Claim: A girl’s dead body remained undecomposed for two years which was discovered when her body was being shifted to a new graveyard based on her request in her father’s dreams
Fact: This incident took place in Iraq in an area known as Kasnazan. As per Fatabyyano, the child in the video died due to a heart ailment and was being shifted from the grave where he was buried for two days based on his mother’s request. She wanted his burial to be closer so she could visit her child. Hence the claim made in the post is FALSE.
We performed a reverse image search on the keyframes of the video, which led us to many social media posts with the same video (here and here). Each of them is titled in different languages. One Instagram page uploaded the same video; its description was written in Persian as per Google language auto-detect. Based on this hint, we searched the internet with relevant keywords and found a fact-check article by the Arabic language fact-checking website Fatabyyano.
According to them, this incident took place in Iraq in 2018, and the child seen in the video, a boy, lost his life due to a chronic heart ailment. His remains were buried in an area known as Kasnazan and two days later shifted to a place known as Erbil, based on his mother’s request. She requested a location shift so she could visit her son anytime. Contrary to what the post says, the child’s dead body was not removed from this grave after two years but two days. The viral post shares a false and made-up story surrounding this video.
To sum up, this post falsely claims that this is a video of a child being exhumed from a grave after two years.


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This video does not show the Finance Minister of Gabon caught with suitcases of money after the military coup - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
September 5, 2023
A video is being shared on social media claiming that it shows the Finance Minister of Gabon caught with bags of money while attempting to escape from the country. Following the recent military coup in Gabon, this video is going viral on social media. Let’s verify the claim made in the post.
Claim: A recent video showing the Finance Minister of Gabon apprehended with bags of money after the military coup in Gabon.
Fact: The video shared in the post shows Guy Nzouba-Ndama, the Former President of Gabonese National Assembly and the leader of the Les Democrates (LD) party, being apprehended with suitcases of money in Gabon after his return from Congo Brazzaville in September 2022. Guy Nzouba-Ndama was a prominent opposition party leader in Gabon and was not part of Ali Bongo’s government which was recently overthrown by the military officers led by General Brice Oligui Nguema. Hence, the claim made in the post is Misleading.
On reverse image search of the screenshots of the video, a video showing similar visuals was found published by a YouTube channel on 20 September 2022. The YouTube channel published the video stating that the visuals show Former Gabonese National Assembly President Guy Nzouba-Ndama being apprehended with suitcases of money near the border between Gabon and Congo Brazzaville.
When we searched for further sources using relevant keywords, a photo showing the same visuals was found in an article published on 17 September 2022. As per the article, Guy Nzouba-Ndama, the Former President of the Gabonese National Assembly and the leader of the Les Democrates (LD) Party, was caught with around 2 million dollars (1.18 billion FR CFA) in suitcases near the border area of Haut-Ogooué in Gabon. Guy Nzouba-Ndama was reportedly caught with this money while he was returning from his trip to Gabon’s neighbouring country Congo Brazzaville.
A few other news articles that reported the arrest of Guy Nzouba-Ndama in September 2022 can be seen here and here. Guy Nzouba-Ndama is one of the prominent opposition party leaders in Gabon and is not part of Ali Bongo’s government which was recently overthrown by the military officers led by General Brice Oligui Nguema.
To sum it up, this video does not show the Finance Minister of Gabon apprehended with suitcases of money after the recent military coup.

created: September 5, 2023


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This video does not show the founder of Himalaya drug company giving a communal speech - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
March 13, 2024
A post featuring a video of a man giving a communal speech, urging the Muslim community to ‘take over’ various professions, including the judiciary, police department, administrative services, healthcare, and other fields, is widely shared across social media platforms. The claim associated with the post suggests that the man in the video is Mohammad Manal, the founder of the Himalaya Drug Company. This article aims to fact-check the claim made in the post.
Claim: Video of Mohammad Manal, the owner of the Himalaya Company, delivering a communal speech.
Fact: The man featured in the viral video is not the founder of the Himalaya Company, Mohammed Manal. Mohammed Manal passed away in 1986. Moreover, the man featured in the viral video doesn’t have any association with the Himalaya group. The Himalaya group refuted this claim, responding to a post with a similar claim on Twitter in 2020. Hence, the claim made in the post is FALSE.
To verify the authenticity of the viral claim, we checked the Himalaya website and found that the man featured in the viral video is neither the founder of the Himalaya Drug Company nor the current chairman of the Himalaya group. In fact, Mohammed Manal, the founder of Himalaya, passed away in 1986 according to information provided by the company. Meraj Manal is the current Chairman of Himalaya Global Holdings Ltd.
This video has been circulating on social media with the same claim since 2020. When it went viral in 2020, claiming the person in the video was the owner of Himalaya Drug Company, the Himalaya group refuted this claim in response to a post on X (Twitter) (archived version can be seen here) on 27 September 2020.
To learn more about the video and the person featured in it, we conducted a Google reverse image search on the internet. This search led us to an article published by Siasat Daily on 07 September 2020. The article included a screenshot from the viral video, stating that a “lawyer” had urged Muslims to focus on representation in “IT, government, law enforcement, and the judiciary” instead of “mourning Babri demolition.”
Taking a cue from this, we conducted a relevant search in web archives, which led us to a Facebook video uploaded on a page named “Naqi Ahmed Nadwi.” The video was captioned: “The demolition of Babri Masjid and the establishment of Ram Mandir in its place is a twist in the history of India which Muslims must consider seriously!” (Translated from Urdu to English). On his Facebook account, Nadwi states that he’s from Sheohar, a district in Bihar.
Nadwi also has a YouTube channel with the same name, where you can find similar videos on Islam and Muslims in India. However, we couldn’t verify whether the man in the video is Naqi Ahmed Nadwi, as claimed by the profiles that have shared the viral clip. From all this information, it is evident that the man in the viral video is not the founder of The Himalaya Drug Company.
To sum it up, this viral video of a man giving a communal speech is being falsely peddled as the founder of the Himalaya drug company giving a communal speech.


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This video does not show the officially released 3D visuals of Ayodhya Ram Mandir - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
May 16, 2022
A video is being shared on social media claiming it as the officially released 3D visuals of Ram Mandir to be built in Ayodhya. Let’s verify the claim made in the post.
Claim: The officially released 3D video of Ayodhya Ram Mandir.
Fact: The video shared in the post does not show the officially released 3D video of Ayodhya Ram Mandir. This video was created by Rohit Sankhla, a designer working under the Shivaji Home Design team. The Shivaji Home Design YouTube channel published this video in November 2021. The Sri Ram Janmbhoomi Teerth Kshethra officially released the 3D video of Ayodhya Ram Mandir in February 2022. Both these videos are different. Hence, the claim made in the post is FALSE.
When we searched with relevant keywords, we found the officially released 3D video of the Ayodhya Ram Mandir on the Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Theerth Kshethra’s official Twitter handle. Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Theerth Kshethra tweeted this 3D video on 13 February 2022. But the visuals seen in the officially released 3D video are different to that of the video shared in the post.
You all must be curious about how the Shri Janmabhoomi Mandir in Ayodhya will look once its complete.
To give you a preview of this divine project, we have tried to present it through a 3D video.
Jai Shri Ram!https://t.co/FiBNYJgooo
On reverse image search of the screenshots from the video shared in the post, a video with similar visuals was found published on a YouTube channel named ‘Shivaji Home Design’. ‘Shivaji Home Design’ YouTube channel published this video on 03 November 2021, with the title, “Bhavya Ayodhya Ram Mandir 3D Animation 3d walk through”. The description of the video stated that the 3D video was created by a designer named Rohit Sankhla.
To sum it up, this video does not show the officially released 3D visuals of Ayodhya Ram Mandir.


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This video does not show the recent volcanic eruption at Mount Semeru in Indonesia - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
December 9, 2021
A video accompanied by a post is being widely shared on social media claiming that the strange visuals are from a volcanic eruption in the Semeru Mountains in Indonesia. Let us fact-check the claim made in the post.
Claim: Video of Semeru Mountain volcanic eruption in Indonesia.
Fact: The video is not from Semeru Mountain eruption in Indonesia. The video is an altered compilation of images from a 2015 volcanic eruption in Chile and a waterfall in Indonesia. The upper part (image) of the video with the smoke is Calbuco volcanic eruption that happened in 2015 in Chile, where an ash cloud rose at least 15 kilometres (50,000 feet) above the volcano. The lower part (image) shows the Tumpak Sewu waterfall in Indonesia. On 04 December 2021, Semeru Mountain on the Java Island in Indonesia erupted. There are devastating videos of the volcanic eruption at Mount Semeru, however, the visuals in the viral video are not from Mount Semeru in Indonesia. Hence, the claim made in the post is FALSE.
When reverse image search is done on the screenshots of the video, the top part (image) of the video with the smoke was found in the stock photo website Alamy. Though the image is of a volcanic eruption, it is the Calbuco volcano in Chile from April 2015.
Calbuco volcano erupted in Chile on 22 April 2015 for the first time since 1972. An ash cloud rose at least 15 kilometres (50,000 feet) above the volcano. According to various reports, the nearby communities of Puerto Montt (Chile) and San Carlos de Bariloche (Argentina) were menaced. The pictures like the one seen in the video (top part) can be found in the reports here and here.
The bottom part (image) of the video shows the Tumpak Sewu waterfall in Indonesia. So, these waterfalls are added to the viral video. Google Maps also confirms that the surroundings of Mount Semeru volcano are not the same as seen in the viral video.
On 04 December 2021, Semeru Mountain on the Java Island in Indonesia erupted. According to reports, the eruption of the volcano killed at least 14 people. The hot ash from the eruption had buried houses to their rooftops. There are devastating videos of the eruption at Mount Semeru, however, the visuals in the viral video are not from Mount Semeru in Indonesia.
BREAKING: Large eruption at Indonesia's Mount Semeru pic.twitter.com/UO78ZekatP
To sum it up, this video does not show the recent volcanic eruption at Mount Semeru in Indonesia.

created: December 9, 2021


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This video does not show Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman meeting her father - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
January 13, 2023
A video of the Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman meeting an older adult is being shared on social media claiming that the old man in the video is her father, Narayanan Sitharaman. Let’s verify this claim through this article.
Claim: Visuals of Nirmala Sitharaman meeting her father, Narayanan Sitharaman.
Fact: Nirmala Sitharaman visited Siva Madam in Varanasi and met the family members of Mahakavi Bharathiyar on 3 December 2022. The old man in the video is K.V Krishnan, the great-nephew of Mahakavi Bharathiyar, not Narayanan Sitharaman. Hence the claim made in the post is FALSE.
To learn more details about the video in the viral post, we performed a reverse image search on a few keyframes of the video. This search led us to the official verified Facebook handle of Nirmala Sitharaman that uploaded the same video on 03 December 2022. Its description reads, ‘Siva Madam is the place where Mahakavi Bharathiyar stayed during his visit to Varanasi in the 1900s‘
To know more details about the people she met in Varanasi, we searched the internet with relevant keywords. In the process, we found a tweet from the official verified handle of Nirmala Sitharaman made on 3 December 2022. This tweet contains the photos and video of her visit to the Siva Madam in Varanasi. According to the tweet, she met the family of Mahakavi Bharathiyar, and the old man in the video is K.V Krishnan, the great-nephew of Mahakavi Bharathiyar. A day before this interaction, PIB posted an article about this which can be read here. This evidence makes it clear that the visuals do not show her meeting with her father.
Siva Madam is the place where Mahakavi Bharathiyar stayed during his visit to Varanasi in 1900s. #KashiTamilSangamam pic.twitter.com/EFR0dUUFqZ
To sum up, this video does not show Nirmala Sitharaman meeting her father. The man in this video is K.V Krishnan, the great-nephew of Mahakavi Bharathiyar.

created: January 13, 2023


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This video does not show Vienna Police chasing down the terrorist who carried out the recent terror attack - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
November 4, 2020
A post with a video of police chasing down a man is being widely shared across social media platforms with the claim that the video is of Vienna police apprehending the terrorist who carried out the recent terror attack. Through this article, let’s fact-check the claim made in the post.
Claim: Video of Vienna police chasing down the terrorist who carried out the recent Vienna terror attack.
Fact: The video actually shows the clashes which broke out between the police and demonstrators over the newly imposed COVID-19 lockdown restrictions in Barcelona, Spain. This video has nothing to do with the Vienna terror attack. Hence the claim made in the post is FALSE.
Reverse image search of the screen shots of the video in the post led us to a tweet by a news agency which shared the same video attributing it to the recent clash between police and demonstrators in Barcelona, Spain over COVID-19 lockdown restrictions.
Barcelona,Spain : Clashes with police over lockdown restrictions results in officers injured . police used motorbikes to chase down rioters tonight with several arrests made as large crowds gathered in other places in the city to protest #worldnews #spain #Barcelona pic.twitter.com/5pUd2YY5us
Taking a cue from the tweet, further Google search with relevant keywords led us to a news article dated 2 November 2020 which carried a video similar to the one in the post. According to this report, the video depicts the violent clashes which broke out between police and demonstrators in Barcelona, Spain over newly imposed COVID-19 restrictions. Few more videos of the incident can be seen here. Other news articles reporting the same incident can be read here and here. With all this, we can confirm that the video does not show Vienna police apprehending the Islamic terrorist and the video has nothing to do with Vienna terror attack.
In the light of the recent terror attack in Vienna, posts like these are being shared on social media with misleading claims.
To sum it up, the video is actually of clashes between police and demonstrators in Barcelona, Spain over COVID-19 lockdown restrictions.

created: November 4, 2020


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This video does not show young Modi practicing Yoga. - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
November 25, 2020
A post with an old black & white video of a man practising Yoga is being widely shared across social media platforms with the claim that the video shows young Narendra Modi practising Yoga. Through this article let’s fact-check the claim made in the post.
Claim: Old video of young Modi practising Yoga.
Fact: The video actually shows B.K.S. Iyengar, founder of the style of Yoga called ‘Iyengar Yoga’ practising Yoga in his young age. A documentary about Iyengar by a Telugu devotional channel featured similar visuals.  Many videos of Iyengar practising Yoga at this age are available on the internet. This video has nothing to do with Modi. Hence the claim made in the post is FALSE.
Reverse image search of the video led us to a documentary about famous Yoga teacher B.K.S. Iyengar, founder of the style of Yoga called ‘Iyengar Yoga’ by a Telugu devotional channel which carried visuals similar to the one in the post. In this documentary, these visuals are displayed at the timestamp 2:09 and the voice-over introducing Iyengar, which implies these visuals are of Iyengar practising Yoga.
Taking a cue from the video, further YouTube search with relevant keywords led us to a lengthier version of the video in the post. The description of the video reads ‘Krishnamacharya & B.K.S. Iyengar in 1938 with Yoga Sutras, Part 1of 6’.
Further search led us to a news article which stated that a 1938 film featuring T Krishnamacharya and BKS Iyengar was part of an exhibition on yogic art titled “Yoga: The Art of Transformation” held at Washington DC in 2013. Taking a cue from the article, YouTube search with relevant keywords led us to the video related to the exhibition, at a timestamp of 0:48 we can see visuals similar to one in the post. Also, there are many videos and images on internet similar to the visuals of the video in the post attributing them to BKS Iyengar. With all these, we can conclude that the video in the post does not show Modi practising Yoga.
To sum it up, the video shows famous Yoga teacher BKS Iyengar practising Yoga, not Narendra Modi.

created: November 25, 2020


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This video doesn’t show Akhilesh Yadav being arrested for protests over Article 370. It’s an old video - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
August 16, 2019
On social media, a video that shows Akhilesh Yadav being held by Police during a protest is being shared widely with the claim that he was arrested for protesting against the center’s decision over Article 370. Let’s try to analyze the authenticity of the video and also, the claim made in the post.
Video shows Akhilesh Yadav being arrested for protesting against the removal of Article 370 in Jammu and Kashmir.
Fact: The video was taken in 2011 when Akhilesh Yadav was arrested by the Police for carrying out a protest against the then Mayawati government. Hence, the claim made in the post is FALSE.
When the video in the post was run through the ‘InVid’ plugin, several keyframes of the same were obtained. On subjecting these keyframes to reverse image search technique, a certain keyframe directed to a YouTube video, which was similar to the one posted on Facebook. When the timestamp of the video was checked, it was found to be uploaded on March 9, 2011, by “Times Now”. The video has the following description with it- “On the last day of Samajwadi Party’s state-wide agitation against the Mayawati government, party state president Akhilesh Yadav was today arrested at the Amausi airport as soon as he landed here from New Delhi”.
To conclude, the video doesn’t show Akhilesh Yadav being arrested for protests over Article 370. He was arrested in 2011 for carrying agitations against the then Mayawati’s government in U.P.
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