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433	BJP spokesperson passes off those threatening Deepika Padukone as Congress/AAP/SP. What's the truth? - Alt News Sam Jawed 20th November 2017 / 12:00 pm / Last updated: 5th December 2017 “Mahendra Makrana is from @AamAadmiParty, Abhishek Som who placed a Rs 5Cr bounty on Bhansali’s head is from SP and Lokendra Kalvi, who threatened to cut Deepika Padukone’s nose, is from @INCIndia .. @BJP4India does not endorse violence…period.” Four thousand people retweeted and applauded the statement of BJP spokesperson Sanju Verma listing the political affiliation of the people involved in making threats over the screening of the movie Padmavati. As the controversy over the release of the movie gains steam, BJP supporters are quick to wash their hands off the key players who have threatened violence and insist that they belong to other parties. Let us do a quick fact check of the four claims mentioned in the tweet to see if there is any truth behind them. Swati…pls care to mention that Mahendra Makrana is from @AamAadmiParty, Abhishek Som who placed a Rs 5Cr bounty on Bhansali's head is from SP and Lokendra Kalvi, who threatened to cut @deepikapadukone's nose, is from @INCIndia .. @BJP4India does not endorse violence..period.. https://t.co/gykbBuxnaa — Sanju Verma (@Sanju_Verma_) November 17, 2017 The man at the center of the Padmavati uproar, Lokendra Singh Kalvi is the founder president of Rajput Karni Sena. He is the person reported by ANI as saying “Jauhar ki jwala hai, bahut kuch jalega. Rok sako to rok lo.” (This is the fire of jauhar, a lot of things will burn. Stop us if you can.) BJP spokesperson would like us to believe that he is from Congress. Is he? Let us find out. Kalvi is the son of Kalyan Singh Kalvi who was Cabinet minister in Chandra Shekhar’s four-month Union government in 1990-91. He fought the 1993 assembly polls from Nagaur as an independent but lost. In 1998 Lok Sabha polls, he was the BJP candidate from Barmer. He lost this time as well. He joined Congress before 2008 Rajya Sabha elections but didn’t get a ticket and finally in 2014 Rajasthan Chief Minister Vasundhra Raje inducted him into BJP in what was called a “masterstroke”. Rajasthan state BJP President stated that “He had left BJP for some time. He has rejoined the family. Whenever a family member rejoins the party it’s a happy occasion” To sum up, Kalvi had fought election on a BJP ticket in 1998, joined Congress in 2008 and returned to the BJP family in 2014 and his current political inclinations are not documented. We are not sure on what basis BJP spokesperson is now claiming that Kalvi is from Congress. It was Mahipal Singh Makrana, president of Rajasthan unit of Rajput Karni Sena who said that they would not hesitate to chop Deepika’s nose like Shurpanakha. Makrana has one picture with Arvind Kejriwal, on the basis of which it seems the conclusion was made that he is from AAP. Makrana has several pictures with other leaders including Togadia. In the past he has supported Adityanath and even supported Hardik Patel last year. There is no evidence to suggest that he belongs to AAP. On the Padmavati controversy, you can see him here sharing the stage with Diya Kumari, BJP Rajasthan MLA. Regarding his picture with Arvind Kejriwal, he himself has described it as a meeting between AAP leaders and Thakur Bane Singh, father of Gajendra Singh who died in an AAP rally. Makrana accompanied the father of Gajendra Singh to this meeting. His Facebook post can be seen below. देश के प्रथम किसान शहीद गजेंद्र सिंह जी कल्याणवत के दिल्ली में बनने वाले स्मारक के प्रगति कार्य, किसान शहीद का ताम्र पत… Posted by Mahipal Singh Makrana on Sunday, June 11, 2017 Further in a comment, he had stated that the purpose of going to Delhi was not to meet Arvind Kejriwal but to raise the issue that the promises made after Gajendra Singh’s death were not fulfilled. In this comment, he further stated that after Karni Sena’s warning, the Delhi Government promised to execute the pending issues within a month. As seen from his Facebook posts and pictures, Abhishek Som seems to be a Samajwadi Party supporter. He announced a 5 crore bounty on Bhansali, Deepika Padukone’s head. We tried to get in touch with the SP Spokesperson regarding the same but haven’t been able to yet. We will update the article when we get a response from SP regarding this issue. Making no further comments on this claim, we list here statements of BJP leaders on Padmavati controversy: 1. Telangana BJP MLA Raja Singh threatened to set theaters on fire if they screen ‘Padmavati’ Telangana BJP MLA Raja Singh threatens to set theaters on fire if anybody screen movie 'Padmavati' pic.twitter.com/YnpLKQIqQj — TIMES NOW (@TimesNow) November 7, 2017 2. Suraj Pal Amu, Haryana’s BJP Chief Media Coordinator: “Want to congratulate Meerut youth for announcing Rs 5 crore bounty for beheading Deepika, Bhansali. We will reward the ones beheading them, with Rs 10 crore, and also take care of their family’s needs” Want to congratulate Meerut youth for announcing Rs 5 crore bounty for beheading Deepika, Bhansali. We will reward the ones beheading them, with Rs 10 crore, and also take care of their family's needs: Suraj Pal Amu, Haryana's BJP Chief Media Coordinator pic.twitter.com/IKPL9Di5Fm — ANI (@ANI) November 19, 2017 The theory that those who threatening the cast of Padmavati film were members of AAP/SP/Congress was repeated by many of those who support BJP on social media. 1) Mahendra Makrana of Karni Sena is from AAP. 2) Abhishek Som who placed Rs 5 Crore bounty on Bhansali's head is from SP. 3) Lokendra Kalvi who threatened to chop off Deepika's nose is from Congress. (Source of Info: @Sanju_Verma_) — Anshul Saxena (@AskAnshul) November 17, 2017 Mahendra Makrana- @AamAadmiParty Abhishek Som- SP Lokendra Kalvi- @INCIndia And still our brilliant media editors-anchors still choose to blame Modi&BJP for intolerance. To repeat SP, Cong, APP threatening worst form of violence against film makers. BJP leaders only protesting! — Shubhrastha (@Shubhrastha) November 18, 2017 Out of all the claims that Mahipal Makrana is from AAP, Abhishek Som is from SP, Lokendra Kalvi is from congress and that BJP doesn’t endorse violence, the only one which has some basis is that Abhishek Som is a SP sympthaizer. None of the others are based in facts. Yet, this rumour has made many rounds of social media. Nobody's cheerleader, I tweet at @samjawed65 Rahul and Priyanka Gandhi recently performed aarti at the Narmada Ghat in Madhya Pradesh’s Omkareshwar… In the wake of the alleged murder of Shraddha Walkar by his partner Aftab Amin… The video of a group of people stopping an e-rickshaw with BJP flags attached to… Last week during the G20 summit in Bali, world leaders were informed of a missile… Recently, several prominent BJP leaders claimed that Prime Minister Narendra Modi had intervened to stop…	news-altnews	2024-05-27T18:24:05.489452	20th November 2017 / 12:00 pm / Last updated: 5th December 2017	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/bjp-spokesperson-passes-off-threatening-deeepika-padukone-congress-aap-sp-whats-truth/", "author": "Sam Jawed" }
434	BJP Spokesperson Sambit Patra defames former Vice President Hamid Ansari - Alt News Pratik Sinha 15th August 2017 / 2:55 pm / Last updated: 15th August 2017 A huge storm of outrage erupted when former VP Hamid Ansari stated that there’s a sense of unease among Muslims in an interview. What followed was a virulent right-wing troll attack. A sample of attack can be seen in the image below, with both Ashok Singh and Gita Kapoor being followed by PM Modi on Twitter. Also, a misinformed attack that was launched against Hamid Ansari after 2015 Republic day was reiterated on social media. The account India BTL is followed by PM Modi. Why wasn’t VP Ansari saluting while others were was the question that was asked back then and reiterated again after VP’s controversial interview. The protocol states that a Vice President is not supposed to salute when the President is present as President is the Principal dignitary. Since President is the first citizen of the country, he is considered as the Principal dignitary in any function he attends. Which is why, in the following picture of 2003 Republic day celebrations, when Mr Vajpayee was the PM, he’s not saluting while former President Abdul Kalam is. While it is imaginable that Internet trolls may not know the official protocol, it comes as quite a shocker when BJP’s National spokesperson attacks the outgoing VP Hamid Ansari on the same basis. Sambit Patra who is BJP’s National Spokesperson tweeted the following poster on August 13th. In the poster, among other things, the outgoing VP was faulted for not saluting and it was claimed that it was a ‘Fortuitous aberration’. That was not the only bit of misinformation propagated by Sambit Patra. The poster also contained the headline of a scroll.in article titled “Hamid Ansari’s absence from Yoga Day events sparks a Twitter war”. This controversy arose in 2015 when Hamid Ansari was not present in the International Yoga Day celebrations and BJP National General Secretary Ram Madhav had raised this issue on Twitter when he had tweeted, “While the President participated d VP gave a miss“. This attack was then carried forward by BJP’s National IT Cell head Amit Malviya. The Government had to issue an official apology on behalf of Ram Madhav as the reason why the VP didn’t attend the event was because he wasn’t invited. Huffington post reported that Union minister Shripad Naik cited protocol to say that the Vice-President can’t be invited to an event where the Prime Minister is chief guest amid reports that the government is upset with the needless controversy triggered by Madhav’s tweets. Mr Naik further stated, “Unknowingly something happens, we apologise for that. It should have been avoided. It’s a mistake, he (Madhav) agrees, he apologized. He withdrew his statement,” when he was asked to comment on Madhav’s controversial tweet. Unfortunately, 2 years later, BJP’s National Spokesperson Sambit Patra is carrying on the same line of attack for which Union Government has already apologized. This wasn’t the first time Sambit Patra propagated fake news/false information. He had once showed a photoshopped version of Iwo Jima on Times Now. He had also tweeted a link from a fake news site called Times of Islamabad. Read more about it here. In a panel discussion on Aaj Tak on March 17 2017, Sambit Patra had claimed that Congress VP Rahul Gandhi had raped a woman called Sukanya Devi. Supreme Court of India had dismissed this allegation back in 2012 and had stated, “The allegation is without substance and without an iota of evidence“. Supreme Court had also fined the petitioners 10 lakhs for the false case. A clipping of the same Aaj Tak discussion can be seen below. #Hallabol, @sambitswaraj– 70 साल की शहबानों को सड़क पर छोड़ दिया और सारे तीन तलाक के मुद्दे पर नेता एक हो गए Live: https://t.co/fOz5QPkk43 pic.twitter.com/ZJSSBXopCd — आज तक (@aajtak) March 17, 2017 A slip here and there is alright. In this day and age of social media, everyone falls for fake news. However, when a National Spokesperson consistently propagates falsity, it is definitely a concern. Is it intentional? Is it an issue with Mr Patra’s work ethic? Only Mr Patra can answer. Co-Founder Alt News, I can be reached via E-mail at [email protected] and on Facebook at https://fb.com/freethinker. Follow @free_thinker Rahul and Priyanka Gandhi recently performed aarti at the Narmada Ghat in Madhya Pradesh’s Omkareshwar… In the wake of the alleged murder of Shraddha Walkar by his partner Aftab Amin… The video of a group of people stopping an e-rickshaw with BJP flags attached to… Last week during the G20 summit in Bali, world leaders were informed of a missile… Recently, several prominent BJP leaders claimed that Prime Minister Narendra Modi had intervened to stop…	news-altnews	2024-05-27T18:24:05.489452	15th August 2017 / 2:55 pm / Last updated: 15th August 2017	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/bjp-spokesperson-sambit-patra-defames-former-vice-president-hamid-ansari/", "author": "Pratik Sinha" }
435	BJP spokesperson Sambit Patra: Propaganda powered with misinformation - Alt News Pooja Chaudhuri 14th June 2020 / 2:08 pm / Last updated: 15th June 2020 Sambit Patra is the most visible spokesperson of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). He is best known for his appearances as a party representative on television debates and snide remarks against the opposition. But another skill that should feature on his resume, if he were to ever prepare one, is his proclivity to misinform. Patra has over four million followers on Twitter — a platform he routinely (mis)uses to share false news. He has also often been found promoting misinformation on national television. This article is a compilation of some of these instances however it is not an exhaustive list which would be much longer. The compilation is a list of the varied misinformation he had shared in the past few years — the favourite target being Congress and the Nehru-Gandhi family. 1. False claim that Rajasthan government halted buses transporting students to UP for Rs 19 lakh fuel dues The governments of Uttar Pradesh and Rajasthan had entered into a bilateral agreement to transport students stuck in Kota to UP. A month after they safely returned home amid the lockdown, BJP spokesperson Sambit Patra tweeted a photograph of a cheque claiming that the Rajasthan government had allowed the buses from leaving the state only after the UP government made a midnight payment of Rs 19 lakhs in fuel dues. कोटा से उत्तर प्रदेश के students को वापिस लाते समय UP के कुछ बसों को डीज़ल की आवश्यकता पड़ गयी ..दया छोड़िए ..आधि रात को दफ़्तर खुलवा कर प्रियंका वाड्रा की राजस्थान सरकार ने UP सरकार से पहले 19 लाख रुपए लिए और उसके बाद बसों को रवाना होने दिया वाह रे मदद।#दोगली_कांग्रेस pic.twitter.com/QQexV1BlVq — Sambit Patra (@sambitswaraj) May 21, 2020 But this wasn’t true because the cheque that Patra had presented was dated May 5. The last bus ferrying thousands of students had left Rajasthan on April 19. Quite evidently, the buses could not have been halted for lack of payment in April because the dues were transferred more than two weeks later in May. Alt News’s detailed report on the misinformation can be read here. 2. Clipped video shared to mock Rahul Gandhi Patra had tweeted a video where Rahul Gandhi could be heard saying, “The red zone is actually the green zone and the green zone is actually the red zone” referring to the zones set up by the central government based on the intensity of the COVID-19 outbreak. पीछे से आलू आगे से सोना और अब जो RED है वो GREEN है जो GREEN है वो RED है ये क्या है 😎 pic.twitter.com/mrHFHh8Wl2 — Sambit Patra (@sambitswaraj) May 9, 2020 The video shared by Sambit Patra was 6 seconds clipped from an hour-long press briefing by Rahul Gandhi on coronavirus outbreak in India. The Congress leader stressed the need for strong local leaders and tackling the virus from the ground level. “These zones – red, orange and green – have been created on a national level. They should be created on a state level. Chief Ministers [of Congress-ruled states] are telling us that the zone which is red in the national level is actually green and the zone which is green is actually red.” This can be heard at 20:00 minutes onward. The words “national level” were clipped from the speech to take out the context of decentralisation and portray that Gandhi was making a silly statement. 3. “Potato-gold machine” — another misrepresentation of Rahul Gandhi’s speech In the previous tweet, Sambit Patra made a reference to “potato and gold” while mocking Gandhi for the “red is green, green is red” statement. As it turned out, Patra’s reference was also based on misinformation — one which had been debunked multiple times before Patra put out the tweet. In 2017, a video of Rahul Gandhi saying, “Will install such a machine that if a potato is inserted from one end, gold will come out from the other end,” was shared by BJP IT cell head Amit Malviya. But the statement was a part of a clipped video of a much longer speech where Gandhi was actually taking a dig at PM Modi during an address in Gujarat’s Patan on November 12, 2017. People are sending this to me and asking in disbelief if he actually said this.. Of course he did! pic.twitter.com/rgdTf26ARv — Amit Malviya (@amitmalviya) November 15, 2017 “A few months ago there was a flood here and he [PM Modi] said he will give Rs 500 crore but not even a rupee was given. He told potato farmers, will install such a machine that if a potato is inserted from one end, gold will come out from the other end…these are not my words but Narendra Modiji’s words,” Gandhi had said. It may be noted that Gandhi’s claim amounted to political rhetoric since there is no record of PM Modi ever making any such statement. 4. Fake quote attributed to Jawaharlal Nehru During a television debate in 2018, Patra claimed that the first Indian prime minister Jawaharlal Nehru had said, “I am Englishman by education, Muslim by culture and Hindu merely by accident of birth.” #Hallabol, @sambitswaraj: राहुलजी ने अपनी नानीमां का गोत्र ले लिया, बेहतर है अपनी मां का गोत्र ले लेते! ये तो हिंदू धर्म में गोत्र घोटाला है Live: Live: https://t.co/fOz5QPkk43 pic.twitter.com/23w49NloVZ — AajTak (@aajtak) November 27, 2018 He had made a reference to this quote in a Republic Bharat debate as well. However, these words first made their appearance in an article titled ‘The Angry Aristocrat’, written by N B Khare in 1959, a Hindu Mahasabha leader and staunch critic of Jawaharlal Nehru. The article was part of a volume ‘A Study of Nehru’ with commentaries by numerous political personalities. There is no literature ascribing the quote to Nehru, including in his autobiography. Our detailed fact-check can be read here. 5. Video clipped to target Ashok Gehlot “If electricity is removed from the water and the water goes to the farm, such water will have no energy and will be useless in the farm.” A video of Rajasthan chief minister Ashok Gehlot making this statement was tweeted by Sambit Patra in 2018. Friends I received this video! Is it authentic?? Is this the way the Congress misguided our Farmers?? Pls enlighten!! अशोक गहलोत का विज्ञान – पानी मे से बिजली पैदा करके खेतो में भेजेंगे तो प… https://t.co/cLPCawUXiz via @YouTube — Sambit Patra (@sambitswaraj) June 5, 2018 The video was a part of a much longer address where Gehlot was referring to Jan Sangh, the forerunner of the BJP. According to Gehlot, when he was young he had witnessed how Jan Sangh cadres were spreading misinformation about the Bhakra Dam which was inaugurated by former PM Nehru, spreading rumours that once electricity is removed from water, the water will become useless. देश में करीब 6 लाख गांव हैं, यदि 18 हजार गांवों में मोदी जी ने बिजली पहुंचाई तो फिर 5 लाख 82 हजार गांवों में बिजली किसने पहुंचाई? मोदी जी झूठ बोलने की हदें पार कर चुके हैं। Posted by Ashok Gehlot on Saturday, 26 May 2018 6. Fake news about Sonia Gandhi’s wealth During a News18 debate last year, Sambit Patra claimed that Sonia Gandhi is the 4th richest woman in the world. Alt News had found out that the claim was based on a shoddy website named ‘World’s Luxury Guide’ which doesn’t exist anymore. Our detailed report can be read here or watched below. 7. Old video of Congress MLA clipped to suggest he said ‘Pakistan Zindabad’ Patra tweeted a video of Congress politician Naseem Khan wanting to know the “truth” behind the claim that Khan chanted ‘Pakistan Zindabad’ slogans. क्या कोई मेरे लिए इस विडीओ की सत्यता की जाँच कर सकता है? Social Media में लोगों का कहना है यह व्यक्ति कांग्रेस का नेता नसीम खान है जो पाकिस्तान ज़िंदाबाद के नारे लगा रहा है और मोदी जी को challenge कर रहा है .. Please run a fact check on this friends ..do let me know .. pic.twitter.com/7SyM2dkE4V — Sambit Patra (@sambitswaraj) February 7, 2020 The truth was indeed pointed out to Patra. In fact, the truth was already out there before the BJP spokesperson amplified the false claim. Here’s the English translation of what Khan actually said, “I want to ask Modiji, today in Delhi on the shore of the Yamuna, Sri Sri Ravishankar said ‘Pakistan Zindabad’ in the presence of Rajnath Singh. Was a case of sedition slapped on him or not? If Modiji and Rajnath [Singh] have guts, then let them slap a case of sedition.” WATCH: How a 2016 speech by Congress MLA Naseem Khan was clipped to falsely claim that he said ‘Pakistan Zindabad’. pic.twitter.com/nmgDN0qk8D — Alt News (@AltNews) October 15, 2019 Patra is yet to take down his tweet. 8. Misquoted Shashi Tharoor Continuing his trend of misquoting politicians, Patra had demanded on-air that Congress president Rahul Gandhi expels Shashi Tharoor from the party. His demand was based on a statement he attributed to Tharoor — “Narendra Modi is a scorpion on a Shiva Linga.” If one carefully listens to the video where Tharoor is making the statement, it is clear that the remark wasn’t his but the Congress MP was quoting an unidentified RSS leader who gave a bite to The Caravan’s Vinod Jose. #WATCH Shashi Tharoor in Bengaluru, says, “There’s an extraordinarily striking metaphor expressed by an unnamed RSS source to a journalist, that, “Modi is like a scorpion sitting on a Shivling, you can’t remove him with your hand & you cannot hit it with a chappal either.”(27.10) pic.twitter.com/E6At7WrCG5 — ANI (@ANI) October 28, 2018 9. Old video of SP leader Mavia Ali shared as Congress leader Naseemuddin Siddiqui During widespread protests opposing the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA), Sambit Patra tweeted a video along with a text saying, “Congress leader Naseemuddin Siddiqui is saying we are first Muslims then Indians…We will not accept a constitution that clashes with Islam… we are not loyal to the country…dogs are loyal. Where are the siblings Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi.” कांग्रेस का आला नेता नस्सिमुद्दीन सिद्दीकी कह रहा है “हम पहले मुसलमान है ..बाद में हिंदुस्तानी ..इस्लाम से टकराने वाले संविधान को भी हम नहीं मानेंगे ..हम इस देश के वफ़ादार नहीं है ..कुत्ते वफ़ादार होते है” कहाँ है दोनों भाईं बहन ⁦@RahulGandhi⁩ & ⁦@priyankagandhi⁩ pic.twitter.com/R0zP2Zxgvi — Sambit Patra (@sambitswaraj) January 1, 2020 The video posted by Patra dated back to August 2017. It featured Samajwadi Party leader Mavia Ali who had kicked up a storm while reacting to Uttar Pradesh government’s controversial circular asking madrasas across the state to celebrate Independence Day and record a video of the event. We are Muslims first, Indians after that: Mavia Ali, SP #PoliticsOverPatriotism pic.twitter.com/olZHzxKEhD — Republic (@republic) August 14, 2017 The complete fact-check report can be read here. 10. Falsely claimed AAP leader Amanatullah Khan wants to create ‘Sharia’ “Allah has decided that oppressors will cease to exist..will make Sharia…it will start from somewhere.” This message was tweeted by Patra, ascribing the statement to AAP leader Amanatullah Khan. “अल्लाह ने तय कर दिया है की इन ज़ालिमों का ख़ात्मा होगा ..हम शरिया बनेंगे ..कहीं न कहीं से शुरुआत तो होती ही है ..” AAP का अमानतउल्लाह खान दोस्तों ये है AAP के विचार अब ज़रा आप भी सोचिए ..सब अल्लाह ही तय करेंगे या आप भी कुछ तय करेंगे? आप शरिया बनना चाहतें है या नहीं?? pic.twitter.com/v2nRfESBBF — Sambit Patra (@sambitswaraj) February 5, 2020 On carefully listening to the speech, we found that Amanatullah Khan was saying ‘Zaria’ (medium) and not Sharia. 11. Introduced a political angle to Murshidabad triple murder case On October 8, 2019, a family of three – Bandhu Prakash Pal, his pregnant wife and 8-year-old child – was hacked to death in West Bengal’s Murshidabad. A construction worker, Utpal Behara, was booked for the crime. Behara had reportedly entered the victims’ house armed with a knife. The police had stated “financial dispute” as the motive behind the murders. However, Patra introduced a political motive the crime, referring to the victim as an RSS worker and targetting West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee. Warning:Gruesome video This has shaken my conscience …a RSS worker Sh Bandhu Prakash Pal,his eight months pregnant wife & his kid were brutally slaughtered in West Bengal’s Murshidabad Not a word by the liberals Not a letter by 59 liberals to Mamata Nauseating Selectivism! pic.twitter.com/EHPPDCLRqc — Sambit Patra (@sambitswaraj) October 10, 2019 The West Bengal police had clarified that the attack was not politically-motivated. Murder of three members of a family of Kanaiganj, Jiaganj PS, Murshidabad is a sad incident. Investigation was started just after incident and 2 persons hv bn detained and are being examined. It has so far bn found in investigation that the deceased person was also working.(1/3) — West Bengal Police (@WBPolice) October 11, 2019 Subsequently, media reports came pouring in that the family denied RSS links. India Today also reported that Pal’s brother-in-law, Diptiman Sarkar, said that an RSS member offered him financial help however he rejected the man’s assistance and told him that his brother-in-law was never associated with any political party. Read the detailed fact-check report here. 12. Former VP Hamid Ansari targetted with misinformation In his last interview as outgoing vice president in 2017, Hamid Ansari had stated that there is a sense of unease among Muslims in the country. What followed was a hate campaign against Ansari of which Patra was a part. He shared a graphic with news reports on the former VP’s absence from Yoga Day parade and failure to salute the tricolour during Republic Day. The Classic intellectual Canard pic.twitter.com/UzdhsQEvB0 — Sambit Patra (@sambitswaraj) August 13, 2017 As protocol dictates, the vice president is not supposed to salute when the president attends an event as the principal dignitary. This is why Ansari did not salute when former president Pranab Mukherjee was the principal dignitary at Republic Day parade. Furthermore, the article on Yoga Day shared by Patra pertained to a 2015 controversy ignited by BJP national general secretary Ram Madhav. Ansari had not attended Yoga Day celebrations as he wasn’t invited. Huffington Post reported that union minister Shripad Naik cited protocol which states that the vice president cannot be invited to an event where the prime minister is the chief guest. Madhav had to later apologise for his tweet. 13. Clipped video shared to claim Harsh Mander instigated violence in Jamia speech Sambit Patra had shared a part of social activist Harsh Mander’s speech in Jamia Millia Islamia and wrote, “He is the real rioter who is instigating people to come out in the streets and carry out violence.” In the video, Mander could be heard saying, “This fight will not be won in the Supreme Court. We have been observing the Supreme Court since some time now in the cases of NRC, Ayodhya and Kashmir. Supreme Court has failed to uphold humanism, equality and secularism. We will keep trying in the Supreme Court, it is our Supreme Court, but the decision will neither happen in the Parliament nor in the Supreme Court. What will be the future of this country – you all are the youth – what sort of country do you want to leave for your kids – where will this decision happen? One, it will happen on the streets, we have come out on the streets…” – before the clip was stopped mid-way. “सुप्रिम कोर्ट मानवता,समानता और Secularism की रक्षा नहीं करती ..इसलिए न Supreme Court में,न संसद में फ़ैसला होगा ..फ़ैसला सड़क पर होगा” सोनिया गांधी के NAC के सदस्य और UrbanNaxal हर्ष मंदर का कहना है। ये है असल दंगाई जो लोगों को उसका रहें है सड़क पर उतर के हिंसा करने के लिए। pic.twitter.com/ajTt4q8zNJ — Sambit Patra (@sambitswaraj) March 4, 2020 However, Mander’s speech was clipped. Here’s the context of what he said — “What will be the future of this country – you all are the youth – what sort of country do you want to leave for your kids – where will this decision happen? One, it will happen on the streets, we have come out on the streets, but even beyond the streets, there’s another place where this decision will take place. Which is the place in which this fight will eventually be decided? That is in our hearts, in my heart, in your heart, we have to give a response – if they want to fill our hearts with hate, if we respond with hate, hatred will become deeper.” 14. Arfa Khanum’s speech on CAA shared with distorted interpretation Patra tweeted a video of journalist Arfa Khanum and claimed that she disclosed the strategy to develop an Islamic Caliphate. “Hindus will be required only till the time an Islamic society is not created,” he claimed she said. दोस्तों ये “Calipahate ख़ातून” कौन है? ख़ैर जो भी है ..इन्होंने Islamic Caliphate बनाने का Strategy की खुलासा की है- १)हिंदुओं की आवश्यकता केवल “तब तक” ही है जब तक इस्लामिक Society का निर्माण न हो जाए २)हमारे नारे भी सभी को मान्य होगा- ला इल्लाह इल्लल्लाह ..सभी के लिए WAKE UP! pic.twitter.com/B2QjCGrE2Y — Sambit Patra (@sambitswaraj) January 26, 2020 The part of her speech that was clipped starts from 17:15 minutes in the video below. In fact, this portion, even when heard independently, does not translate to Khanum promoting the establishment of an ‘Islamic Caliphate/ society’. “This protest is also taking us to a society where everybody will be included. So we aren’t compromising our ideology, I want to reiterate this. We are not compromising out ideology but changing our strategy,” she stated. Here, the word ‘strategy’ implied adhering to a form of protest where religious slogans are shunned and a secular movement is embraced. 15. Termed Aatish Taseer a citizen of Pakistan Journalist Aatish Taseer had written the cover story for TIME magazine ‘India’s divider-in-chief’ last year which was a sharp critique of prime minister Modi. Following this, Sambit Patra claimed in a press conference that Taseer is a Pakistani citizen. Press Conference by Shri Sambit Patra #DeshKeDilMeiModihttps://t.co/2BwcQVdGfc — BJP MadhyaPradesh (@BJP4MP) May 11, 2019 Taseer is a British national. He was born in the UK, grew up in India and is currently based out of New York, US. He is the son of Indian journalist Tavleen Singh and Pakistani politician Salman Taseer. Our detailed fact-check on the controversy surrounding Taseer’s nationality can be read here. 16. Video from Bijnor shared with false, anti-Muslim claim The coronavirus outbreak in India isn’t merely a health crisis but a humanitarian crisis which has left the poor vulnerable without food and money. Amid all of this, the outbreak amplified the animosity against Muslims after Nizamuddin Markaz was identified as a hotspot. There have been attacks on Muslim vendors and calls to boycott sellers from the community. Sambit Patra shared a video of a Muslim vendor with the claim that he sprinkled his urine on the produce he had brought for sale. और ज़रा इन बाबा के भी कारनामे देखो …ये बेचारे बाबा सिर्फ़ बोतल में पेसाब कर उसे केले के ऊपर छिड़क रहें थे .. फिर भी पुलिस बड़े अदब से पेश आ रही है.. कोई ज़रा आरती की थली लाना ..बाबा की आरती करनी है क्योंकि कुछ अन्यथा बोलो तो फिर ISLAMOPHOBIA की complaint कर देंगे Gulf में!! pic.twitter.com/SwzdfFJXm7 — Sambit Patra (@sambitswaraj) April 22, 2020 The man did not sprinkle urine on the fruits in his cart. The FIR filed against him mentioned that he had washed his hands after urination using a water bottle kept on his cart. Later, he used the same bottle to sprinkle water on his fruits. Our detailed report on the incident was published on April 24, 2020. A month later, Patra’s erroneous tweet still adorns his timeline. 17. Old video falsely shared as posters of Hindu deities burnt during CAA protests In January this year, the BJP spokesperson quote-tweeted a tweet which had shared a video of people burning posters of Hindu deities. Patra claimed that these were anti-CAA protesters. This video is shocking …how can any protest have a right to defile the tenets of Hinduism ..who gives them the right to burn the pictures of Hindu Gods & Goddesses ..why should any protest be an Anti-Hindu protest?? Is this is what the Congress & Communists promote??#Shame https://t.co/9rn2gIwQ9T — Sambit Patra (@sambitswaraj) January 2, 2020 The tweet Patra had quote-tweeted was taken down however Patra’s tweet remains. Alt News traced back the video to at least August 2018. People could be heard speaking in Kannada in the background and chanting “Zindabad, Zindabad! Ambedkar Zindabad!” slogans. Why this hell… What Hindus god have done to you… Secularism should be banned … Bring uniform civil code Posted by Prashanth Venkataswamy on Thursday, 23 August 2018 18. Old provocative speech by Muslim cleric shared amid anti-CAA protests During CAA protests, Patra shared a provocative video of a Muslim cleric and wrote. “Dangerous very Dangerous..Wake Up before it’s too late!!” “वो जीना चाहते है और हमारे बच्चे मरने को तैयार है” Dangerous very Dangerous.. Wake Up before it’s too late!! pic.twitter.com/g8bstexmnW — Sambit Patra (@sambitswaraj) February 3, 2020 The objectionable speech was given by Mufti Raees Ahmed, the district president of Jamiat Ulema-e-Hindi, after Tabrez Ansari’s lynching in 2019. According to a Times of India report, a case was registered with the Kotwali police under IPC sections dealing with hate speech and promoting enmity between religious groups. Alt News’s fact-check report on the case can be read here. Sambit Patra has also been at the receiving end of misinformation. Alt News had debunked false claims on social media suggesting that he was removed from the post of BJP spokesperson. A fake quote on farmers’ protest was circulating in Patra’s name which was debunked in this article. As a prominent public personality, Patra is expected to become a target of rumours. However, as a representative of the ruling party, why is he aping rumour-mongers? Does the BJP echo its spokesperson’s views promoted through misinformation especially when expressed on live television? Does the ruling party condone his attacks on the opposition, journalists, intellectuals and the Muslim community through misinformation? Is this why Patra does not take down misinformation even after the truth is pointed out? Alt News has written articles on each of his tweets documented in this report. None of them has been deleted by the BJP spokesperson including the ones that were put out more than three years ago. We tried contacting Patra on the phone, WhatsApp and email for comment. However, we are yet to receive a response. Patra had responded to us for a 2018 story when rumours of rape allegations on him were floating online and Alt News was writing an article to debunk them. Whether he intends to address the issue of misinformation put out through his verified Twitter handle can only be clarified by him alone. But as of now, his failure to take down erroneous tweets does not paint a hopeful picture. Pooja Chaudhuri is a senior editor at Alt News. Inter-faith relationships between Hindu women and Muslim men have been a sore point for the… Rahul and Priyanka Gandhi recently performed aarti at the Narmada Ghat in Madhya Pradesh’s Omkareshwar… In the wake of the alleged murder of Shraddha Walkar by his partner Aftab Amin… The video of a group of people stopping an e-rickshaw with BJP flags attached to… Last week during the G20 summit in Bali, world leaders were informed of a missile…	news-altnews	2024-05-27T18:24:05.489452	14th June 2020 / 2:08 pm / Last updated: 15th June 2020	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/bjp-spokesperson-sambit-patra-propaganda-powered-with-misinformation/", "author": "Pooja Chaudhuri" }
436	BJP spokesperson shares old video of Pak man threatening PM Modi, many believe video is from India - Alt News Aqib Pathan 21st August 2021 / 3:59 pm BJP spokesperson Shalabh Mani Tripathi posted a 30-second video of a Muslim man threatening Prime Minister Narendra Modi. The man in the video says, “Imran Khan has given them respect, Pakistan has given them respect… Insha’alla they will join us in the war. Time to teach Modi a lesson. There are 45 crore [people there] and 20 crores here.. Modi you are doomed! Hindus will be eradicated from the world… This is a big achievement of Imran Khan.” The video has gained over 50,000 views. अब जब ‘ दरिंदे’ सिर उठाने लगे हैं ‘दुमकटे’ भी कस कर फड़फड़ाने लगे हैं 😊 pic.twitter.com/gH9abnYR3c — Shalabh Mani Tripathi (@shalabhmani) August 20, 2021 Since Tripathi hasn’t mentioned where and when the video was shot, multiple Twitter users have assumed that the incident took place in India. (1, 2, 3, 4) Many others on Facebook and Twitter have shared the video. Alt News performed a reverse image search of one of the keyframes of the video and found a 2019 report by ANI. As per the report the video was uploaded by a Pakistan-based YouTube channel Naya Pakistan. After rummaging for videos on Naya Pakistan, we found that the viral video was uploaded on November 9, 2019. Naya Pakistan seems to be a pro-government outlet that uploads vox-pop videos. We found the man in the viral video being interviewed by Naya Pakistan in several past videos as well. (1, 2, 3) To sum it up, Shalabh Mani Tripathi shared a 2019 video of a man from Pakistan threatening PM Modi. This led many to believe that the video is from India. In the past as well, Tripathi has been found sharing misleading information. Aqib is monitoring and researching mis/disinformation at Alt News Rahul and Priyanka Gandhi recently performed aarti at the Narmada Ghat in Madhya Pradesh’s Omkareshwar… In the wake of the alleged murder of Shraddha Walkar by his partner Aftab Amin… The CCTV footage of a man violently flinging a child on the ground has created… The video of a group of people stopping an e-rickshaw with BJP flags attached to… A minute-long video clip of a woman being physically assaulted is viral on social media….	news-altnews	2024-05-27T18:24:05.489452	21st August 2021 / 3:59 pm	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/bjp-spokesperson-shares-old-video-of-pak-man-threatening-pm-modi-many-believe-video-is-from-india/", "author": "Aqib Pathan" }
437	BJP spokesperson shares selective data portraying lower petrol price in BJP-ruled states - Alt News Jignesh Patel 1st March 2021 / 8:12 pm Amid the growing criticism from opposition parties over the hike in petrol prices, BJP Tamil Nadu’s spokesperson SG Suryah tweeted a list of petrol prices in different states. The data was divided into two parts – one that listed petrol prices in BJP governed states, purportedly less than Rs 90 per litre, and the other listed prices in non-BJP-governed states that were over Rs 90. Tweeting the comparison, he said, “Petrol prices are cheapest of the lot in #BJP ruled states only! Maharashtra has highest price ruled by Shiv Sena, Congress & NCP“. Several other individuals on Twitter and Facebook shared an infographic making a similar comparison. Alt News found that the infographic has selectively quoted BJP governed states with lower petrol prices and in some cases has omitted to mention the party’s alliance with regional parties in a particular state. Firstly, two states governed by the BJP where petrol prices were over Rs 90 have not been featured. As per the daily numbers compiled by NDTV, Karnataka and Madhya Pradesh are two major BJP governed states with petrol prices over Rs 90. They were not quoted in the infographic. As of February 17, petrol prices in these states were Rs 92.7 per litre and Rs 98.48 per litre respectively. A report published by The Indian Express also stated that the price of petrol in Karnataka’s capital Bengaluru stood at Rs 92.54 per litre. Secondly, the list of non-BJP governed states is factually incorrect. States like Bihar, Meghalaya and Nagaland where the BJP is actually in alliance with other regional parties have been listed as ‘non-BJP’ states. In Bihar, Bharatiya Janata Party is in coalition with Janata Dal-United whereas, in Meghalaya and Nagaland, they are part of the ruling alliance. It may be noted that according to the NDTV tracker, petrol prices in these states were Rs 93.43, Rs 86.04 and Rs 91.96 per litre respectively. Lastly, the list of BJP-governed states also doesn’t mention the state of Manipur where the BJP is in alliance with the National People’s Party. The petrol price in Manipur is Rs 93.36 per litre as of February 17. However, it is also noteworthy that the list of non-BJP-governed states also didn’t include INC-governed Punjab, YSRCP-governed Andhra Pradesh and BJD-governed Odisha. All the three states have petrol prices over Rs 90 as of February 17. A misleading graphic was circulated on social media to falsely portray that petrol prices in BJP-governed states were less than Rs 90 while the non-BJP governed states had prices over Rs 90. It must be emphasized that petrol prices change on a day-to-day basis and are different from region-to-region. Thus, the comparison made on February 17 cannot reflect the current status of the petrol hike across India. Jignesh is a writer and researcher at Alt News. He has a knack for visual investigation with a major interest in fact-checking videos and images. He has completed his Masters in Journalism from Gujarat University. Rahul and Priyanka Gandhi recently performed aarti at the Narmada Ghat in Madhya Pradesh’s Omkareshwar… In the wake of the alleged murder of Shraddha Walkar by his partner Aftab Amin… The video of a group of people stopping an e-rickshaw with BJP flags attached to… Last week during the G20 summit in Bali, world leaders were informed of a missile… Recently, several prominent BJP leaders claimed that Prime Minister Narendra Modi had intervened to stop…	news-altnews	2024-05-27T18:24:05.489452	1st March 2021 / 8:12 pm	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/bjp-spokesperson-shares-selective-data-portraying-lower-petrol-price-in-bjp-ruled-states/", "author": "Jignesh Patel" }
438	Photo of Ukrainian project shared as Vaishnodevi Circle in Ahmedabad - Alt News Kinjal 17th August 2021 / 5:55 pm / Last updated: 17th August 2021 An image has been circulating on social media with the claim that it is the Vaishnodevi Circle in Ahmedabad. Pradeep Dave, who is associated with the BJP, made the claim while posting the picture. Twitter user Kuldip Sanghvi also tweeted the same. Design Of Vaishnavdevi Circle Ahmedabad આ છે વિકાસ આ છે ગુજરાત ગતિશીલ ગુજરાત ધબકતું ગુજરાત આપણું ગુજરાત જયવંતુ ગુજરાત કર્મશીલ ગુજરાત ખમીરવંતુ ગુજરાત જય જય ગરવી ગુજરાત આ છે ગુજરાતનું વિકાસ મોડેલ pic.twitter.com/U1D4C4WXjl — Kuldip Sanghvi 🇮🇳 (@Kuldipsanghvi) August 12, 2021 Ahmedabad Municipal Councilor Chetan Patel shared the image, among many others on Facebook and Twitter. Gujarati portal ‘I Am Gujarat’ carried the image in a report. The Vaishnodevi Circle flyover in Ahmedabad was inaugurated by Home Minister Amit Shah on June 21, 2021. The Times of India carried an image of the flyover and it looks nothing like the viral image. Desh Gujarat carried another picture of the flyover, which does not resemble the viral photo at all. Apart from this, a Gujarati YouTube channel called ‘Namaskar Gujarat Sports’ shared aerial footage of the Vaishnodevi flyover. In these visuals too, the structure of the flyover looks very different from the image in circulation. Therefore, the picture going viral is not of the Vaishnodevi flyover. Alt News performed a reverse image search on the viral photo and came across several news articles. It was featured in a 2012 article, which stated that the photo shows the renovation project of the interchange near Shuliavska Metro Station in the Ukrainian city of Kiev. The project was for a three-level interchange. The report mentions that a decision on this project was to be taken in the 2013 Budget. The design for the project is credited to Victor Petruk. In a 2017 article for the Misto website, project designer Victor Petruk explained why his three-level interchange project was a better design than the official project. A March 2019 report also stated that renovation work of Shuliavska Bridge had commenced. Based on this, we searched about Victor Petruk and discovered he had shared this design several times on Facebook. In addition, he had shared pictures of the interchange project in some Facebook groups. (Link 1, Link 2, Link 3, Link 4) Upon checking the timeline of these groups, we also found a video containing the design framework of the project. It resembles the flyover seen in the viral picture. Развязка Петрука в Алматы (по-мотивам) В 2017-18 годах проектно-инжиниринговая компания «Verus Engineering» (одна из ведущих проектных организаций в Республике Казахстан), вдохновлённая трёхуровневой развязкой Петрука, разработала проектно-сметную документацию на строительство транспортной развязки современного типа, состоящей из эстакады,тоннеля и распределительного кольца с дополнительными съездами на пересечении ул.Бухтарминская с Кульджинским трактом, согласно генерального плана г.Алматы, по заказу КГУ «Управление пассажирского транспорта и автомобильных дорог г.Алматы». Данная развязка обеспечит увеличение пропускной способности основных магистралей города, соединяющих Казахстан и Китай. https://www.verusengineering.kz/proekty Статический рендер развязки: https://www.verusengineering.kz/proekty?lightbox=dataItem-k9ie4f931 А уже 12 марта 2020 года Министерство индустрии и инфраструктурного развития Республики Казахстан обнародовало эскизы строящегося объекта стоимостью 20.2 млрд тенге. Проектом предусмотрено строительство транспортной развязки в трех уровнях с тоннельной частью в 570 метров по улице Бухтарминская, эстакадой протяженностью 783 метра по Кульжинскому тракту и рамповой частью на их пересечении для организации кольцевого движения. https://www.gov.kz/memleket/entities/miid/press/news/details/novaya-razvyazka-na-kulzhinskom-trakte-budet-v-tri-urovnya?lang=ru Завершение строительства согласно договору намечено на февраль 2022 года. 13/03/2020 появился огромный рендер развязки на сайте “Колеса”: https://kolesa.kz/content/news/razvyazku-na-aeroportovskom-koltse-v-almaty-sdelayut-tryohurovnevoj/ 27/04/2020 Shokan Alkhabayev на своём канале выложил очень любопытный видеоролик: “Макет развязки на “аэропортовском кольце” в Алматы” https://youtu.be/7Uwr0cFGSEg Место будущей 3-уровневой развязки на Google map: https://bit.ly/2Wng6Iu Конечно, напрягает непроработанность пешеходных переходов, ну и реверсного движения на кольце испугались. А так: и туннель на месте, и эстакада, и развороты перед кольцом а не по кольцу. Но если построят, то переделать в развязку Петрука – раз плюнуть, так что: “Правильной дорогой идёте, товарищи!” ) Posted by Владислав Давиденко on Tuesday, May 12, 2020 Several websites and social media users have shared this picture as different locations in the world, like Nairobi, Nigeria, etc. Boomlive had earlier published a fact-check article debunking this image. Therefore, the photo is not of the Vaishnodevi flyover in Ahmedabad, unlike claimed by BJP workers. In reality, it features a project design made for the interchange near Shuliavska metro station in Ukraine. Kinjal Parmar holds a Bachelor of Science in Microbiology. However, her keen interest in journalism, drove her to pursue journalism from the Indian Institute of Mass Communication. At Alt News since 2019, she focuses on authentication of information which includes visual verification, media misreports, examining mis/disinformation across social media. She is the lead video producer at Alt News and manages social media accounts for the organization. Rahul and Priyanka Gandhi recently performed aarti at the Narmada Ghat in Madhya Pradesh’s Omkareshwar… In the wake of the alleged murder of Shraddha Walkar by his partner Aftab Amin… The video of a group of people stopping an e-rickshaw with BJP flags attached to… Last week during the G20 summit in Bali, world leaders were informed of a missile… Recently, several prominent BJP leaders claimed that Prime Minister Narendra Modi had intervened to stop…	news-altnews	2024-05-27T18:24:05.489452	17th August 2021 / 5:55 pm / Last updated: 17th August 2021	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/bjp-supporters-shared-ukraines-old-design-as-gujrats-vaishno-devi-circle-flyover/", "author": "Kinjal" }
439	BJP UP shared video of woman thrashed in UP as Rajasthan to target Congress - Alt News Kinjal 24th November 2021 / 2:43 pm On November 18, BJP Uttar Pradesh tweeted a video of a group of men beating a woman claiming that this was the state of affairs in Congress-ruled Rajasthan. The party targeted Priyanka Gandhi for her silence on the matter. Though the post was deleted as of this writing, an archived version can be accessed here. Twitter handle ‘@MahanagarBjp’ also tweeted the video with the same claim. (Archive link) The clip has been shared by other users on Twitter and Facebook. (Link 1, Link 2) Alt News performed a keyword search which led us to a tweet by a journalist from Dainik Jagran. On November 18, Abushama Khan tweeted that the video is from Amethi, UP. Amethi police posted a clarification in a reply to the tweet saying that the incident occurred on November 15 and that police personnel had registered a case at Gauriganj police station. प्रकरण दिनांक 15.11.2021 का है, जिसमें थाना गौरीगंज पर सुसंगत धाराओं में अभियोग पंजीकृत कर आवश्यक विधिक कार्यवाही की जा रही है । — AMETHI POLICE (@amethipolice) November 18, 2021 TV9 Uttar Pradesh also reported that the woman was thrashed in Amethi. #UttarPradesh अमेठी में सरेआम मां-बेटियों की पिटाई जमीनी विवाद में दबंगों ने महिला और उसकी बेटियों को बेरहमी से पीटा, दबंगों पर महिला की जमीन हड़पने का आरोप, विरोध करने पर सरेआम की पिटाई, गौरीगंज थाना क्षेत्र के भटगवा गांव का मामला।#Viral \| @amethipolice \| @Uppolice \| pic.twitter.com/l5ybv8TrUi — TV9 Uttar Pradesh (@TV9UttarPradesh) November 17, 2021 A YouTube channel named ‘Bharat AtoZ News’ uploaded a video on the incident. According to the report, a mother and daughter were beaten up due to a land dispute in Bhagwa village in the jurisdiction of the Gauriganj police station in Amethi. It is worth noting that UP Congress had tweeted the same video on November 18 targeting the BJP government. योगी राज में – ना किसान सुरक्षित है ना जवान सुरक्षित है ना महिलाओं का सम्मान सुरक्षित है कितना शर्मनाक है कि स्मृति ईरानी अमेठी में हैं, और आज वहां ऐसी घटना हो रही है। pic.twitter.com/V31PIaXmCF — UP Congress (@INCUttarPradesh) November 18, 2021 Alt News spoke with the CO of Gauriganj police station who clarified that the incident does not depict Rajasthan, but shows a family dispute in Amethi’s Gauriganj. A complaint was also registered against four individuals, of which three were arrested. Kinjal Parmar holds a Bachelor of Science in Microbiology. However, her keen interest in journalism, drove her to pursue journalism from the Indian Institute of Mass Communication. At Alt News since 2019, she focuses on authentication of information which includes visual verification, media misreports, examining mis/disinformation across social media. She is the lead video producer at Alt News and manages social media accounts for the organization. Rahul and Priyanka Gandhi recently performed aarti at the Narmada Ghat in Madhya Pradesh’s Omkareshwar… In the wake of the alleged murder of Shraddha Walkar by his partner Aftab Amin… The video of a group of people stopping an e-rickshaw with BJP flags attached to… Last week during the G20 summit in Bali, world leaders were informed of a missile… Recently, several prominent BJP leaders claimed that Prime Minister Narendra Modi had intervened to stop…	news-altnews	2024-05-27T18:24:05.489452	24th November 2021 / 2:43 pm	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/bjp-up-shared-video-of-amethi-to-target-congress-in-rajasthan/", "author": "Kinjal" }
440	BJP uses misleading images to showcase Western Peripheral Expressway - Alt News Pooja Chaudhuri 18th January 2019 / 4:10 pm The official Twitter handle of the Bharatiya Janata Party tweeted two purported images of the Western Peripheral Expressway. The image on the left intended to depict a barren land, while the photograph on the right attempted to showcase how it was converted into a fully operational expressway. BJP tweeted the images with the hashtag #5YearChallege and captioned it as – “Western Peripheral Expressway providing world-class infrastructure became operational in a time-bound deadline.” A Twitter user Kapil (@kapsology) tweeted that the images did not depict the Western Peripheral Expressway as claimed by BJP. He wrote, “the image on the left was that of the Lucknow-Agra expressway (2015) which was completed by Akhilesh Yadav in 22 months. The image on the right is 10 KM stretch of Delhi Meerut Expressway, which Modi inaugurated with 100 TV cameras.” The image on the left is of 302KM Lucknow-Agra expressway (2015) which was completed by @yadavakhilesh in a record time of 22 months. The image on the right is 10 KM stretch of Delhi Meerut Expressway, which Modi inaugurated with 100 TV cameras. The project is still pending 🤣 https://t.co/6rjjMg57Bv — Kapil (@kapsology) January 18, 2019 Soon after Kapil’s tweet, BJP deleted theirs. Alt News found that information provided in Kapil’s tweet was indeed true. Upon reverse-searching both the images, we found that the left one depicted the Agra-Lucknow Expressway. American stock photo agency Shutterstock had uploaded a similar image of the under-construction expressway describing it as – “Lucknow; Uttar Pradesh; INDIA March 17, 2015, Aerial view of the under-construction new Agra -Lucknow Expressway, process with heavy equipment at on the construction site.“ The image on the right portrayed the Delhi-Meerut Expressway, which was tweeted last year by BJP MP Vijay Goel himself. The Agra-Lucknow Expressway was inaugurated on November 21, 2016, by the former UP chief minister and Samajwadi Party president Akhilesh Yadav ahead of UP assembly polls. It was widely reported in the media. Financial Express had reported that the expressway was constructed in 23 months. The Delhi-Meerut Expressway is an under-construction project divided into three phases. Prime Minister Modi had inaugurated the first phase of the expressway in May last year. “The first phase has been completed entirely. The second phase is 15% complete. While the second and third phases are at 60% and 3% level of completion,” said R.P Singh, project director at the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI), according to The Wire. The Western Peripheral Expressway was inaugurated by PM Modi on November 19, 2018, nine years after its original deadline. The project was initiated under UPA-1. Despite the fallacy, multiple handles of the BJP tweeted the misleading images with the false narrative. While the main BJP handle has deleted the tweet, Alt News found that more than 20 other handles of the BJP tweeted the same #5YearChallenge images claiming that they were before and after photographs of the Western Peripheral Expressway – BJP Jharkhand, BJP Nagaland, BJP Odisha, BJYM Chandigarh, BJP Delhi, BJP Uttarakhand, BJP Tripura, BJP Sikkim, BJP Puducherry, BJP Chattisgarh, BJP Himachal, BJP Daman & Diu, BJP Chandigarh, BJP Bengal, BJP Andhra Pradesh, BJP Andaman Nicobar, BJP Arambagh, BJP Siliguri, BJP Live, BJP IT Cell Andamans, भाजपा किसान मोर्चा, BJP Odisha Live, BJP Lakshadweep. In conclusion, the BJP used images of Agra-Lucknow Expressway and Delhi-Meerut Expressway to claim that they depicted Western Peripheral Expressway. In the past as well, BJP has been found using incorrect images to accredit itself with infrastructural developments. BJP Chhattisgarh had used images from Gujarat and abroad to showcase improved highways and Ahmedabad mayor had tweeted a picture from Seoul as Sabarmati riverfront. There are many more such instances. But isn’t just the BJP that had spread misinformation in this manner. AAP had attempted to pass off a bridge in the Netherlands as Signature bridge in Delhi. Pooja Chaudhuri is a senior editor at Alt News. Rahul and Priyanka Gandhi recently performed aarti at the Narmada Ghat in Madhya Pradesh’s Omkareshwar… In the wake of the alleged murder of Shraddha Walkar by his partner Aftab Amin… The video of a group of people stopping an e-rickshaw with BJP flags attached to… Last week during the G20 summit in Bali, world leaders were informed of a missile… Recently, several prominent BJP leaders claimed that Prime Minister Narendra Modi had intervened to stop…	news-altnews	2024-05-27T18:24:05.489452	18th January 2019 / 4:10 pm	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/bjp-uses-misleading-images-to-showcase-western-peripheral-expressway/", "author": "Pooja Chaudhuri" }
441	BJP uses protester's image to depict 'happy' farmer; OpIndia's failed attempt to defend - Alt News Pooja Chaudhuri 23rd December 2020 / 1:22 pm / Last updated: 23rd December 2020 BJP Punjab recently used a photograph of a ‘happy farmer’ on an advertisement for farm laws. But the person whose image was picked up wasn’t happy about the feature. Harpreet Singh or more commonly known by his social media name ‘Harp Farmer’ put out a post writing that the BJP “shamelessly” used his photograph while he is at Singhu border protesting in solidarity with farmers. Besharmi Di Vi Koi Hadd Hundi Ae Par Lagdaa Inaa Kol JIO De Unlimted Internet Waang Ina Kol Besharmi Di Hadd Vi Unlimted ae. Inaa Nu Dasso Innaa Daa Bhaapa Singhu Baithaa. Yadde Modi With Farmers De. #ShameOnBJP #ModiAgainstFarmers#supportfarmers #IndiaSupportFarmerProtest pic.twitter.com/JRwVTonoer — Harp Farmer (@harpfarmer) December 22, 2020 The centre’s three farm laws passed through a voice vote in the parliament have sparked massive protests in the national capital. As damage control, the ruling party is attempting to portray that lakhs of farmers are being misled by the opposition and the legislation is beneficial for the community. Earlier this month, a report by Newslaundry revealed that the Narendra Modi government handed contacts of farmers who have purportedly benefited from the farm laws to several mainstream journalists. Now the party chose a poster boy for the farm laws who is protesting against the legislation. But this isn’t a new strategy. After Jammu and Kashmir was stripped of its special status, the BJP lifted a picture of a tourist from a personal blog to show a ‘happy’ Kashmiri woman. The woman was merely a tourist who dressed up in traditional Kashmiri attire to take a photograph. Harpreet Singh’s image has now been replaced with a caricature of a ‘happy’ farmer. यह तस्वीर सांकेतिक है, सिर्फ़ सरकार द्वारा MSP पर खरीदी गई फसलों का लेखा जोखा दर्शाती है। इस खरीफ सीजन MSP पर जारी है… Posted by BJP Punjab on Tuesday, 22 December 2020 Singh’s objection to the BJP’s misrepresentation of his picture did not sit well with right-wing website OpIndia. The outlet published a disgruntled piece attempting to argue that Singh should not have ‘taken offence’ because there are chances that the photograph in question is stock imagery. “So in case the BJP used the stock image, if the same is sold by Harp Farmer, then, well, he is quite likely getting compensated for usage of his image,” wrote OpIndia (in a grammatically uncomfortable sentence with a generous number of commas). The rest of OpIndia’s story is just pictures of Singh lifted from his social media accounts. The featured image of the article is Singh seated on a model of the throne from the popular British series ‘Game of Thrones’. The article has also included pictures of him posing at different locations. “OpIndia cannot independently verify whether these are his own images with own vehicles or modelling assignment,” is an actual sentence from the article. It seems that the point OpIndia was trying to make is that Singh is falsely posing as a farmer. The outlet has been using this as a tactic to discredit the protestors by questioning if they are indeed farmers. In an earlier report, OpIndia falsely termed farmer leader VM Singh a member of the Congress party. “Harp Farmer on wanderlust” is one of the captions used by the outlet for a photograph of Singh posing in front of a car. The article, however, has an anti-climatic finish where OpIndia (unknowingly) explains Singh’s travel photographs. “In his own words, 36-year-old Harp Farmer is an actor, director, producer and a photographer who also has his own music label and production company.” Singh’s Twitter bio is along similar lines, “Born Farmer, Lost in Film Fair.” In an interview to BBC, he identified as a freelance filmmaker who directs and also acts in Punjabi movies. “I’ve been here [Singhu border] for the past two weeks. I have done photography here. I took some footage for my friends who wanted to see how the movement is going and how large it is. Most people are shooting [videos] from the ground, I’ve taken aerial footage,” he said. बीजेपी ने जिस शख़्स को ‘खुशहाल किसान’ बताकर सोशल मीडिया पर विज्ञापन डाला, वो शख़्स सिंघु बॉर्डर पर किसान आंदोलन करता हुआ मिला. वीडियो: जसपाल सिंह, बीबीसी पंजाबी pic.twitter.com/QyKLE9j9VE — BBC News Hindi (@BBCHindi) December 22, 2020 OpIndia’s story is based on the argument that Singh should not take offence because he ‘could be’ getting paid for the picture. But Singh explains that the photograph isn’t a stock image. At 1:15 minutes in the BBC interview, he says, “This photo is 6-7 years old. A friend had taken it for abstract art…The picture was good so I uploaded it on my social media handle. They [BJP] picked it up from there. They wanted to show a ‘happy’ farmer. First, they wanted to portray Punjab farmers as Khalistanis and terrorists which has failed. So now their propaganda is to show [farmers] happy.” “I have an objection because they chose my picture without permission. I did not even know,” he added. When asked by the reporter if the photograph has been used by others in the past, Singh said, “It has been used by other companies also. A few days ago, a pump company from Punjab used the image. My friend informed me. During elections, Captain [Amarinder Singh]…Congress party used the image on their social media…I don’t know how everyone finds and likes this particular image.” It becomes evident from Singh’s statement that the photograph was not lifted from a stock image website but his social media account. And it seems that the BJP too realised that the picture was misrepresented since it has now been replaced. Singh also tweeted that he does not sell his photographs as stock imagery. aa Kutte De Hadd Kehnde aa BJP Waleyaa Photo Stock cho Buy Keeti aa Jo Ke Galt aa I don’t Sell My photos as Stock Images ~ #SupportFarmers #ModiAgainstFarmers #BJPShame https://t.co/0r6WwW62QZ — Harp Farmer (@harpfarmer) December 22, 2020 Pooja Chaudhuri is a senior editor at Alt News. Rahul and Priyanka Gandhi recently performed aarti at the Narmada Ghat in Madhya Pradesh’s Omkareshwar… In the wake of the alleged murder of Shraddha Walkar by his partner Aftab Amin… The video of a group of people stopping an e-rickshaw with BJP flags attached to… Last week during the G20 summit in Bali, world leaders were informed of a missile… Recently, several prominent BJP leaders claimed that Prime Minister Narendra Modi had intervened to stop…	news-altnews	2024-05-27T18:24:05.489452	23rd December 2020 / 1:22 pm / Last updated: 23rd December 2020	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/bjp-uses-protesters-image-to-depict-happy-farmer-opindias-failed-attempt-to-defend/", "author": "Pooja Chaudhuri" }
442	BJP video on Rahul Gandhi and China includes misinformation debunked last year - Alt News Arjun Sidharth 1st September 2018 / 6:11 pm / Last updated: 15th March 2019 Rahul Gandhi and China: Addiction, obsession or something else? This is the title of a video that has been posted by the official Twitter account of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on August 31, 2018. The video mocks Rahul Gandhi and begins with what appear to be the words of a news anchor who is heard saying, “Rahul Gandhi along with Robert Vadra and Priyanka Vadra met the Chinese envoy, they called it a meeting during a Chinese food festival. And now, six months after that, Rahul Gandhi has met a delegation of the Communist party of China. Again, pictures on your screens, BJP has questioned Rahul’s meeting with the Chinese delegation. They are asking did Rahul Gandhi keep the Ministry of External Affairs in the loop? Anand Sharma can also be seen in the pictues over there…” Rahul Gandhi and China : Addiction, obsession or something else? pic.twitter.com/tXDe2i8Ch2 — BJP (@BJP4India) August 31, 2018 The first image that has been used in the video shows the Congress president along with Robert Vadra and Priyanka Vadra posing for a photograph with the Chinese ambassador to India. The photograph has been posted below. In the past, the same photograph had been used to insinuate that Rahul Gandhi had secretly met the Chinese envoy at a time when Indian and Chinese troops were locked in a tense stand-off at Doklam in 2017. Alt News had earlier reported that in July 2017, Republic TV and Times Now had used the same image to target the Congress president, claiming that the photograph was ‘undated’ and ‘unverified’. It only took a reverse image search to establish the veracity of the photograph. The image tweeted by the two channels was neither unverified nor undated and has been available on Internet since April 21st, 2017 on the Chinese Embassy website. Rahul Gandhi, Priyanka Vadra and Robert Vadra had attended a Chinese food festival. The same food festival was attended by Union Minister Suresh Prabhu, Sitaram Yechuri from CPIM, KC Tyagi from JDU and other leaders from BJP such as Tarun Vijay and Udit Raj. Source: Website of Embassy of PRC in India Now, a photograph of the same public event featuring Rahul Gandhi has been used by the BJP to accuse the Congress president of pursuing a clandestine relationship with China, at a time when Gandhi has embarked on a yatra to Kailash Mansarovar. It is not a surprising development as political campaigns on social media have the propensity to relay misinformation despite the fact that it may already have been debunked. Arjun Sidharth is a writer with Alt News. He has previously worked in the television news industry, where he managed news bulletins and breaking news scenarios, apart from scripting numerous prime time television stories. He has also been actively involved with various freelance projects. Sidharth has studied economics, political science, international relations and journalism. He has a keen interest in books, movies, music, sports, politics, foreign policy, history and economics. His hobbies include reading, watching movies and indoor gaming. Rahul and Priyanka Gandhi recently performed aarti at the Narmada Ghat in Madhya Pradesh’s Omkareshwar… In the wake of the alleged murder of Shraddha Walkar by his partner Aftab Amin… The video of a group of people stopping an e-rickshaw with BJP flags attached to… Last week during the G20 summit in Bali, world leaders were informed of a missile… Recently, several prominent BJP leaders claimed that Prime Minister Narendra Modi had intervened to stop…	news-altnews	2024-05-27T18:24:05.489452	1st September 2018 / 6:11 pm / Last updated: 15th March 2019	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/bjp-video-on-rahul-gandhi-and-china-includes-misinformation-debunked-last-year/", "author": "Arjun Sidharth" }
443	BJP passes off India Today journalist's photo as slain BJP worker in West Bengal - Alt News Jignesh Patel & Priyanka Jha 6th May 2021 / 3:44 pm In the wake of reports of the death of at least 14 people in political violence that broke out after the results of West Bengal assembly elections were declared, BJP West Bengal addressed a press conference on May 5. The press conference was addressed by BJP president JP Nadda, national general secretary Kailash Vijayvargiya, BJP WB president Dilip Ghosh and spokesperson Swapan Dasgupta. A video presentation played during the conference showed the alleged violence against BJP workers and supporters in the state. This was when an image of a man claimed to be ‘Manik Moitra’ was shown and claimed that he died in Sitalkuchi. The video of the press conference has over 1 million views. The presentation shown during the press conference was also separately uploaded on the Facebook page of BJP West Bengal but later taken down. The same video was tweeted by @BJP4India and subsequently deleted. On May 6, India Today journalist Abhro Banerjee posted a screengrab from the video along with a screen-recording of BJP West Bengal’s now-deleted Facebook post and informed, “I am Abhro Banerjee, living and hale and hearty and around 1,300 km away from Sitalkuchi. BJP IT Cell is now claiming I am Manik Moitra and died in Sitalkuchi. Please don’t believe these fake posts and please don’t worry. I repeat: I am (still) alive.” He tweeted the same message from his Twitter account. We rummaged through Banerjee’s Facebook account and independently verified that the image of the man claimed to be dead is indeed him. He posted the photo on March 11, 2017. Alt News is not uploading the original photograph to protect Banerjee’s privacy. Banerjee is a journalist with India Today and speaking to the channel he said, “I woke up a little late this morning and saw over 100 missed calls. Even before I could check what happened, my friend, Arvind, told me that the BJP IT cell has used my picture in place of Manik Moitra who had allegedly died in Sitalkuchi. I was shocked as I am 1400 kms away and the kind of misinformation can be quite damaging.” While we haven’t been able to independently confirm the death of a BJP supporter named Manik Moitra, there are a few local media reports on the death of a BJP supporter named “Manik Maitra”. According to Anandabazar, he was allegedly shot dead in the Shalbari area of Sitalkuchi. India Today’s report claimed that BJP had announced names of nine people who allegedly died in the violence, out of which one was ‘Momik Maitra’ but no ‘Manik Moitra’. BJP West Bengal used India Today journalist Abhro Banerjee’s picture claiming he was Manik Moitra, a BJP supporter, who was allegedly killed in the political violence that ensued in Sitalkuchi. Rahul and Priyanka Gandhi recently performed aarti at the Narmada Ghat in Madhya Pradesh’s Omkareshwar… In the wake of the alleged murder of Shraddha Walkar by his partner Aftab Amin… The video of a group of people stopping an e-rickshaw with BJP flags attached to… Last week during the G20 summit in Bali, world leaders were informed of a missile… Recently, several prominent BJP leaders claimed that Prime Minister Narendra Modi had intervened to stop…	news-altnews	2024-05-27T18:24:05.489452	6th May 2021 / 3:44 pm	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/bjp-west-bengal-passes-off-a-photo-of-journalist-as-bjp-supporter-who-died-in-political-violence/", "author": "Jignesh Patel & Priyanka Jha" }
444	Fact-check: BJP workers are not fighting over oxygen distribution in this video - Alt News Anuradha Prasad 5th May 2021 / 9:44 pm A video of several people vandalising posters and plastic furniture in a hall is viral on social media with the claim, “BJP workers vandalised their own party office over not being able to get oxygen cylinders…” The video, posted by Twitter user Shamshad Khan, gained over 1,300 retweets and more than 14,000 views as of this writing. ऑक्सिजन न मिलने पर भाजपाईयों द्वारा अपनी पार्टी के कार्यलय पर की जमकर तोड़फोड़, इन्होंने एक दम से हालात बदल दिए, ,शाहब के लोग जाग रहे है? pic.twitter.com/w4qoIKjshd — shamshad khan शमशाद खान (@shamshad__khan) May 1, 2021 Similarly, Twitter handle @kisanItcell1 gathered 600 retweets and over 15,000 views. जनता अब समझने लगी है!! ऑक्सिजन न मिलने पर भाजपाईयों द्वारा अपनी पार्टी के कार्यलय पर की जमकर तोड़फोड़, इन्होंने एक दम से हालात बदल दिए,जज़्बात बदल दिए pic.twitter.com/yYOdBTSEjz — Kisan It Cell (@kisanItcell1) April 29, 2021 Dozens of other Twitter users too claimed that BJP workers created ruckus over oxygen cylinders. The Facebook post below has over 34,000 likes and 16,000 shares. It was posted by state general secretary Youth (Uttar Pradesh) Mohammad Shoeb Azam. ऑक्सिजन न मिलने पर भाजपाईयों द्वारा अपनी पार्टी के कार्यलय पर की जमकर तोड़फोड़, ये बदलाव इस देश के लिए बेहद ज़रूरी है। Posted by Mohd shoeb azam on Thursday, April 29, 2021 The post below gained 68,000 views. ऑक्सिजन न मिलने पर भाजपाईयों द्वारा अपनी पार्टी के कार्यलय पर की जमकर तोड़फोड़ ! आखिर शुरुआत हो ही गई, उतर गई अंध भक्ति? ऑक्सिजन न मिलने पर भाजपाईयों द्वारा अपनी पार्टी के कार्यलय पर की जमकर तोड़फोड़ ! Posted by Baaki Sab Theek Hai on Thursday, April 29, 2021 A screenshot from Facebook shows the extent to which the clip is viral. We noticed that a Twitter user pointed out that the video is from West Bengal and related to ticket distribution ahead of the recently-concluded assembly polls. Taking this as a hint, we searched the keyword ‘পশ্চিমবঙ্গ বিজেপি কর্মীরা দলীয় অফিসের টিকিটের ভিডিও ভাঙচুর করেছেন (Vandalism video of West Bengal BJP workers over tickets)’ on Facebook and found a post by the page Dhuliya Town uploaded on March 21, 2021. The page has uploaded the same video but better quality and according to the caption, the incident took place in Gazole. India TV had reported the incident on March 19. According to the report, the Bhartiya Janata Party released the list of candidates for the West Bengal assembly elections on March 18. However, many of its own workers put an objection to the names and were upset over their preferred leaders not making it to the list. The state witnessed arson and vandalism at several places where BJP workers were upset. [youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CmVdgA1EqPc] According to a report by ABP Ananda, BJP leader and district council member from Malda’s Gazole Sagarika Sarkar was also spotted in the viral video. She was later suspended from the party. The viral video is therefore not related to BJP workers fighting over oxygen cylinder distribution but tickets given ahead of West Bengal polls. A journalist and a dilettante person who always strives to learn new skills and meeting new people. Either sketching or working. Rahul and Priyanka Gandhi recently performed aarti at the Narmada Ghat in Madhya Pradesh’s Omkareshwar… In the wake of the alleged murder of Shraddha Walkar by his partner Aftab Amin… The video of a group of people stopping an e-rickshaw with BJP flags attached to… Last week during the G20 summit in Bali, world leaders were informed of a missile… Recently, several prominent BJP leaders claimed that Prime Minister Narendra Modi had intervened to stop…	news-altnews	2024-05-27T18:24:05.489452	5th May 2021 / 9:44 pm	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/bjp-workers-are-vandalising-party-office-for-tickets-and-not-oxygen-cylinder/", "author": "Anuradha Prasad" }
445	BJP workers beat up a Dalit youth who tried to garland Ambedkar's statue in Baroda - Alt News Pratik Sinha 14th April 2017 / 11:17 pm / Last updated: 14th April 2017 On the 126th anniversary of Dr BR Ambedkar, in an event organised at the Ambedkar statue near Race Course Road in Baroda, Gujarat, BJP activists beat up a youth from Dalit community when he tried to garland the statue of Dr Baba Saheb Ambedkar. When the youth tried to climb up to the statue, the BJP activists not only stopped him and beat him up but also tore his clothes away. The young man who was trying to garland the Ambedkar statue was identified as Mitesh Parmar. [Source: Divya Bhaskar] The BJP workers insisted that the statue will be first garlanded by the Mayor of Baroda and the rest can garland the statue only thereafter. The Dalit youth was kicked repeatedly and was forced to get off the stage. The police detained the Dalit youth who was assaulted by BJP activists and took him to the local police station. Upon reaching the hospital, the Dalit youth fainted and was transferred to the hospital. On one hand, a Dalit youth was assaulted by BJP workers and police detained the youth instead of arresting the BJP workers, on the other hand, PM Narendra Modi was tweeting about creating an inclusive India of Dr Ambedkar’s dream While the PM talks about an inclusive India, does the BJP cadre understand what ‘inclusive India’ is? Co-Founder Alt News, I can be reached via E-mail at [email protected] and on Facebook at https://fb.com/freethinker. Follow @free_thinker Following Saudi Arabia’s 2-1 win against Argentina in the ongoing FIFA World Cup, speculation about… Trigger Warning: The following story contains graphic imagery. Several users have shared images of the… The brutal murder of Shraddha Walker has been widely covered across news media over the… A 1:34-minute-long CCTV camera clip is being widely circulated on social media in which viewers… The teaser of a movie titled ‘The Kerala Story’ is being widely shared on social…	news-altnews	2024-05-27T18:24:05.489452	14th April 2017 / 11:17 pm / Last updated: 14th April 2017	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/bjp-workers-beat-dalit-youth-tried-garland-ambedkars-statue-baroda/", "author": "Pratik Sinha" }
446	BJP workers pose as locals protesting against farmers at Singhu border - Alt News Mohammed Zubair & Pratik Sinha 29th January 2021 / 11:20 pm / Last updated: 29th January 2021 Clashes broke out at Singhu border as a large mob crossed over police barricades and pelted stones at protesting farmers. Several ground reports from the area show goons vandalising farmers’ tents and demanding that the area be vacated. The violence was sparked by those claiming that protestors masquerading as farmers ‘insulted’ the Indian national flag on Republic Day. They asserted that protestors had replaced the tricolour with Sikh flags despite several fact-check articles reporting the contrary. A plethora of media outlets covering the clashes at Singhu border has identified the mob as ‘locals’. TIMES NOW’s Prashant reports from Singhu border, speaks to locals who are adamant on their demand of having the area vacated by the protesters. Confrontation breaks out between the two sides. police resorts to lathi-charge. pic.twitter.com/XxD14uCbb3 — TIMES NOW (@TimesNow) January 29, 2021 While most others have identified the mob as people ‘claiming to be locals’. #WATCH \| Delhi: Group of people claiming to be locals gather at Singhu border (Delhi-Haryana border) demanding that the area be vacated. pic.twitter.com/AHGBc2AuXO — ANI (@ANI) January 29, 2021 Hindi media outlets have also identified them as ‘स्थानीय लोग’ (local people). दिल्ली के सिंघु बॉर्डर पर स्थानीय लोग तिरंगा झंडा लेकर बॉर्डर को खाली करवाने पहुंचे#SinghuBorder #DelhiPolice #TikriBorder https://t.co/U9tLCGwy3y — Zee News (@ZeeNews) January 29, 2021 In a ground report by Aaj Tak, a crowd carrying Indian flags can be seen gathered at the border. The reporter says that they claim to be locals who were in support of the farmers’ protest but have decided to oppose the movement after the events of January 26. Amidst the crowd is a man in a blue-white-green striped shirt holding the tricolour. He is in the front row of the mob facing policemen and has been identified as Aman ‘Dabas’ by several social media users. Aman identifies himself as a social worker from North West Delhi. ‘Aman Kumar Social Worker’ is the name of a Facebook page dedicated to his work. ‘Dabas’ is a lineage in the Jat community. Last year, his page had uploaded pictures of him during door-to-door sanitisation in Barwala village, Pooth Khurd, Ward No 31. Aman is married to local BJP leader and municipal councillor of Ward No 31, Anju Kumar aka Anju Devi. He has also been spotted at official BJP North West Delhi meetings. Aman and Anju used to be local AAP leaders until they joined the BJP in 2017. Recently, Aman had uploaded a picture with home minister Amit Shah. Myneta details of Anju Kumar states that she is a resident of Pooth Khurd which is over 15 km away from Singhu border. The people assembled at the border claimed that the farmers’ gathering is a hindrance to daily work since it’s causing heavy traffic in the vicinity and shop owners are unable to open stores. A village 15 km away, however, cannot be considered ‘neighbouring’ area. One Krishan Dabas had made a Facebook post on the violence that ensued at Singhu border today. Alt News was able to download the post and take a screenshot before he took it down a couple of hours later. BJP leaders Sandeep Sehrawat and Ravinder Kumar are tagged on the post. Krishan seems to be close to both of them. (1 and 2) Krishan had uploaded a broadcast by News Nation where he identifies himself as a ‘local’ protesting at Singhu border. He can be heard sloganeering ‘humara border khali karo’ (clear our border) with a group of people, including Aman who is spotted at 12 seconds. On the other side of this group is a large assembly of policemen in riot gear. In another video uploaded by Krishan, Aman can be seen in the front row of the mob gathered around policemen, same as in the Aaj Tak video. Both Krishan (1:45) and Aman (0:25) can also be spotted in the Aaj Tak video below. सिंघु बॉर्डर पर नारेबाजी , बॉर्डर खाली कराने की मांग #ATVideo #LunchBreak #FarmersProtest (@AneeshaMathur/@satenderchauhan ) pic.twitter.com/7OqWkqzdH7 — AajTak (@aajtak) January 29, 2021 Last year, Krishan had uploaded a post from BJP West Delhi Pooth Khurd office with Aman’s wife, Ward 31 municipal councillor Anju Kumar. Below is a recent photograph of Aman and Krishan protesting against the Arvind Kejriwal-led Delhi government under the banner of ‘Bharatiya Janata Party Delhi Unit’. BJP workers posed as ‘locals’ protesting against farmers camping at Singhu border. Heavy stone pelting and vandalism were reported from the area even as the police was caught on camera as mere spectators to the violence. Rahul and Priyanka Gandhi recently performed aarti at the Narmada Ghat in Madhya Pradesh’s Omkareshwar… In the wake of the alleged murder of Shraddha Walkar by his partner Aftab Amin… The video of a group of people stopping an e-rickshaw with BJP flags attached to… Last week during the G20 summit in Bali, world leaders were informed of a missile… Recently, several prominent BJP leaders claimed that Prime Minister Narendra Modi had intervened to stop…	news-altnews	2024-05-27T18:24:05.489452	29th January 2021 / 11:20 pm / Last updated: 29th January 2021	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/bjp-workers-pose-as-locals-protesting-against-farmers-at-singhu-border/", "author": "Mohammed Zubair & Pratik Sinha" }
447	BJP Yuva Morcha leader warns about 2002...and he is not the only one - Alt News Sam Jawed 12th July 2017 / 8:59 am “Hope you all remember what happened in 2002”. A news report about a Muslim doctor and his Hindu compounder spreading message of peace in violence-hit Basirhat has angered a BJP youth leader to go on a communal rant and threaten violence. There is nothing offensive in the news posted by Hindustan Times on its Facebook page but for some reason, Srinivas Raghavan, the General Secretary of a BJP Yuva Morcha has taken great offence to it. Reacting to HT report on a doctor’s appeal for communal harmony, Raghavan said, “I remember what Mahatma Gandhi did. Enough is enough. We will not tolerate this anymore. Hope you all remember what happened in 2002.” When confronted by other users, he continued his rant, talking of “warning you guys”, “go back to your mother country”, “we are waiting to take revenge” (of 17th century rulers), “the day is not too far”, and so on. In his Facebook profile, Raghavan describes himself as a “charismatic go-getter” and a “believer in making India great again”. His page is full of pictures with senior BJP leaders. It is shocking to see a youth leader of India’s ruling party spewing hate on social media and threatening violence. Or maybe it is not so shocking, after all. This is not the first time. There have been instances in the past where BJP supporters have called for a 2002 like massacre. Many feel ‘proud’ of 2002 and have no qualms about expressing it publicly on social media. Tathagata Roy, the present Governor of Tripura and the former president of the West Bengal state unit of BJP from 2002 till 2006 had stated on Twitter about ‘appreciating what the Hindus did in 2002’. Hate speech coming from Sangh leaders in not a one-off incident. RSS Mahanagar Prachar Pramukh of Ujjain Kundan Chandrawat in a speech earlier this year, boasted about killing 2000 Muslims in Gujarat and offered a bounty of 1 crore for bringing him Kerala CM Pinarayi Vijaya’s head. #WATCH RSS Mahanagar Prachar Pramukh of Ujjain Kundan Chandrawat says, he’ll reward the person who brings him Kerala CM P.Vijayan’s head pic.twitter.com/yiBwWs6ftF — ANI (@ANI_news) March 2, 2017 In 2015, Amitesh Singh, who was followed by Prime Minister Modi on Twitter went a step further and actually gave call for a massacre. Singh was arrested over his tweet and has since disabled his account. In his twitter profile, Singh claimed to be vice-president of the Bharatiya Janata Party’s Yuva Morcha but the party denied any association with him. As per news reports, Singh was the grandson of a BJP MP from Madhya Pradesh. HDL India, yet another hate spewing Hindutva handle, called to turn UP into Gujarat to save it from turning into Kashmir. The @HDLIndiaOrg account is now suspended The GodhraAgain rumor in 2015 was also started by @HDLIndiaOrg. The handle was also one of the select few followed by Prime Minister Modi on Twitter. This is not all. There are several others who have made similar references to 2002 Gujarat riots. In recent times we have seen Facebook posts and WhatsApp forwards result in lynching and riots. We have seen morphed pictures, doctored videos, rumours and now direct instigation and threats by a BJP youth leader. While the party may not take exception to incendiary words of its Youth Morcha leader, police and local authorities must keep a watch on such individuals for their role in instigating violence. Nobody's cheerleader, I tweet at @samjawed65 Rahul and Priyanka Gandhi recently performed aarti at the Narmada Ghat in Madhya Pradesh’s Omkareshwar… In the wake of the alleged murder of Shraddha Walkar by his partner Aftab Amin… The video of a group of people stopping an e-rickshaw with BJP flags attached to… Last week during the G20 summit in Bali, world leaders were informed of a missile… Recently, several prominent BJP leaders claimed that Prime Minister Narendra Modi had intervened to stop…	news-altnews	2024-05-27T18:24:05.489452	12th July 2017 / 8:59 am	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/bjp-yuva-morcha-leader-warns-2002-not-one/", "author": "Sam Jawed" }
448	BJYM's Abhijat Mishra falsely claims illegal Bangladeshis attack Bihari family in West Bengal - Alt News Archit 19th May 2020 / 12:47 pm / Last updated: 19th May 2020 Several users on Facebook and Twitter have shared a two-minute video of a woman crying and complaining that the police took her brother away after her neighbour vandalised their house. She claimed that they broke the gate and windows of her house. The woman also alleged that the family was attacked because they are from Bihar. She continues to sob throughout the video. Abhijat Mishra, national general secretary of Bharatiya Janata Yuva Morcha (BJYM), BJP’s youth wing, shared the viral video and wrote, “This young woman from Bihar stays in Siliguri in Bengal. But Mamata Banegree’s illegal Muslim immigrants from Bangladesh have attacked her. Look at her condition. Punished for being a Bihari #HinduDieBengalBurns (translated from ये बिहार की युवती, सिलीगुड़ी बंगाल में रहती हैं लेकिन ममता बानो के बंगलादेशी मुस्लिम घुसपैठियों ने इनके घर पर हमला कर दिया इनकी क्या हालत की आप देखिए बिहारी होने की सजा #मरता_हिन्दू_जलता_बंगाल). Mishra’s tweet was retweeted over 11,000 times and the viral video has been viewed over 2.5 lakh times. (archive link) ये बिहार की युवती, सिलीगुड़ी बंगाल में रहती हैं लेकिन ममता बानो के बंगलादेशी मुस्लिम घुसपैठियों ने इनके घर पर हमला कर दिया इनकी क्या हालत की आप देखिए बिहारी होने की सजा #मरता_हिन्दू_जलता_बंगाल pic.twitter.com/JNU1yLFFiR — Abhijat Mishra (@AbhijatMishr) May 13, 2020 Several people on social media have shared the viral video along with same Hindi text as Mishra’s tweet. The video itself raises doubts about the communal angle. Nowhere in the clip does the woman claim that she and her family were attacked by illegal Muslim Bangladeshi immigrants. Here is the complete translation of her claims — “They have taken my younger brother to the police station without saying anything. These people treat us badly, just because we don’t have a father. My mother is a cancer patient. They always do such things. We don’t do anything — they fight us and bully us. They broke our home. from our gate to windows, they have damaged everything. [phone rings] Please help, what should I do? They hurt my mother as well — her hand is bleeding and I can’t even take her to the hospital because they are attacking if we step out. No one is doing anything, everyone is watching the commotion. They are saying — get rid of Biharis, we won’t let Biharis stay. We have purchased land here, don’t we have a right to purchase land in Bengal, being a Bihar? Only Bengalis have the right to purchase?” The video hints that the issue might be related to regionalism as opposed to religion. On May 14, Siliguri Police Commissionerate’s Facebook page shared a post which said that there is no communal angle to the story. As per the post, “A case has been lodged at Cyber Crime PS against Abhijat Mishra for false propaganda for making the issue a communal in his Twitter account.” The post also informed that the woman in the video is Anuradha Pandey and her family was heckled by Rubi Das and his family on May 12. Thus the social media claim that illegal “Muslim” immigrants from Bangladeshi attacked them is false. Siliguri Police Commissionerate further informed that a complaint was registered at New Jalpaiguri Police Station. One lady named Anuradha Pandey @ Anu of Ward no 35 under NJP PS posted one Video in her FB page alleging that she & her… Posted by Siliguri Police Commissionerate on Thursday, May 14, 2020 West Bengal police tweeted a screenshot of the viral video and a screenshot of the Commissionerate’s Facebook post with #FakeNewsAlert on May 14. #FakeNewsAlert pic.twitter.com/GMdcVTT2Nr — West Bengal Police (@WBPolice) May 14, 2020 The incident was earlier reported by Siliguri Times which said, “A clash allegedly erupted between two families in the Siliguri Bhaktinagar area over the disposal of garbage. As per the report, several members of the families were injured in the incident.” The article said that Pandey claimed that after protesting against garbage disposal near their house they were beaten up and their house was vandalised by the other family. Prior to our fact-check, Facto News has published a report on May 15. The viral video was shared with a false communal narrative which was debunked by Siliguri Police Commissionerate and West Bengal police. 🙏 Blessed to have worked as a fact-checking journalist from November 2019 to February 2023. Rahul and Priyanka Gandhi recently performed aarti at the Narmada Ghat in Madhya Pradesh’s Omkareshwar… In the wake of the alleged murder of Shraddha Walkar by his partner Aftab Amin… The CCTV footage of a man violently flinging a child on the ground has created… The video of a group of people stopping an e-rickshaw with BJP flags attached to… A minute-long video clip of a woman being physically assaulted is viral on social media….	news-altnews	2024-05-27T18:24:05.489452	19th May 2020 / 12:47 pm / Last updated: 19th May 2020	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/bjps-abhijat-mishra-falsely-claims-illegal-bangladeshis-attack-bihari-family-in-west-bengal/", "author": "Archit" }
449	BJP's claim about West Bengal police throwing bombs at BJP protest rally is false - Alt News Pooja Chaudhuri 10th October 2020 / 4:31 pm / Last updated: 10th October 2020 Clashes erupted in parts of Kolkata and neighbouring Howrah on October 8 during “March to Nabanna” organised by the Bharatiya Janata Party’s (BJP) youth wing — Bhartiya Janata Yuva Morcha (BJYM). The protest rallies were held in the wake of recent killings of BJP workers in West Bengal. There were reports of crude bombs hurled at policemen, which the BJP has denied. The police used water cannons, tear gas shells and lathi-charge to disperse BJP workers. The party organised four rallies despite the police not granting permission. BJP national secretary Kailash Vijayvargiya tweeted a video shot during the violence and claimed it shows Kolkata police hurling “bombs” at protesters from a rooftop. भाजपा के आंदोलन पर कोलकाता पुलिस ने #TMC के गुंडों की तरह बर्ताव किया और भाजपा कार्यकर्ताओं पर छतों से बम फेंके! पुलिस की ये कार्रवाई सरकार की शह पर हुई है! पुलिस के ऐसे हमलों की वजह से इस आंदोलन में 1500 से ज्यादा कार्यकर्ता घायल हुए!#NabannoCholo pic.twitter.com/tkmHYS1mw2 — Kailash Vijayvargiya (@KailashOnline) October 8, 2020 It was also shared by Laxman G, all India joint organising secretary of BJP’s student wing Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP). What a barbaric rule in W.B under the leadership of Mamatha Benarjee. police throwing bomb on a massive rally organised by BJYM under the leadership of its President and MP Tejaswi Surya. Seems to be count down started for Bengal Didi. Violence cannot survive for a long time. pic.twitter.com/20yyKgKqe6 — Laxman G (@iLaxmanG) October 8, 2020 Rupa Murthy whose bio says “BJP/ RSS” claimed that cops hurled crude oil bombs at the BJP rally. Mamata Banerjee government inadvertently showing India what murderous fascism is, by directing West Bengal police to hurl crude bombs at the BJP rally in WB earlier today. pic.twitter.com/VpAoxVmmHF — Rupa Murthy (@rupamurthy1) October 8, 2020 The video was also shared with similar claims by Know The Nation, @ExSecular and @BefittingFacts. The incident took place in Howrah Maidan and Times Now journalist Sreyashi Dey was reporting live from the terrace where cops were stationed. “Since this video is running on news channels, that’s my Cameraperson & I reporting live from Howrah Maidan today, what is seen in the video is cops using smoke bombs to disperse the crowd as barricades were breached and stones were hurled,” she tweeted. Since this video is running on news channels, that’s my Cameraperson & I reporting live from Howrah Maidan today, what is seen in the video is cops using smoke bombs to disperse the crowd as barricades were breached and stones were hurled. We were airing live visuals. https://t.co/k8oFwWLMp2 — Sreyashi Dey (@SreyashiDey) October 8, 2020 Dey’s tweet was shared by Howrah City Police who said that the cops used tear smoke when agitators breached barricades and indulged in stone-pelting. A video of police throwing Tear Smoke Munitions yesterday in Howrah is being misrepresented in social media.A police team was stationed at rooftop which used Tear Smoke only when d agitators breached d barricade & started pelting https://t.co/nGWHSYeVHG persons were present there pic.twitter.com/fnglSAgObw — Howrah City Police (@hwhcitypolice) October 9, 2020 A reporter who was also in the area when the violence took place told Alt News, “The police could not have used bombs. If you notice carefully, the object in their hand is cylindrical in shape, consistent with how a smoke bomb or tear gas shell looks.” “Moreover, they did not hurl the object but flung it in the air like underarm bowling. A bomb needs to be thrown at a certain velocity so that it explodes upon contact with a surface. It is always thrown with force. I’ve covered enough clashes to know that what the cops threw was not a bomb,” the reporter added. Another Kolkata-based journalist spoke with us on the condition of anonymity. The reporter was close to the building where the video was shot and confirmed that they did not spot policemen hurling crude or petrol bombs. The reporter gave us a timeline of events — “The area was cordoned off but protestors broke barricades and hurled stones. In retaliation, the police tried to use water cannons on the crowd and later fired tear gas shells when the cannons did not work. This happened in Howrah Maidan, GT Road.” The reporter said that the cops in the video likely threw smoke bombs. At 4:30 minutes in the broadcast below, Sreyashi Dey can be seen reporting from the building’s terrace. She provides a bird’s eye view of the situation on the ground. The police have barricaded the road and are prepared with water cannons and riot vehicles. On the other side are BJP workers gathering to hold rallies. https://youtu.be/aCqEm9gjkYM?t=271 Several other videos show protestors breaking the barricades and policemen throwing tear gas shells. https://youtu.be/HZlmzZKrNtE?t=611 Other reports of the violence show similar visuals. The claim that policemen threw ‘bombs’ on BJP workers is neither supported by visuals nor ground reports by journalists. Pooja Chaudhuri is a senior editor at Alt News. Rahul and Priyanka Gandhi recently performed aarti at the Narmada Ghat in Madhya Pradesh’s Omkareshwar… Following Saudi Arabia’s 2-1 win against Argentina in the ongoing FIFA World Cup, speculation about… In the wake of the alleged murder of Shraddha Walkar by his partner Aftab Amin… The video of a group of people stopping an e-rickshaw with BJP flags attached to… Trigger Warning: The following story contains graphic imagery. Several users have shared images of the…	news-altnews	2024-05-27T18:24:05.489452	10th October 2020 / 4:31 pm / Last updated: 10th October 2020	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/bjps-claim-about-west-bengal-police-throwing-bombs-at-bjp-protest-rally-is-false/", "author": "Pooja Chaudhuri" }
450	BJP's Deputy Mayor from Kalyan has a scarily long list of criminal cases - Alt News Alt News Desk 20th March 2017 / 3:29 pm / Last updated: 12th July 2018 In the past few years, if we talk about people who represent us in various institutions of democracy – from the Municipal Corporations to State Assemblies to the Parliament in Delhi, the list of the pending criminal cases that the representatives in these various institutions have is been getting longer by the year. One such young ‘leader’ is the new Deputy Mayor of Kalyan Dombivli Municipal Corporation. BJP’s Deputy Mayor from Kalyan, Moreshwar Shreeram Bhoir, who is is also the BJYM President of Kalyan District, KDMC BJP Corporator (Ward 107,Pisavli) and Ex-Sarpanch (Pisavli) has as many as 34 cases framed against him in various crimes under different sections according to official data. There are 6 cases where charges have been framed and the matter is under investigation. These cases include some serious charges like murder (IPC 302), house trespass, criminal intimidation, rioting etc. There was an internal protest within BJP when he was first given a ticket back in 2014 because of his criminal antecdents. These are the various serious charges against him. 2 charges related to Rioting, armed with deadly weapon (IPC Section-148) 1 charges related to Assault or criminal force with intent to dishonour person, otherwise than on grave provocation (IPC Section-355) 1 charges related to Intentional insult with intent to provoke breach of the peace (IPC Section-504) 1 charges related to Disobedience to order duly promulgated by public servant (IPC Section-188) 1 charges related to Assault or criminal force to deter public servant from discharge of his duty (IPC Section-353) 1 charges related to Every member of unlawful assembly guilty of offence committed in prosecution of common object (IPC Section-149) 1 charges related to Joining unlawful assembly armed with deadly weapon (IPC Section-144) 1 charges related to Criminal intimidation (IPC Section-503) Source- ADR Follow @free_thinker Rahul and Priyanka Gandhi recently performed aarti at the Narmada Ghat in Madhya Pradesh’s Omkareshwar… In the wake of the alleged murder of Shraddha Walkar by his partner Aftab Amin… The video of a group of people stopping an e-rickshaw with BJP flags attached to… Last week during the G20 summit in Bali, world leaders were informed of a missile… Recently, several prominent BJP leaders claimed that Prime Minister Narendra Modi had intervened to stop…	news-altnews	2024-05-27T18:24:05.489452	20th March 2017 / 3:29 pm / Last updated: 12th July 2018	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/bjps-deputy-mayor-kalyan-scarily-long-list-criminal-cases/", "author": "Alt News Desk" }
451	BJP's Himanta Biswa, media falsely claim 'Pakistan Zindabad' slogans raised by AIUDF supporters - Alt News Priyanka Jha & Pratik Sinha 6th November 2020 / 5:12 pm / Last updated: 6th November 2020 Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) Assam MLA Himanta Biswa Sarma claimed that ‘Pakistan zindabad’ slogans were raised while welcoming All India United Democratic Front (AIUDF) chief Maulana Badruddin Ajmal at Silchar airport. “This thoroughly exposes @INCIndia which is encouraging such forces by forging an alliance,” he wrote. AIUDF will contest the 2021 Assam assembly election in alliance with Congress and the Left Front. Look at the brazenness of these fundamentalists anti-national people who are shouting PAKISTAN ZINDABAD while they welcome MP @BadruddinAjmal. This thoroughly exposes @INCIndia which is encouraging such forces by forging an alliance. We shall fight them tooth & nail. Jai Hind🇮🇳 pic.twitter.com/CiHZjDweFF — Himanta Biswa Sarma (@himantabiswa) November 6, 2020 BJP MLAs Ashok Singhal and Rajdeep Roy tweeted the same. CNN News18 correspondent Payal Mehta also shared the video claiming pro-Pakistan chants were raised. Anti India slogans shouted at Silchar Airport ahead of @AIUDFOfficial chief @BadruddinAjmal arrival yesterday… Pakistan Zindabad slogans shouted@himantabiswa @drrajdeeproy pic.twitter.com/cdcCSBF4v8 — Payal Mehta/પાયલ મેહતા/ पायल मेहता/ পাযেল মেহতা (@payalmehta100) November 6, 2020 Assamese news outlet News Live published a report on Badruddin Ajmal’s arrival at the airport and promoted the identical narrative. The channel is run by Himanta Biswa’s wife. Former editor-in-chief of News Live Atanu Bhuyan also tweeted that ‘Pakistan zindabad’ slogans were raised to welcome Ajmal. শিলচৰত বদৰুদ্দিনৰ সমৰ্থকৰ ‘পাকিস্তান জিন্দাবাদ’ ধ্বনি অসমত ভয়ংকৰ ঘটনা। শিলচৰত বদৰুদ্দিনৰ সমৰ্থকৰ ‘পাকিস্তান জিন্দাবাদ’ ধ্বনি। #NewsLive #AssamNews #PakistanZindabadSlogans #BadruddinAjmal #Silchar #SilcharShocker #AIUDF #ArrestPakSupporters Posted by News Live on Thursday, 5 November 2020 Times Now reported that BJP claimed ‘anti-India’ slogans were raised upon Ajmal’s arrival however, AIUDF termed this is a ‘political conspiracy’. A channel correspondent however, asserted that party supporters sloganeered ‘Pakistan zindabad’. BJP tweets video of Anti-India slogans being allegedly chanted at Silchar Airport before the arrival of AIUDF chief @BadruddinAjmal. Listen in to more details from TIMES NOW’s Arindam. pic.twitter.com/Z5uJcxZB9W — TIMES NOW (@TimesNow) November 6, 2020 Asianet Bangla and Hindi, The New Indian Express (TNIE) and CNN News18 also reported the purported news. TNIE however included statements by AIUDF spokesperson Aminul Islam and Cachar Superintendent of Police BL Meena. “Our supporters shouted Ajmal zindabad, AIUDF zindabad slogans. The charge that they shouted Pakistan zindabad slogan is a political conspiracy hatched against us by the BJP. We have sought a probe into the incident,” claimed Islam while the police said that they are examining the video. Upon closely listening to the audio, Alt News found that ‘Aziz Khan zindabad’ and not ‘Pakistan zindabad’ was chanted by AIUDF supporters. We found a clearer video of Ajmal’s welcome outside Silchar airport. This was uploaded on November 5. According to myneta.info, Aziz Ahmed Khan is an AIUDF MLA from Assam. Readers are requested to use earphones while listening to the audio. শিলচর বিমান বন্দরে উপস্তিত এআইইউডিফ সুপ্রীম বদর উদ্দিন আজমল সাহেব #AIUDF প্রধানকে স্বাগত জানাতে শিলচর বিমানবন্দরে হাজার হাজার জনতা। Posted by Ahmed Saleh Barbhuiya on Thursday, 5 November 2020 AIUDF issued a press statement that ‘Aziz Khan zindabad’ slogans were raised outside the airport. “We have been watching news run by News Live since the morning. Himanta Biswa Sarma is the owner of News Live. The channel claimed that our supporters raised the slogans of ‘Pakistan zindabad’. This is completely false. People were raising slogans of Badruddin zindabad, AIUDF zindabad…we have other MLAs and slogans of their names were also raised. Slogans of Aziz Khan zindabad were also raised and it is being claimed that chants of Pakitsan zindabad were raised. This is political conspiracy to break the alliance that we will get into with Congress and Left parties.” Press Statement by AIUDF on cheap politics by BJP, how they along with a section of media distorted the slogan ‘Aziz Khan Zindabad’ into ‘Pakistan Zindabad’. pic.twitter.com/obzPASSLNg — AIUDF Official (@AIUDFOfficial) November 6, 2020 Speaking with Alt News, Ajmal confirmed that the slogans in the viral video were in fact mentioning him and further said, “Slogans of Pakistan zindabad were not raised. Several MLAs were present with me when AIUDF chief arrived. Supporters were raising slogans in their favour. They want to damage our reputation with the false claim that Pakistan zindabad slogans were raised. We will take strict action against those [spreading misinformation].” Ajmal also shared a photograph of himself outside Silchar airport when Ajmal arrived. News reports claiming that ‘Pakistan zindabad’ slogans were raised by supporters of AIUDF chief Maulana Badruddin Ajmal at Silchar airport are false. The crowd was chanting ‘Aziz Khan zindabad’. That Pakistan zindabad slogans were raised by leaders of opposition parties is a recurring pattern of misinformation. AIMIM and Congress have also been targetted with similar false claims. During protests against the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) in Lucknow, organised by AIMIM, misinformation that protestors chanted ‘Pakistan zindabad’ slogans was promoted by BJP IT cell head Amit Malviya. However, the crowd was rasing the slogan ‘Kasif Saab zindabad’ in reference to the Lucknow AIMIM chief. Update: BJP IT cell head Amit Malviya tweeted the video after this fact-check was published. He promoted the false claim. Badruddin Ajmal is welcomed at Silchar airport with Pakistan Zindabad slogans. He is someone Congress desperately wants to ally with in Assam… Now expect some tone deaf fact checkers to tell us that it was ‘Aziz Khan Zindabad’ and not Pakistan while Assam police investigates. pic.twitter.com/FB64mgGTLC — Amit Malviya (@amitmalviya) November 6, 2020 Rahul and Priyanka Gandhi recently performed aarti at the Narmada Ghat in Madhya Pradesh’s Omkareshwar… In the wake of the alleged murder of Shraddha Walkar by his partner Aftab Amin… The video of a group of people stopping an e-rickshaw with BJP flags attached to… Last week during the G20 summit in Bali, world leaders were informed of a missile… Recently, several prominent BJP leaders claimed that Prime Minister Narendra Modi had intervened to stop…	news-altnews	2024-05-27T18:24:05.489452	6th November 2020 / 5:12 pm / Last updated: 6th November 2020	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/bjps-himanta-biswa-media-falsely-claim-pakistan-zindabad-slogans-raised-by-aiudf-supporters/", "author": "Priyanka Jha & Pratik Sinha" }
452	BJP’s National Gen. Sec. retweets old video of madrasa students with false narrative - Alt News Jignesh Patel 15th June 2019 / 1:13 pm / Last updated: 15th June 2019 Chintu Verma, a Twitter user who is followed by BJP national general secretary Kailash Vijayvargiya, shared a video where a group of children are seen walking in a queue. In his Twitter and Facebook bio, Verma claims to be “BJP’s Indore district general secretary”. He claimed that these children were being given the training to become terrorists in a madrasa in Kolkata, however, they were rescued by the police. The message shared with the video read – “आतंकवाद की फैक्टरी! कोलकाता के राजा बाजार के एक मदरसे से आतंकवादी बनाने की ट्रेनिंग पाते 63 बच्चों को पुलिस ने मुक्त कराया! ये खबर मीडिया ने नहीं दिखाई, उन्हें ‘ऊपर’ से आर्डर नहीं हैं! लेकिन, सोशल मीडिया पर तो कोई ‘ऊपर वाला’ नहीं होता! यहाँ तो दिखाएं! ये है मदरसों की असलियत! (Terrorism factory! Police have rescued 63 children, who were attaining terrorist training from a madrasa in Raja Bazaar, Kolkata. Media won’t show this news, they don’t have order from above but on social media, there are no such higher authorities. See this. This is the reality of madrasas -translated)”. The tweet was retweeted by more than 1100 people, including Kailash Vijayvargiya and Ashok Srivastava, a senior journalist with DD News. On June 8, Alt News had debunked the same video propagated with a slightly different narrative. It was earlier claimed that these children were caught in Kolkata while on their way to a madrasa in Pune where they would be getting trained in terrorism. The video actually represents an incident which took place at Kolkata’s Sealdah railway station in 2015. The children were apprehended by the police due to the alleged lack of documentation. The Indian Express had reported at the time that these children were intercepted by the Government Railway Police (GRP) based on a tip-off by CINI Asha Child Welfare Society. A protest was staged against the apprehension, citing religious discrimination – “It is unfair on their part. Only because there are so many Muslims travelling, they think they are going to be trained as terrorists. Do we now need passports to travel within our own country? They were little children who were going to study”. In a conversation with Alt News, then chairman of the State Commission for Protection of Child Rights, Asokendu Sengupta categorically denied the allegation raised by the protesters against the detention of the children being an attempt to stop them from taking religious training. He said, “As far as my knowledge goes, first of all, the incident is old and we took the decision based on a report by the Childline Sealdah. In this particular case, some children accompanied by one or two senior members were going from one place to another without any documents. That’s why I asked the childline to not to allow them to move any further. According to JJ [Juvenile Justice] Act, CWC is the legal custodian of all the children (in need of care & protection, CNCP) of their respective districts. So the boys needed to be sent to their respective [district] CWC authorities for identification. The protestors started a clamour that the children were apprehended only with the intention to stop them from taking religious training. That was not the case at all.” BJP national general secretary Kailash Vijayvargiya had retweeted an old video propagated with a false claim. The students were not stopped because they were on their way to a madrasa where they would be given training in terrorism. They were intercepted for an alleged lack of documentation. Jignesh is a writer and researcher at Alt News. He has a knack for visual investigation with a major interest in fact-checking videos and images. He has completed his Masters in Journalism from Gujarat University. Rahul and Priyanka Gandhi recently performed aarti at the Narmada Ghat in Madhya Pradesh’s Omkareshwar… In the wake of the alleged murder of Shraddha Walkar by his partner Aftab Amin… The video of a group of people stopping an e-rickshaw with BJP flags attached to… Last week during the G20 summit in Bali, world leaders were informed of a missile… Recently, several prominent BJP leaders claimed that Prime Minister Narendra Modi had intervened to stop…	news-altnews	2024-05-27T18:24:05.489452	15th June 2019 / 1:13 pm / Last updated: 15th June 2019	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/bjps-national-gen-sec-retweets-old-video-of-madrasa-students-with-false-narrative/", "author": "Jignesh Patel" }
453	BJP's poster on campaign for slum dwellers misuses Tamil author Perumal Murugan's photo - Alt News Alt News Desk 30th November 2021 / 4:32 pm BJP leaders JP Nadda, Adesh Gupta and Meenakshi Lekhi tweeted pictures of themselves addressing people on the conclusion of BJP Delhi’s campaign for slum dwellers “Jhuggi Samman Yatra”. The poster for the campaign is visible in these pictures. The poster shows several “slum dwellers” and among them is Tamil author Perumal Murugan. His headshot has been highlighted in the posters below. BJP Delhi had also tweeted the same poster in October on the commencement of the campaign. आज प्रातः 10 बजे जवाहर कैम्प,कीर्ति नगर इंडस्ट्रियल एरिया से प्रदेश अध्यक्ष श्री @adeshguptabjp के नेतृत्व में #JhuggiSammanYatra निकलेगी जिसका शुभारंभ प्रदेश प्रभारी श्री @PandaJay करेंगे। Watch it live on- ●https://t.co/gJXAwCdJGy ●https://t.co/hRBzdtm3TK pic.twitter.com/qaSTQTSfe6 — BJP Delhi (@BJP4Delhi) October 15, 2021 The New York Times had used the photo that found its place on BJP’s poster. The true pleasure of Perumal Murugan’s latest book lies in his adept explorations of male and female relationships https://t.co/UXQehqHfhS — New York Times Books (@nytimesbooks) October 21, 2018 Murugan also responded to his image being used. “I belong to the slums,” he wrote. குடிசைவாசிகளில் ஒருவனாக இருக்கிறேன். மகிழ்ச்சி மகிழ்ச்சி. I belong to the slums…. Posted by Perumalmurugan on Monday, 29 November 2021 When contacted about the faux pas, BJP Delhi vice-president Rajan Tiwari told The Indian Express, “We will check with the design team about what happened.” BJP Delhi president Adesh Gupta and vice-president Ashok Goel, who were coordinating the programme, did not respond to The Indian Express’s repeated attempts seeking comment. Follow @free_thinker Rahul and Priyanka Gandhi recently performed aarti at the Narmada Ghat in Madhya Pradesh’s Omkareshwar… In the wake of the alleged murder of Shraddha Walkar by his partner Aftab Amin… The video of a group of people stopping an e-rickshaw with BJP flags attached to… Last week during the G20 summit in Bali, world leaders were informed of a missile… Recently, several prominent BJP leaders claimed that Prime Minister Narendra Modi had intervened to stop…	news-altnews	2024-05-27T18:24:05.489452	30th November 2021 / 4:32 pm	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/bjps-poster-on-campaign-for-slum-dwellers-misuses-tamil-author-perumal-murugans-photo/", "author": "Alt News Desk" }
454	BJP's Priti Gandhi shares photo from Philippines as Mithi River, Mumbai - Alt News Kalim Ahmed 28th June 2021 / 1:58 pm BJP Mahila Morcha social media in-charge Priti Gandhi juxtaposed an image of the Sabarmati Riverfront in Ahmedabad with an image, she claimed, of the Mithi River in Mumbai. Gandhi attempted to portray that Mithi River is in poor condition despite the Maharashtra government spending over Rs 1,000 crores on its development. Pic 1 – Sabaramati Riverfront, Ahmedabad, Gujarat (Fund spent by Gujarat State: ₹1400 crores) Pic 2 – Mithi River, Mumbai, Maharashtra (Funds spent by BMC & MMRDA: ₹1000+ crores)#TaleOfTwoCities #ModiHaiToMumkinHai pic.twitter.com/kt6sFsz3fV — Priti Gandhi – प्रीति गांधी (@MrsGandhi) June 27, 2021 The claim is viral on both Twitter and Facebook. Screenshots of her tweet are also being shared on Facebook. The first image shared by Gandhi indeed shows the Sabarmati Riverfront in Ahmedabad and can be found on the attraction’s official website. For the second image, a simple reverse image search on Google took us to this article that attributes the photo to Getty Images. We found the same image on iStock by Getty Images. As per the description, the photo was taken in January 2008 in Manila, Philippines. An article published by The Indian Express in 2019, says that the Mithi River Development and Protection Authority (MRDPA) was formed in 2006 to coordinate between the MMRDA and BMC for the restoration of Mithi and to mitigate flooding. However, the committee has not met even once since 2013. An RTI report revealed that both MMRDA and BMC had spent over Rs 1,200 crore on various projects for Mithi river restoration and cleaning. According to Frontline, BMC has set aside Rs.1,400 crore this year for the rejuvenation and beautification of Dahisar, Poisar, and Oshiwara (or Walbhat) rivers. “The Mithi river will receive special treatment because it has received a high level of abuse. It has a separate budget of Rs. 569.52 crore,” says the report. There are several photos of the Mithi River in an abysmal condition. But the photo used by Gandhi is from the Philippines. Kalim is a journalist with a keen interest in tech, misinformation, culture, etc Rahul and Priyanka Gandhi recently performed aarti at the Narmada Ghat in Madhya Pradesh’s Omkareshwar… In the wake of the alleged murder of Shraddha Walkar by his partner Aftab Amin… The video of a group of people stopping an e-rickshaw with BJP flags attached to… Last week during the G20 summit in Bali, world leaders were informed of a missile… Recently, several prominent BJP leaders claimed that Prime Minister Narendra Modi had intervened to stop…	news-altnews	2024-05-27T18:24:05.489452	28th June 2021 / 1:58 pm	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/bjps-priti-gandhi-shares-photo-from-philippines-as-mithi-river-mumbai/", "author": "Kalim Ahmed" }
455	BJP's Sambit Patra revives false, debunked claim of 'biryani fed to Kasab' on national TV - Alt News Jignesh Patel 12th September 2020 / 8:28 pm / Last updated: 12th September 2020 On September 10, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) spokesperson Sambit Patra tweeted a video clip from Aaj Tak’s debate show Dangal. The clip showed him taking a jibe at fellow panellist Ravi Shrivastava who raised a question on Y-security given to Bollywood actor Kangana Ranaut from taxpayers’ money before her scheduled visit to Mumbai on September 9. The actor has been surrounded by controversy after comparing ‘Pakistan occupied Kashmir’ with Mumbai and criticising the Mumbai police. The debate was held a day after Birhanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) demolished parts of her Pali Hill office in Mumbai amid a public row with Maharastra’s ruling party Shiv Sena, which also controls the corporation. The Bombay High Court has stayed the demolition of what the BMC alleges to be unauthorised structures. Responding to Shrivastava’s question on security provided to the actor, Patra said, “When Kasab was fed biriyani from their money, he never for one day said that he – Kasab – shouldn’t be fed biriyani from my money”. रवि श्रीवास्तव : कंगना को security मेरे पैसे से क्यों दो गयी? मेरा उत्तर : जब अजमल कसाब को आपके पैसे से बिरयानी दो जा रही थी तब आपको कोई दिक़्क़त नहीं थी। pic.twitter.com/OuqGuzfOJS — Sambit Patra (@sambitswaraj) September 10, 2020 This fabricated story was cited in the past by the top brass of the BJP, Home Minister Amit Shah, who was then the party president. He had targeted the Congress party for ‘feeding biryani to terrorist‘ at a campaign rally in Uttar Pradesh in March 2019 and the same was also used by UP CM Yogi Adityanath at a rally in Rajasthan in November 2018. The fact of the matter is that it’s a fabricated story which was propagated by Ujjwal Nikam, the public prosecutor of the 26/11 trial. During the trial, Nikam, who had argued on behalf of the state, had manufactured a story about Ajmal Kasab being fed biryani in jail to counter an emotional wave supposedly being created in Kasab’s favour. “Kasab neither asked for biryani nor it was served by the government. I concocted it just to break an emotional atmosphere which was taking shape in favour of Kasab during the trial of the case”, Nikam said speaking to the media in 2015. According to a 2012 report, Nikam had earlier said, “On Raksha Bandhan, he had inquired from his lawyer whether some girl would come to tie a Rakhi on his wrist, while on another occasion he threw tantrums for mutton biryani to be served to him in jail.” It is unfortunate that a false story was used for the third time to counter questions posed on the administration. The fictional tale is a classic example of evading criticism with whataboutery. Jignesh is a writer and researcher at Alt News. He has a knack for visual investigation with a major interest in fact-checking videos and images. He has completed his Masters in Journalism from Gujarat University. Rahul and Priyanka Gandhi recently performed aarti at the Narmada Ghat in Madhya Pradesh’s Omkareshwar… In the wake of the alleged murder of Shraddha Walkar by his partner Aftab Amin… The video of a group of people stopping an e-rickshaw with BJP flags attached to… Last week during the G20 summit in Bali, world leaders were informed of a missile… Recently, several prominent BJP leaders claimed that Prime Minister Narendra Modi had intervened to stop…	news-altnews	2024-05-27T18:24:05.489452	12th September 2020 / 8:28 pm / Last updated: 12th September 2020	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/bjps-sambit-patra-revives-false-debunked-claim-of-biryani-fed-to-kasab-on-national-tv/", "author": "Jignesh Patel" }
456	Sambit Patra tweets edited video to portray Arvind Kejriwal supporting farm bills - Alt News Priyanka Jha 30th January 2021 / 11:27 pm BJP spokesperson Sambit Patra recently tweeted an 18-second video of Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal. The caption of the post reads, “Here, sir is mentioning the benefits of all three farm bills.” In the clip, CM Kejriwal can be heard saying, “Your land, MSP and mandis won’t be taken away. The farmer can now sell his crop anywhere in the country. Now, the farmer will get good prices, he can sell anywhere outside the mandi. Mr. Dilip, it would be the biggest revolutionary step in the field of agriculture in the last 70 years.” Patra’s tweet racked up thousands of likes and retweets at the time of writing. (Archive link) तीनो farm bills के लाभ गिनाते हुए …Sir जी: pic.twitter.com/nBu1u7gkS7 — Sambit Patra (@sambitswaraj) January 30, 2021 BJP worker Vikash Preetam Sinha tweeted the video, writing, “If lies, deceit, cheating, manipulation and slyness had a face, it would be exactly this.” This tweet was retweeted by DD News journalist Ashok Srivastav. Another verified handle tweeted the video, claiming that Arvind Kejriwal spoke out in support of the centre’s new agricultural laws. Arvind Kejriwal led Aam Aadmi Party comes out in support of Farm Laws pic.twitter.com/8JkFnP1uOA — J (@Sootradhar) January 30, 2021 Twitter user Gopal Goswami shared the viral clip and wrote, “This man is the biggest cheat of this century, listen to what he had to say about the farm bills a year ago.” Apart from this, a few other handles including @Being_Humor and @capt_mishra also posted the video. यह आदमी इस सदी का सबसे बड़ा स्कैम है, सुनिए एक वर्ष पहले का कृषि बिल पर इनका अभिप्राय क्या था pic.twitter.com/HCAwdJ0tcv — Gopal Goswami (@gopugoswami) January 29, 2021 Sambit Patra shared a doctored video of the Delhi Chief Minister. In the original clip, Arvind Kejriwal can be heard speaking against the farm bills. A number of social media users pointed out that this was an edited clip. We found that this 18-second video has been made by putting together several smaller clips from different points in the video. They have been highlighted later in this report. Zee Punjab Haryana Himachal uploaded the full-length video on January 15, 2021 where the Delhi CM was being interviewed by the channel’s editor Dilip Tiwari and his colleague Jagdeep Sandhu. [youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CN-9YhYHVtA] Sandhu questions the CM at the beginning of the video. Around the 5:55 mark he says, “The central government claims that they are trying to double the farmer’s income.” Arvind Kejriwal – “How? The central government and the Bharatiya Janata Party fielded big leaders. All their senior ministers and chief ministers came to convince the public that this Bill was for the farmers’ benefit. I have heard all these speeches. What do they say in these speeches? They say that this bill will not take away your land, but this is not a benefit. The land is theirs anyway. Your MSP will not be taken away. That’s not a benefit either, it was already available. Your mandi will not be taken away. And this was also already there in the first place. So, what happened? Not a single leader is able to list the benefits. When you prod them further, they say that the farmer can now sell his crop anywhere in the country. This is the only benefit they mention, right? Now, the farmer will get good prices, he can sell anywhere outside the mandi. I want to ask the Centre directly with all due respect. Today, the MSP for one quintal of wheat is Rs 1,800 in the mandis of Punjab and Haryana. There is no mandi in Bihar, and farmers there are selling wheat for Rs. 800. This farmer that’s selling for Rs 800, can you tell him where he should go to get more than Rs 1,800 for his wheat outside of the mandi?” Furthermore, at the 9:48 mark, Arvind Kejriwal responds to another question, saying, “These three farm bills should be repealed. And a law guaranteeing MSP should be introduced. According to the MS Swaminathan Commission, MSP should be calculated by adding the cost after 50% profit to 50% of this value. If such a law is introduced, Mr. Dilip, it would be the biggest revolutionary step in the field of agriculture in the last 70 years.” Thus, an 18-second clip was edited by compiling several cropped clips from a recent Arvind Kejriwal interview to show that the CM was speaking in support of the farm laws. This doctored clip was also shared by BJP spokesperson Sambit Patra. Alt News has compiled various instances where Patra has been caught spreading misinformation in the past: (Also read: BJP spokesperson Sambit Patra: Propaganda powered with misinformation) She specializes in information verification, examining mis/disinformation, social media monitoring and platform accountability. Her aim is to make the internet a safer place and enable people to become informed social media users. She has been a part of Alt News since 2018. Rahul and Priyanka Gandhi recently performed aarti at the Narmada Ghat in Madhya Pradesh’s Omkareshwar… In the wake of the alleged murder of Shraddha Walkar by his partner Aftab Amin… The video of a group of people stopping an e-rickshaw with BJP flags attached to… Last week during the G20 summit in Bali, world leaders were informed of a missile… Recently, several prominent BJP leaders claimed that Prime Minister Narendra Modi had intervened to stop…	news-altnews	2024-05-27T18:24:05.489452	30th January 2021 / 11:27 pm	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/bjps-sambit-patra-shared-edited-clip-to-claim-arvind-kejriwal-came-in-support-of-new-farm-bill/", "author": "Priyanka Jha" }
457	BJYM Bhopal removes Dhruv Saxena accused in ISI spying case from their website - Alt News Pratik Sinha 11th February 2017 / 7:21 pm In a post yesterday, we wrote about how Dhruv Saxena who belonged to BJP’s youth wing Bharatiya Janta Yuva Morcha (BJYM) and was the district coordinator of their Bhopal IT cell has been accused and arrested along with 10 others in the ISI spying case wherein they are accused of facilitating ISI by providing crucial information about Indian army deployments. Along with pictures of Dhruv Saxena with CM Shiv Singh Chouhan and BJP National General Secretary Kailash Vijayvargiya, we also posted a screenshot of the cached version of BJYM Bhopal’s district body where his position in BJYM Bhopal could be clearly seen. The reason why we posted a screenshot of the cached version of the website was because the bjymbhopal.org website was down yesterday and hence we had to use Google’s cache to retrieve the website. As it turns out, bjymbhopal.org website is up again and Dhruv Saxena is nowhere to be seen in the list of office bearers. However, Internet is such a place where deleting one’s footmarks is almost impossible. A website called “Internet Archive: Wayback Machine” keeps multiple cached copies of almost all the websites with date wise snapshots. We retrieved a snapshot of BJYM Bhopal’s website as on 12th October 2016, where it can be clearly seen that Dhruv Saxena is the District Coordinator of their IT Cell. A screenshot of the same can be seen below: It can also be seen in the credit section at the bottom of the website that the BJYM website itself was designed and developed by Vocal Heart Infotech of which Dhruv Saxena is the Managing Director. This information has also been removed from the website and they have replaced Dhruv Saxena in the website with someone else. Here’s what the District Body of BJYM Bhopal looks like now. Meanwhile, BJP has distanced itself from Dhruv Saxena stating he was never part of BJP. Co-Founder Alt News, I can be reached via E-mail at [email protected] and on Facebook at https://fb.com/freethinker. Follow @free_thinker Rahul and Priyanka Gandhi recently performed aarti at the Narmada Ghat in Madhya Pradesh’s Omkareshwar… In the wake of the alleged murder of Shraddha Walkar by his partner Aftab Amin… The video of a group of people stopping an e-rickshaw with BJP flags attached to… Last week during the G20 summit in Bali, world leaders were informed of a missile… Recently, several prominent BJP leaders claimed that Prime Minister Narendra Modi had intervened to stop…	news-altnews	2024-05-27T18:24:05.489452	11th February 2017 / 7:21 pm	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/bjym-bhopal-removes-dhruv-saxena-accused-isi-spying-case-website/", "author": "Pratik Sinha" }
458	Blog imitating India Today attributes fake quote to WB CM Mamata Banerjee - Alt News Pooja Chaudhuri 10th September 2019 / 8:53 pm “যে কাজটা পারবেন না সেটা করতে যাবার দরকার নেই ইসরো কে বললেন মমতা,” reads the headline of a Bengali blog post which attributes a statement to West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee. It claims that she mocked ISRO saying, “Don’t undertake work that you cannot do.” The URL of the blog in question reads – “https://indiatodaydailynews.blogspot.com” and also carries a logo of India Today. The blog post claimed that Banerjee made ‘anti-India’ comments at a time when the entire country is mourning that the ISRO lost communication with Vikram Lander. “She has been making anti-India remarks on everything. From the martyrdom of the Indian army in Pulwama to the sending of Chandrayaan to ISRO,” alleges the article. The blog post has been shared on many pages and by individual users on Facebook. At the time of writing, it had a Facebook engagement count (likes, comments and shares) of 17,000. India Today has an existing website with the URL ‘indiatoday.in’, and the blog in question has a ‘blogpost.com’ domain. Given below are all the organisations under the conglomerate India Today Group and the blog does feature on the list. The statement ascribed to Banerjee mocking ISRO was not found in any media reports. A similar sentiment was, however, expressed by Pakistani Federal Minister for Science and Technology Fawad Hussein. He tweeted on September 7, “Don’t undertake work that you cannot do (translated).” Awwwww….. Jo kaam ata nai panga nai leitay na….. Dear “Endia” https://t.co/lp8pHUNTBZ — Ch Fawad Hussain (@fawadchaudhry) September 6, 2019 On the contrary, Banerjee had congratulated ISRO for Chandrayaa-2 mission. A testimony to the scientific temper they ingrained in us, and their unmatched caliber and dedication. My sincere gratitude and congratulations to @isro . We are all with you. May you continue to make us proud! (2/2) — Mamata Banerjee (@MamataOfficial) September 7, 2019 A blog impersonating as media outlet India Today attempted to portray Mamata Banerjee as unsupportive of ISRO and its scientific accomplishments. The West Bengal Chief Minister is one of the favourite targets of the misinformation ecosystem on social media. Pooja Chaudhuri is a senior editor at Alt News. Rahul and Priyanka Gandhi recently performed aarti at the Narmada Ghat in Madhya Pradesh’s Omkareshwar… In the wake of the alleged murder of Shraddha Walkar by his partner Aftab Amin… The video of a group of people stopping an e-rickshaw with BJP flags attached to… Last week during the G20 summit in Bali, world leaders were informed of a missile… Recently, several prominent BJP leaders claimed that Prime Minister Narendra Modi had intervened to stop…	news-altnews	2024-05-27T18:24:05.489452	10th September 2019 / 8:53 pm	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/blog-imitating-india-today-attributes-fake-quote-to-wb-cm-mamata-banerjee/", "author": "Pooja Chaudhuri" }
459	Body found in Gurugram: Woman's murder by husband falsely given communal twist - Alt News Kalim Ahmed 20th October 2022 / 11:06 am [Warning: Visuals may be distressing for some. Reader discretion is advised.] A 53-second video clip of police officers investigating a suitcase stuffed with the dead body of a young woman dumped allegedly near Gurugram’s Iffco Chowk is going viral on social media. It is being claimed that the woman was a victim of ‘love jihad’, a conspiracy theory according to which Muslim men trap Hindu women for conversion to Islam. Twitter user @shefalitiwari7 shared the viral clip and wrote, “Are the souls of Hindu girls dead? Don’t they have any attachment to their religion and culture? If it is like this we will continue finding bodies in suitcases such as this. One more Hindu girl was found in a suitcase who had trusted her Abdul. Near Gurugram Iffco Chowk. Search is on .” (Archive.) It is pertinent to note that the word ‘Abdul’ is among the ever-growing list of words used by the Hindu Right Wing, as a proxy for Muslim men. Another Twitter user, @ajaychauhan41, shared the clip and wrote, “yet another suitcase, yet another girl’s body same old case of love jihad. Gurugram.” (Archive.) Anand Kalra, who according to his Twitter bio, is the BJP district social media head, Ghaziabad, tweeted the clip and wrote, “The body of a woman aged 20 to 25 years was found in a suitcase near Iffco Chowk. The woman’s arms and legs were also broken. Seeing the dead body, it seems that the murder took place a few hours ago. An FIR has been registered in the matter. Efforts are on to identify the body of the woman. It is being said that it could be a case of love jihad”. (Archive.) Unlike others, Kalra did not make a direct claim that this was case of ‘love jihad’. None of the users, however, explained why they suspected/concluded that there was a communal angle to the crime. Taking note of the captions, we performed a Google search using relevant keywords and found several news reports related to the discovery of a body near Guruguram’s Iffco Chowk. On October 17, Hindustan Times reported that the body of a woman was found stuffed in a suitcase at Iffco Chowk on Monday. It was found around 4 PM after an auto-rickshaw driver spotted the suitcase in the bushes along the Delhi-Gurgaon Expressway, and alerted the police. The thumbnail of the report by Hindustan Times carried a photo that appeared to be of the location. The reports also added that there were several burn marks on the body, which as per the police, looked like made with a cigarette butt. Alt News also found a video report by Punjab Kesari. Speaking to the media, Deepak Saharan DCP (West) said that the woman appeared to be 20-25 years of age and the body had been sent for autopsy. The DCP also confirmed that the body was discovered by an auto-rickshaw driver. Readers should note that neither in these reports nor in the DCP’s statement, was there any mention of a communal angle to the crime suggested by the use of the phrase ‘love jihad’ in the tweets. गुरुग्राम सूटकेस में मिला युवती का शव, फरार आरोपी की तलाश में पुलिस गुरुग्राम सूटकेस में मिला युवती का शव, फरार आरोपी की तलाश में पुलिस #Gurugram #Crime #Haryana #Investigation #Deadbody #Cybercity गुरुग्राम के इफको चौक पर एक लड़की के शव मिलने से पूरे इलाके में सनसनी फैल गई.. दरअसल पुलिस को सूचना मिली थी की इफको चौक के पास झाड़ियों में एक लावारिस सूटकेस पड़ा है.. सूचना मिलने के बाद पुलिस मौके पर पहुंच तफ्तीश शुरु कर दी.. जब सूटकेस को खोला गया तो उसमें लगभग 25 साल की युवती का शव नग्न अवस्था में पाया गया.. फिलहाल पुलिस ने शव को कब्जे में लेकर पोस्टमार्टम के लिए भेज दिया है.. वहीं डीसीपी दीपक सहारण की माने तो पुलिस इफको चौक के आसपास लगे सीसीटीवी खंगालने में जुट गई है, डीसीपी दीपक सहारण ने दावा किया है कि आरोपियों की जल्द ही पहचान कर गिरफ्तार कर लिया जाएगा Posted by Punjab Kesari Haryana on Monday, 17 October 2022 Upon doing a subsequent keyword search, we found a news report by Navbharat Times published on October 19, where the deceased had been identified as Priyanka and the accused was named Sunil, her husband. However, a local news media outlet, The Delhi Crown, reported that the name of the accused was Rahul. A report by Aaj Tak, too, mentions the name of the accused as Rahul. For further verification, we watched the press conference of Gurugram Police led by ACP Crime Preetpal Singh. In this statement, the ACP clearly identified the accused as Rahul. The police also mentioned that the victim had married Rahul in 2021. It was a love marriage. Immediately after that, they started fighting with each other. The police also added that they have recovered the knife with which the accused tried to remove the tattoo of the deceased. [Watch from 2:28 / 7:15.] [youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CVWYOdtnm_M] Alt News also accessed a copy of the FIR pertaining to the case. Here, the name of the complainant is Sunil Kumar, the auto-driver who first discovered the suitcase in the bush. Additionally, Alt News spoke with SHO Haresh Kumar under whose supervision the FIR was filed. “To my knowledge, there’s no angle of love jihad. The FIR was indeed filed at my police station but the case was transferred to the CIA branch.” We also reached out to a CIA officer who was part of the investigating team. The officer clarified that there was no communal angle to the case. The accused is a Hindu and hails from the Kushwah caste, and the victim, Priyanka, belongs to the Yadav caste. To sum it up, the murder of a woman by her husband was given a communal spin on social media as a case of love jihad. This is not the first time that a crime was given the communal twist. Alt News has, in the past, debunked several stories where social media users bogusly communalized criminal acts. Kalim is a journalist with a keen interest in tech, misinformation, culture, etc In the wake of the alleged murder of Shraddha Walkar by his partner Aftab Amin… The CCTV footage of a man violently flinging a child on the ground has created… A minute-long video clip of a woman being physically assaulted is viral on social media…. Trigger Warning: The following story contains graphic imagery. Several users have shared images of the… The brutal murder of Shraddha Walker has been widely covered across news media over the…	news-altnews	2024-05-27T18:24:05.489452	20th October 2022 / 11:06 am	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/body-found-in-gurugram-womans-murder-by-husband-falsely-given-communal-twist/", "author": "Kalim Ahmed" }
460	Boxer Vijender Singh tries to 'expose' mohalla clinics, but he is 40 minutes late - Alt News Arjun Sidharth 25th April 2019 / 9:05 pm / Last updated: 25th April 2019 Celebrated boxer Vijender Singh, who recently joined the Congress party and will contest the Lok Sabha election from the South Delhi Lok Sabha seat, tweeted a live video on April 24. Singh broadcast the video via his Twitter account, as he paid a visit to a mohalla clinic in Delhi. Mohalla clinics are the initiative of the Delhi government, which aims at providing accessible and cheap health care through a network of health centers across the national capital. In the video, Vijender Singh visits a clinic, and finds it locked. https://t.co/KdAOsWHvy6 — Vijender Singh (@boxervijender) April 24, 2019 The video was retweeted by many prominent Congress functionaries including Sharmistha Mukherjee and Radhika Khera. Please watch to see the state of Mohalla Clinic & Swachh Bharat Abhiyan👇 https://t.co/epSffvMqai — Sharmistha Mukherjee (@Sharmistha_GK) April 24, 2019 जिनका मोहल्ला क्लिनिक ही बीमार है, सोचों @AamAadmiParty सरकार कितनी लाचार है !!! भाजपा की B टीम का सच! https://t.co/llfqgiYKFi — Radhika Khera (@Radhika_Khera) April 24, 2019 The duration of the live video is 3:49 minutes, and begins with Vijender Singh seated in a car, explaining that his friend has a headache and they are looking for a hospital. The video was shot using Periscope, which is a live video streaming app. A little later, Singh says “Chaliye chaliye Kejriwal sahab ka mohalla clinic hum ko dikh gaya hai” (We can see Kejriwal sir’s mohalla clinic- translation), as they approach a building. It turns out to be locked. “Ab dekhiye mohalla clinic Aam Aadmi Party bandh hai” (See, mohalla clinic Aam Aadmi Party, is closed- translation), he says. “Ab kya kare medicine to milti nahi hai, bhaiya ye sab banavati baat mohalla clinic ki haalat aap yahan dekh sakte hain” (What to do, medicine is not available, all this is a farce, you can see the state of mohalla clinics here- translation), Singh continues. He also takes a dig at the Swachh Bharat Abhiyan as he encounters a dump yard while taking a tour around the clinic. “Dekhiye logo ne yahan AC laga rakhe hain phir bhi bahar se tala bandh hai. Ye mohalla clinic ki haalat hai, ye Kejriwal sarkar ki haalat hai” (See they have installed AC here but there is a lock outside. This is the state of mohalla clinics, this is the state of Kejriwal government- translation), Vijender Singh can be heard saying. He tweeted the video with the hashtag #Mohlaclinic kud bimar. The pugilist turned politician’s clinic visit wouldn’t have ended in disappointment had he reached there on time. Singh had live-tweeted the video at 2:40 pm on April 24. Mohalla clinics in Delhi function from 8:00 am to 2:00 pm from Monday to Saturday. This is categorically mentioned on the website of the Delhi government. The same timings have also been advertised on Aam Aadmi Party’s official Facebook page. (AAP) Mohalla Clinic started in Sec 10, Dwarka at Rajkiya Pratibha Vikas Vidyalaya. Timings 8 AM to 2 PM Posted by Aam Aadmi Party on Thursday, 4 May 2017 Vijender Singh’s bid to expose the Kejriwal government over the mohalla clinics was 40 minutes late. Arjun Sidharth is a writer with Alt News. He has previously worked in the television news industry, where he managed news bulletins and breaking news scenarios, apart from scripting numerous prime time television stories. He has also been actively involved with various freelance projects. Sidharth has studied economics, political science, international relations and journalism. He has a keen interest in books, movies, music, sports, politics, foreign policy, history and economics. His hobbies include reading, watching movies and indoor gaming. Rahul and Priyanka Gandhi recently performed aarti at the Narmada Ghat in Madhya Pradesh’s Omkareshwar… In the wake of the alleged murder of Shraddha Walkar by his partner Aftab Amin… The video of a group of people stopping an e-rickshaw with BJP flags attached to… Last week during the G20 summit in Bali, world leaders were informed of a missile… Recently, several prominent BJP leaders claimed that Prime Minister Narendra Modi had intervened to stop…	news-altnews	2024-05-27T18:24:05.489452	25th April 2019 / 9:05 pm / Last updated: 25th April 2019	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/boxer-vijender-singh-tries-to-expose-mohalla-clinics-but-he-is-40-minutes-late/", "author": "Arjun Sidharth" }
461	Boys conversing in this video hail from Hindu community; video viral targeting Muslims - Alt News Archit 28th September 2021 / 9:13 pm / Last updated: 29th September 2021 A video of two boys having a conversation about Hindus, Muslims and Islam is widely circulating on social media. One of the boys, who is on a cycle, claims or pretends to be a Muslim and goes on to make a series of provocative pro-Islam statements including promoting religious conversion. While the other individual, who is behind the camera and cannot be seen, is claiming or pretending to be a Hindu. Here are two excerpts from the conversation: The conversation appears rehearsed or ingenuine. The video was shared by @Jasdevspeaks with the claim that Muslims want to dominate Hindus after SP’s win in the upcoming UP elections in 2022. It was also shared by @igopalgoswami with the text, “He’s AMU student”. The latter’s tweet gained over 800 retweets. Sudarshan News journalist Rajat Mishra also tweeted this video. He stated that the alleged Muslim boy is a minor and warned his audience about religious conversion. धर्मान्तरण के लिए कैसे होता है ब्रेनवाश.. देखिये सबूत.. नाबालिग लड़के के भविष्य को देखते हुए हम उसका चेहरा नही दिखा रहे है। वीडियो हरिगढ़ (अलीगढ़) का है।@shalabhmani @aligarhpolice @VHPDigital pic.twitter.com/0hPPCNjURZ — Rajat Mishra (@rajatkmishra1) September 27, 2021 Responding to tweets by Mishra and Twitter user @igopalgoswami, Aligarh police stated that the video was made by two minors from the same community. We spoke with the concerned police officer Kuldeep Singh Gunawat who reiterated that they hailed from the same community but did not share further details to protect the identity of the minors. इस वीडियो का संज्ञान लेकर मुकदमा पंजीकृत किया गया जानकारी करने पर पता चला कि साइकिल पर बैठा युवक और पूछने वाला युवक दोनों एक ही संप्रदाय के हैं ,और दोनों नाबालिग बताए गए हैं, नाबालिग होने के दृष्टिगत इनको गिरफ्तार नहीं किया गया परंतु वैधानिक कार्रवाई/ जांच प्रचलित है । — ALIGARH POLICE (@aligarhpolice) September 27, 2021 Alt News spoke with a local journalist in Aligarh who said, “I spoke with the parents of one of the minors. I can confirm that both boys are from the Hindu community.” The journalist connected us with Arvind Sengar, uncle of the boy on the cycle. He is the former district coordinator for BJP in Hathras and the present general secretary of the bus operator union in Aligarh. Sengar told Alt News, “My nephew and his friend were just fooling around. Both of them are 17-year-olds and from respectable Hindu families. This conversation was staged but my nephew didn’t know that the video was recorded and later shared on social media.” When we enquired if his nephew had an interest in politics, Sengar replied, “Not at all. But I must admit, my nephew’s family is a staunch supporter of the BJP. So it’s understandable that certain beliefs are transferred from adults to children. If that’s a good thing or not, I’ll let you be the judge.” A staged video made by two minors from the Hindu community in Aligarh was circulated by several social media users including Sudarshan News journalist Rajat Mishra targeting the Muslim community. 🙏 Blessed to have worked as a fact-checking journalist from November 2019 to February 2023. In the wake of the alleged murder of Shraddha Walkar by his partner Aftab Amin… The CCTV footage of a man violently flinging a child on the ground has created… A minute-long video clip of a woman being physically assaulted is viral on social media…. Trigger Warning: The following story contains graphic imagery. Several users have shared images of the… The brutal murder of Shraddha Walker has been widely covered across news media over the…	news-altnews	2024-05-27T18:24:05.489452	28th September 2021 / 9:13 pm / Last updated: 29th September 2021	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/boys-conversing-in-this-video-hail-from-hindu-community-video-viral-targeting-muslims/", "author": "Archit" }
462	Braving Sangh threats, Kerala CM launches a scorching attack on RSS in Mangalore communal harmony meet - Alt News Alt News Desk 26th February 2017 / 11:42 am / Last updated: 12th July 2018 Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vjayan unleashed a scorching attack on the Sangh Parivar in Mangaluru on Saturday at an event to promote communal harmony. The event was held amid threats from the BJP-RSS-VHP that it will stop him from attending the programme. In his speech, he ripped apart the Sangh pointing at its history of licking the British feet and of worshipping the Nazis. The speech has garnered much praise for the CM from outside the state and even from Congress supporters in the state. “I have this to say to the RSS and to [the other communal forces] who challenged me. I, Pinarayi Vijayan, did not drop down from the heavens one fine day into the chair of the Chief Minister. I am not a person who doesn’t know you – the RSS – directly. My political activism until now has proceeded by seeing and knowing you closely. Right now I travel in the midst of the protection of the weapons of the police. But there was also a time after I completed my studies at Brennen College, Thalassery and started working outside. If the new RSS men do not know about those times, they should ask the old RSS men. Then, I had walked amidst the knives you had drawn out and amidst the swords you held up. When you couldn’t do anything to me during those times, what do you think you are going to do to me today?,” he asked, amid loud cheers from the crowd which had gathered in large numbers. Mr.Vijayan had a few weeks back cancelled a visit to Madhya Pradesh, following threats from Sangh organisations to stop him. Referring to that episode, he said – “You [the RSS] have been gloating about having managed to stop my journey to Madhya Pradesh. As a serving Chief Minister, when I go to another state, it is basic courtesy that I accept some things that the government of that State tells me. That government said that I should not go there, and I accepted it. But if Pinarayi Vijayan was not a Chief Minister, not even Indra (the king of gods in the Hindu pantheon) or Chandra (moon) would have stopped him.” Viajayan, who started his speech thanking Karnataka government for taking all the precaution for his safety amid threats from various right-wing organisations, alleged that several media houses are functioning to promote the interests of big corporates. The CM also launched into a long tirade against the RSS, based on their history of taking inspiration from the Nazis. “RSS was inspired by Mussolini’s fascist movement. The founder member of RSS himself went to meet Mussolini. When Hitler destroyed the minorities of Germany, RSS was one of the organisations which praised the actions of Nazis. Golwalkar praised the anti-semitic policies of the Nazi party. RSS wants to implement Nazi policies in India. Muslims, Dalits and Communists are their prime targets. Every riot organised by RSS has a similar pattern – spew venom and divide the society. The RSS mouthpiece had on 17 June, 1947 published an article demanding that the Bhagwa Dhwaj be adopted as the National flag,” he said. He said that the RSS has always been against the idea of secular India. “Sree Narayana Guru played a huge role in creating a secular mindset in Kerala and Karnataka society. RSS wants to destroy it,” he said. He praised the Karnataka CM Siddaramaiah for providing adequate security and ensuring the smooth conduct of the programme. Though RSS leaders in Kerala claimed that they will not let Kerala chief minister to address the meeting and Sangh parivar organisations even called for a hartal, thousands of people attended the rally and procession preceded it. Follow @free_thinker Rahul and Priyanka Gandhi recently performed aarti at the Narmada Ghat in Madhya Pradesh’s Omkareshwar… In the wake of the alleged murder of Shraddha Walkar by his partner Aftab Amin… The video of a group of people stopping an e-rickshaw with BJP flags attached to… Last week during the G20 summit in Bali, world leaders were informed of a missile… Recently, several prominent BJP leaders claimed that Prime Minister Narendra Modi had intervened to stop…	news-altnews	2024-05-27T18:24:05.489452	26th February 2017 / 11:42 am / Last updated: 12th July 2018	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/braving-sangh-threats-kerala-cm-launches-scorching-attack-rss-mangalore-communal-harmony-meet/", "author": "Alt News Desk" }
463	Brazen display of lawlessness in Noida? No, this is a staged video - Alt News Arjun Sidharth 12th June 2019 / 6:09 pm ग्रेटर नोएडा- दादरी कोतवाली क्षेत्र के ओमिक्रोन सेक्टर के पास 130 मीटर रोड पर दिनदहाड़े कार सवार बदमाश दूसरी कार में सवार को दिखा रहा है हथियार,आई10 कार सवार ने डर से भगाई कार,लाइव वीडियो (Greater Noida- On 130 metre road near Omnicron sector in Dadri jurisdiction, in broad daylight, a ruffian in a car brandishing a weapon against a person in another car; the i10 car sped away out of fear, live video- translation). The above message accompanies a video which has been shared on social media. The video is 24 seconds long, and shows two cars running parallel to each other. From the car on the left, a man can be seen extending his torso out of the window and brandishing what appears to be a gun, pointed at the driver of the second car. ग्रेटर नोएडा- दादरी कोतवाली क्षेत्र के ओमिक्रोन सेक्टर के पास 130 मीटर रोड पर दिनदहाड़े कार सवार बदमाश दूसरी कार में सवार को दिखा रहा है हथियार,आई10 कार सवार ने डर से भगाई कार,लाइव वीडियो @noidapolice @Uppolice pic.twitter.com/SByUqgl17N — Anshuman (@Anshuma47878189) June 11, 2019 The video has also been shared with a message in English, which states that it shows “brazen display of illegal weapon by criminals”. Brazen display of illegal weapon by criminals reportedly in Sector Omicron in Greater Noida pic.twitter.com/nqt1gQqrwS — Shafaque Alam (@shafaquealam) June 11, 2019 The claim circulating on social media platforms is false. The video in question represents neither a robbery nor an illegal display of weapons. Noida police and UP police were tagged along with the video on Twitter. Noida police clarified by responding that the incident represents a video shoot which was conducted by some persons for their YouTube channel, and that persons in the two vehicles were friends and were simply indulging in stunts. Police added that legal action is being taken against them for their “act of creating nuisance in public”. It may be reiterated that the video in question was created for a YouTube channel. Arjun Sidharth is a writer with Alt News. He has previously worked in the television news industry, where he managed news bulletins and breaking news scenarios, apart from scripting numerous prime time television stories. He has also been actively involved with various freelance projects. Sidharth has studied economics, political science, international relations and journalism. He has a keen interest in books, movies, music, sports, politics, foreign policy, history and economics. His hobbies include reading, watching movies and indoor gaming. Rahul and Priyanka Gandhi recently performed aarti at the Narmada Ghat in Madhya Pradesh’s Omkareshwar… In the wake of the alleged murder of Shraddha Walkar by his partner Aftab Amin… The video of a group of people stopping an e-rickshaw with BJP flags attached to… Last week during the G20 summit in Bali, world leaders were informed of a missile… Recently, several prominent BJP leaders claimed that Prime Minister Narendra Modi had intervened to stop…	news-altnews	2024-05-27T18:24:05.489452	12th June 2019 / 6:09 pm	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/brazen-display-of-lawlessness-in-noida-no-this-is-a-staged-video/", "author": "Arjun Sidharth" }
464	A Brazilian bank robber's beheading video viral as Indian Army Jawan being beheaded - Alt News Pratik Sinha 14th May 2017 / 5:40 pm / Last updated: 6th June 2017 A beheading video is currently viral on Indian social media accounts including Facebook and Whatsapp. It is being circulated with a message suggesting that it was the video of an Indian Army Jawan being beheaded with the reference of the recent beheading carried out by the Pakistan Army of 2 Indian Jawans on 1 May, 2017. The beheading video was actually shot in Brazil and the victim in this case is 47 year old Orides Telles Da Silveria. He was beheaded using an axe and then the people who beheaded him posed with the severed head as a trophy. On Facebook, the first instance of this video that we could find was by an account called “हिमांशु जोशी हिंदू (Himanshu Joshi Hindu) on May 10th. The video has many shared tens of thousands of times ever since. The text along the video is as follows: However, as reported by multiple Brazilian websites, this incident actually happened around 4th May. Body parts of Orides Telles Da Silveria were found along a highway in Canaos, Brazil. The victim was recognized by his severed head. Read more here => http://bit.ly/2qj8BQZ. Another site (http://bit.ly/2qjcgON) reported that the man being beheaded was part of a faction who were involved in bank robberies and that he was kidnapped from his residence on the 2nd of May. The video that is being shared is available on multiple sites. THE VIDEO IS EXTREMELY GORY AND DISTURBING. WE SUGGEST THAT YOU DO NOT WATCH THE VIDEO. (http://bit.ly/2rdXXdB). It you see any video on WhatsApp or Facebook with above message, please let them know that it is not a video of Indian Army Jawan being beheaded. Co-Founder Alt News, I can be reached via E-mail at [email protected] and on Facebook at https://fb.com/freethinker. Follow @free_thinker Following Saudi Arabia’s 2-1 win against Argentina in the ongoing FIFA World Cup, speculation about… Trigger Warning: The following story contains graphic imagery. Several users have shared images of the… The brutal murder of Shraddha Walker has been widely covered across news media over the… A 1:34-minute-long CCTV camera clip is being widely circulated on social media in which viewers… The teaser of a movie titled ‘The Kerala Story’ is being widely shared on social…	news-altnews	2024-05-27T18:24:05.489452	14th May 2017 / 5:40 pm / Last updated: 6th June 2017	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/brazilian-bank-robbers-beheading-video-viral-indian-army-jawan-beheaded/", "author": "Pratik Sinha" }
465	Breaking Fake News: Aaj Tak and Republic TV misreport Delhi HC verdict on AAP MLAs - Alt News Alt News Desk 23rd March 2018 / 7:35 pm / Last updated: 23rd March 2018 The “Breaking News” industry has done it again. Delhi High Court’s judgement on the ‘office of profit’ case involving the AAP MLAs was expected today. In their rush to be the first to break news, Republic TV, India Today and Aaj Tak ended up sharing false news about it. Aaj Tak, the Hindi channel of the illustrious India Today group falsely announced that AAP’s 20 MLAs were disqualified by the Delhi High Court. The Aaj Tak live video is quite hilarious as after delivering a “big blow” to Arvind Kejriwal and initiating a discussion on it, the anchor learns on live TV that the reality is otherwise. In the clip below, the anchor Anjana Om Kashyap begins by saying, “The 20 AAP MLAs have been disqualified. Big news from the High Court, first on Aaj Tak. Big decision by Delhi HC. No relief for the 20 AAP MLAs. Their petition has been rejected” (translated), The broadcast then shifted from the newsroom to the Delhi High Court where the Aaj Tak correspondent reported the ‘news’. In a hilarious turn of events however, the channel realised that the information from the Delhi HC was exactly the opposite of what it reported in haste. The anchor clarified by saying, “This news has now turned on its head. Big relief for AAP MLAs and the earlier information relayed by Aaj Tak has proved to be false. Apologies. The decision of the court changed on its way out of the Court premises” (translated). Aaj Tak’s sister channel India Today also tweeted this false news at 2:24 pm. “AAP MLAs stand disqualified. Big blow to Arvind Kejriwal” tweeted Republic TV when in reality the Delhi High Court had set aside the disqualification of the 20 AAP MLAs. Facts seem to have no place in the age of “breaking news”. This is not the first time that news channels have made such an embarrassing mistake in their rush to be the first to break news. A few months ago sections of Indian media had acquitted Lalu Yadav before convicting him, and more recently they had announced results of Sridevi’s autopsy even before they were released. Let us look what happened this time that left Republic and Aaj Tak red faced: 2.23pm: Kapil Mishra tweeted that 20 AAP MLAs disqualified by Delhi High Court 2.24pm: Anjana Om Kashyap of Aaj Tak tweeted the same in Hindi and Aaj Tak announced the false news on air 2:24 pm: India Today tweeted the false news 2.25 pm: Republic TV tweeted the false news 2.28 pm ANI news flash about High Court decision Delhi High Court sets aside the ECI recommendations to disqualify the 20 AAP MLAs in connection to the office of profit. pic.twitter.com/ujt903V7E5 — ANI (@ANI) March 23, 2018 In the five minutes that the fake news remained in circulation , leaders from both BJP and Congress fell for it and started rejoicing. Good that 20 AAP MLA are disqualified on charges of corruption! Delhi Govt itself,admitted before Election Commission that a huge amount was spent on office, furniture, transportation&perks for these Parliamentary Secretaries similar to Ministers! Isn’t it a form of corruption? — Ajay Maken (@ajaymaken) March 23, 2018 What happened next was a complete meltdown and a rush to delete the celebratory tweets. Thus ended yet another hilarious episode of “breaking fake news”. It does leave us wondering about the credibility of the “sources” that our media houses rely on for their news and the process, if any to verify authenticity of the news before breaking it. Update (20:51 23-03-2018): Misreporting on the aforementioned issue was more widespread than we had imagined. Several Alt News readers have shared screenshots of other news channels who also carried the false news. We are posting them here.e Times Now: pic.twitter.com/PgUSb2YTyk — Chetan (@satan2986) March 23, 2018 India TV: Follow @free_thinker Rahul and Priyanka Gandhi recently performed aarti at the Narmada Ghat in Madhya Pradesh’s Omkareshwar… In the wake of the alleged murder of Shraddha Walkar by his partner Aftab Amin… The video of a group of people stopping an e-rickshaw with BJP flags attached to… Last week during the G20 summit in Bali, world leaders were informed of a missile… Recently, several prominent BJP leaders claimed that Prime Minister Narendra Modi had intervened to stop…	news-altnews	2024-05-27T18:24:05.489452	23rd March 2018 / 7:35 pm / Last updated: 23rd March 2018	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/breaking-fake-news-aaj-tak-and-republic-tv-misreport-delhi-hc-verdict-on-aap-mlas/", "author": "Alt News Desk" }
466	Breaking Fake News: Pak PM Imran Khan was not shot at in Pakistan - Alt News Jignesh Patel 21st February 2019 / 10:01 pm / Last updated: 21st February 2019 “अभी अभी “*पाकिस्तान के प्रधानमंत्री को मारी गोली पाकिस्तान में (Just now, Pakistan’s Prime Minister was shot at in Pakistan -translated)”, reads the caption attached to a video of bloodied Imran Khan(Prime Minister of Pakistan) being carried away by a group of people. The claim promulgated along with the video circulated on Twitter and Facebook suggests that the incident had just occured. The video is also circulated on WhatsApp with a similar narrative in Kannada, “ಪಾಕಿಸ್ತಾನದಲ್ಲಿ ಪಾಕ ಪ್ರಧಾನಿಯನ್ನು ಹೊಡೆದಿದ್ದಾರೆ ತಪ್ಪದೆ ನೋಡಿ”. Alt News found that the video of Imran Khan being bundled into a vehicle by a group of supporters in now more than five years old. “Cricketer-turned-politician Imran Khan today was grievously injured on his head when he fell off a forklift that was hoisting him on to a stage for an election campaign meeting here in Pakistan. Imran, 60, and several of his bodyguards apparently lost their balance and fell several feet to the ground.”, stated a report published by The Indian Express on May 7, 2013. Thus, the visuals now shared on social media are old and unrelated to a gun attack as claimed. Last year, it was fact-checked by ABP News. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a4fPVDucPqg In conclusion, the video of bloodied Imran Khan being carried away by a group people was shared as recent with a false narrative that he was shot at in Pakistan. Jignesh is a writer and researcher at Alt News. He has a knack for visual investigation with a major interest in fact-checking videos and images. He has completed his Masters in Journalism from Gujarat University. Rahul and Priyanka Gandhi recently performed aarti at the Narmada Ghat in Madhya Pradesh’s Omkareshwar… In the wake of the alleged murder of Shraddha Walkar by his partner Aftab Amin… The video of a group of people stopping an e-rickshaw with BJP flags attached to… Last week during the G20 summit in Bali, world leaders were informed of a missile… Recently, several prominent BJP leaders claimed that Prime Minister Narendra Modi had intervened to stop…	news-altnews	2024-05-27T18:24:05.489452	21st February 2019 / 10:01 pm / Last updated: 21st February 2019	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/breaking-fake-news-pak-pm-imran-khan-was-not-shot-at-in-pakistan/", "author": "Jignesh Patel" }
467	Breaking (fake) news: Sections of Indian media acquit Lalu Prasad Yadav before convicting him - Alt News Sam Jawed 24th December 2017 / 2:36 pm / Last updated: 30th December 2017 Here we go again. In a rush to break the news, multiple news outlets got it wrong and reported Lalu Yadav’s acquittal in the fodder scam case. It was a “big relief for RJD chief” flashed the India Today news alert. Times Now reported the same as “Big Story” and the same was shared by their sister publication, Economic Times. Janta Ka Reporter, Aaj Tak, Navbharat Times and Rajasthan Patrika were some of the others that carried the fake news. The red faced publications quickly changed their headlines when it emerged that Lalu Yadav was convicted and not acquitted. Facts have little place in this mad rush among media outlets to break news. Even before the judgment was announced, the breaking news industry had pronounced its verdict. Within minutes the same “news” was carried by others without bothering to cross check the facts on their own. Here is the hall of shame: BJP Delhi spokesperson picked on the Janta Ka Reporter story calling its editor Rifat Jawaid an AAP spokesperson. Jawaid retaliated by name calling and asking what about the others who reported the same incorrect news. However, this whataboutery doesn’t reflect well. The answer from the media cant be that others have done it too. Janta ka Reporter later explained that there was utter confusion in court “when the court’s acquittal of Mishra was misconstrued as the acquittal of Yadav.” There was an utter confusion in the court when the court's acquittal of Mishra was misconstrued as the acquittal of Yadav. https://t.co/WzvLpmGVlW — Janta Ka Reporter (@JantaKaReporter) December 23, 2017 Is that really a good enough excuse? Weren’t there other journalists on the ground who waited patiently to confirm the facts before rushing to tweet? Milind Khandekar, Managing Editor at ABP clarified that it was the acquittal of IPS Natarajan that was mistaken as that of Lalu Yadav. The age of “breaking news” has left no space for verifying facts. The real time model is actually in direct conflict with fact checking. Interestingly, BBC in a re-prioritizing exercise has focused on creating what is called “slow news journalism”. It has meant “moving away from pursuing every incremental breaking news update toward publishing fewer but more thoroughly contextualized in-depth stories, as well as more short data visualization pieces.” A US magazine by the name of Delayed Gratification published by the Slow Journalism Company actually prides itself in being the “last to breaking news”. The publication revisits the news to see what happened after the dust settled and the news agenda moved on. This may still be a long shot for Indian media organizations that are still caught in the 24X7 cycle of bombarding their audience with one breaking news after another. Till our media decides to pause and verify before it breaks the news, we will continue to be assaulted by this all too familiar sequence of breaking news followed by a realization of the gaffe and a subsequent retraction. Nobody's cheerleader, I tweet at @samjawed65 Rahul and Priyanka Gandhi recently performed aarti at the Narmada Ghat in Madhya Pradesh’s Omkareshwar… In the wake of the alleged murder of Shraddha Walkar by his partner Aftab Amin… The video of a group of people stopping an e-rickshaw with BJP flags attached to… Last week during the G20 summit in Bali, world leaders were informed of a missile… Recently, several prominent BJP leaders claimed that Prime Minister Narendra Modi had intervened to stop…	news-altnews	2024-05-27T18:24:05.489452	24th December 2017 / 2:36 pm / Last updated: 30th December 2017	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/breaking-fake-news-sections-indian-media-acquit-lalu-prasad-yadav-convicting/", "author": "Sam Jawed" }
468	Breaking Fake News: Times Now announces arrest of Nirav Modi in Hong Kong - Alt News Arjun Sidharth 9th April 2018 / 9:14 pm / Last updated: 11th July 2018 At 5:41 pm on April 9, Times Now broke a story. The story was that Nirav Modi, accused in the Rs.11000 crore PNB scam has been arrested in Hong Kong. “Alright, this is the big breaking news coming in now, Nirav Modi has been arrested in Hong Kong. That is what we are breaking for you first on Times Now. Reports coming in of Nirav Modi arrested in Hong Kong; this could be a major major breakthrough for the security agencies, for the investigative agencies who are trying to get Nirav Modi back in India and face the law”, said the Times Now anchor. With the message flashing on the screen, the anchor continued, “Reports just coming in that he has been arrested in Hong Kong. Remember it was a request from the Enforcement Directorate as well to Interpol to go for red corner notice for Nirav Modi. Investigative agencies were pitching hard to get him back in India.” The entire broadcast lasted for about a minute before the channel reverted to its earlier story, with the anchor saying, “Well we will get back to more details on that story but returning to the story that we are tracking on breaking ground, Pakistan exposed on its own soil…” Apart from Times Now, regional news channel VTV Gujarati also reported that Modi has been arrested in Hong Kong. It was also reported by news channel TV9 Telugu. PNB Fraud : Nirav Modi arrested by Interpol in Hong Kong Source\| Vtv News: https://t.co/iFwNK66g9e via @YouTube — VTV Gujarati News (@VtvGujarati) April 9, 2018 This ‘news’ is viral on social media, with a number of Facebook and Twitter users sharing it. The tweet below was posted at 2:34 pm and Alt News found that it is among the earliest instances of this information being shared on Twitter. This tweet was retweeted over 270 times. Breaking News : Nirav Modi arrested in Hongkong by Interpol. Details awaited.@republic @ZeeNews @ANI @ndtv @abpnewstv please check. — Murali Krishna (@MuralikrishnaE1) April 9, 2018 Facebook and WhatsApp weren’t immune to this sensational newsbreak either, which spread like wildfire on the social media platform as well as the messaging platform. Curiously, Times Now did not return to this ‘big breaking news’. Moreover, 3 hours after Times Now ‘broke’ this news, not a single National Channel has announced Nirav Modi’s arrest. This is because the news that Times Now flashed on Nirav Modi is fake. The latest report with regard to Nirav Modi is that the Chinese Government has stated that Hong Kong, where Nirav Modi is apparently stationed, is free to accede to India’s request to arrest the disgraced diamantaire. In fact, even the Times Now website only has news about the possibility of Hong Kong acceding to India’s request and nothing about Nirav Modi being arrested. According to the report on Times Now website, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Geng Shuang told a media briefing that “according to the one country two systems and basic law of the HKSAR, under the assistance and authorisation of the central government, the HKSAR can make proper arrangement on judicial mutual assistance with other countries“. He further said. “If India makes relevant request to the HKSAR, we believe the HKSAR will follow the basic law and relevant laws and under relevant judicial agreements with India with the relevant issue“. Even though Nirav Modi has not been arrested, this did not deter news channels from blaring this false information without a customary check. Is this yet another instance of WhatsApp setting the agenda for breaking news on a national news channel? Arjun Sidharth is a writer with Alt News. He has previously worked in the television news industry, where he managed news bulletins and breaking news scenarios, apart from scripting numerous prime time television stories. He has also been actively involved with various freelance projects. Sidharth has studied economics, political science, international relations and journalism. He has a keen interest in books, movies, music, sports, politics, foreign policy, history and economics. His hobbies include reading, watching movies and indoor gaming. Rahul and Priyanka Gandhi recently performed aarti at the Narmada Ghat in Madhya Pradesh’s Omkareshwar… In the wake of the alleged murder of Shraddha Walkar by his partner Aftab Amin… The video of a group of people stopping an e-rickshaw with BJP flags attached to… Last week during the G20 summit in Bali, world leaders were informed of a missile… Recently, several prominent BJP leaders claimed that Prime Minister Narendra Modi had intervened to stop…	news-altnews	2024-05-27T18:24:05.489452	9th April 2018 / 9:14 pm / Last updated: 11th July 2018	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/breaking-fake-news-times-now-announces-arrest-of-nirav-modi-in-hong-kong/", "author": "Arjun Sidharth" }
469	Bribery allegations against Arvind Kejriwal: A review of TV media coverage - Alt News Alt News Desk 1st August 2018 / 4:58 pm / Last updated: 2nd August 2018 A little over a year ago, on May 7, 2017 there was high excitement in television newsrooms. Former AAP minister Kapil Mishra had alleged that he saw Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal accepting Rs 2 crores from Satyendra Jain. What followed was a no-holds-barred contest between the news channels to launch an attack on Kejriwal and AAP. A corruption charge on a self-proclaimed anti-corruption crusader saw non-stop media coverage and endless debates with screaming anchors baying for blood. One year later, it has now been reported by Times of India that “CBI had conducted an inquiry against Kejriwal based on a complaint but found no merit in it and so didn’t launch a formal probe. On the basis of CBI’s inquiry, the lokayukta too closed the case.” Other reports suggest that the Delhi Lokayukta has dropped Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal’s name but have not yet closed the case and CBI has said that it had never initiated any preliminary enquiry in the case. Alt News brings you an analysis of TV media coverage of the two events – the ‘allegation’ and the subsequent ‘clean chit’ by the CBI. Coverage of the “allegations” Republic TV Republic TV which was launched on May 6 was only one day old when Kapil Mishra made these allegations against Arvind Kejriwal. It was difficult for Arnab Goswami to control his excitement at this godsend opportunity for bashing Kejriwal and his Aam Aadmi Party. The channel promoted hashtags like #IsKejriCorrupt and #ArvindGate on the basis of the allegations. They wanted Kejriwal to resign and even ran a poll on it. Arvind Kejriwal silent on Kapil Mishra's bribe charges. #IsKejriCorrupt pic.twitter.com/Iu3UmMI5oI — Republic (@republic) May 7, 2017 Shouldn't Arvind Kejriwal resign after corruption allegations? #IsKejriCorrupt — Republic (@republic) May 7, 2017 Hilariously, Republic TV crew kept busy in “tracking” and tweeting the movements of Arvind Kejriwal. Republic TV crew tracking Arvind Kejriwal live right now, as he makes his way to an event #Arvindgate — Republic (@republic) May 8, 2017 Months after the newsbreak, Republic TV continued to give coverage to Kapil Mishra and ran several hashtags like #AAPDonationgate, #AAPSundayDrama and #KejriCorruptionCharge#KejriCorruptionCharge Times Now Times Now’s coverage of the allegations ran on a similar pattern as Republic TV. AAP and Kejriwal are the channel’s favorite punching bags and it ran hashtags like #आप_के_टुकडे, #AAPKaSach, #AAPKaGhotala, #KejriKaKalaSach and #KejriwalKiSafai In the “Biggest Allegation Ever”, the nation wanted to know if Kejriwal had taken a bribe. Like RepublicTV, Times Now also wanted to know “Will Kejriwal resign now?” Kapil Mishra continued to feature in Times Now programs over the next few months with hashtags like #KejriwalCheatedDelhi and #AAPKaKyaHoga India Today Kapil Mishra’s allegations got extensive coverage on India Today as well. Though the coverage was not as cacophonic as Republic and Times Now, the channel ran a poll asking people whether they believed the charges. Do you believe there is any truth in charges levelled by Kapil Mishra against Kejriwal? — IndiaToday (@IndiaToday) May 8, 2017 On May 7 alone, the channel tweeted 18 times on the issue. According to India Today, it was a #KejriBribeBomb that had exploded. CNN News 18 The “2 cr donation scam?” was breaking news on CNN News 18 as well. The channel covered the story extensively but with a more neutral hashtag of #HeatOnAAP. NDTV NDTV’s coverage was comprehensive but without any insinuating hashtags. Though there were no noisy debates and anchors asking for Kejriwal’s resignation, Kapil Mishra continued to grab headlines at the channel for days to come. 'Absurd. There Are No Facts,' Says AAP On Kapil Mishra's Allegations https://t.co/FdyyxcZsMs #NDTVNewsBeeps pic.twitter.com/jv6zoopTCE — NDTV (@ndtv) May 7, 2017 Zee News ran a DNA on the corruption charges asking “Has fighting against corruption turned Arvind Kejriwal corrupt?” WATCH #DNA: Kapil Mishra alleges corruption against Arvind Kejriwalhttps://t.co/5CHNks75ud@sudhirchaudhary — Zee News English (@ZeeNewsEnglish) May 8, 2017 AAP supporters have produced a collage of the coverage, which we are reproducing here. The party continued to be under attack by Hindi news channels after allegations came to light. It was a media trial – the terminology used was insinuating, the tone was mocking and the anchors had pronounced the judgment of holding Kejriwal guilty even before the CBI investigation. Coverage of the “Clean Chit” <This section has been intentionally left blank as so far none of the news channels mentioned above have tweeted any update regarding the clean chit> The above is a summary of the prejudiced coverage by TV news channels of the bribery allegations against Arvind Kejriwal. Barring a few channels, the others twisted the narrative and ran headlines and hashtags pronouncing Kejriwal as guilty. The ‘nation wants to know’, asked one channel as it demanded Kejriwal’s resignation on the basis of charges that were not investigated and substantiated at that time. Now one year later when the charges have not been pressed and there is conflicting news about a “clean chit”, does the nation not deserve to know? Follow @free_thinker Following Saudi Arabia’s 2-1 win against Argentina in the ongoing FIFA World Cup, speculation about… Trigger Warning: The following story contains graphic imagery. Several users have shared images of the… The brutal murder of Shraddha Walker has been widely covered across news media over the… A 1:34-minute-long CCTV camera clip is being widely circulated on social media in which viewers… The teaser of a movie titled ‘The Kerala Story’ is being widely shared on social…	news-altnews	2024-05-27T18:24:05.489452	1st August 2018 / 4:58 pm / Last updated: 2nd August 2018	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/bribery-allegations-against-arvind-kejriwal-a-review-of-tv-media-coverage/", "author": "Alt News Desk" }
470	Browse Submissions - Alt News Javascript is disabled on your browser. Please enable it in order to use this form.	news-altnews	2024-05-27T18:24:05.489452	null	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/browse-submissions/", "author": null }
471	Bruce Lee playing table tennis with nunchaku? No, old Nokia ad viral - Alt News Jignesh Patel 11th November 2019 / 7:23 pm / Last updated: 11th November 2019 A video of a man playing ping-pong with a nunchaku instead of a paddle is being shared on social media with the claim that the man is martial arts expert Bruce Lee. A Facebook post by Sumita Chakraborty has amassed over 1,100 shares so far. A priceless clip of 1970 of Bruce Lee playing Table Tennis with his Nan-chak !! His focus on speed, reflexes and accuracy was absolutely incredible🙏🏼 Posted by Sumita Chakraborty on Sunday, 3 November 2019 Several other Facebook users shared the video with the same claim. It is, in fact, been circulating on the platform with the narrative since 2010. Senior cricket commentator Ayaz Memon tweeted the video with identical claim back in April 2018. He failed to delete the tweet after acknowledging that it’s manufactured. Clip of Bruce Lee playing table tennis with a nan-chaku. Extraordinary! pic.twitter.com/BZbEep0OpW — Cricketwallah (@cricketwallah) April 30, 2018 A Google search revealed that the video is an advertisement by the Beijing office of advertising agency J. Walter Thompson (JWT) for the Nokia N96 limited edition Bruce Lee cell phone in 2008. As seen in the clip below, it’s a digital creation, not a recording of an original match. According to JWT, the advertisement was Nokia’s tribute to the legendary martial arts master. In an interview with Agency Asia, Polly Chu, the Chief Creative Officer of JWT Beijing, explained that the director of the advertisement was briefed to make it look like a never-seen-before visual of Bruce Lee. “Yes, we discussed with the director how to make it look like never-seen-before secret footage of Bruce Lee. The director took a great effort to study Bruce Lee and found the right talent. We used an up and coming local Chinese director whose passion could be seen in every second of the film.” In conclusion, a video of an advertisement made for a mobile phone in 2008 was shared on social media as an original clip of the legendary martial arts expert Bruce Lee playing table tennis with a nunchuk. Jignesh is a writer and researcher at Alt News. He has a knack for visual investigation with a major interest in fact-checking videos and images. He has completed his Masters in Journalism from Gujarat University. Rahul and Priyanka Gandhi recently performed aarti at the Narmada Ghat in Madhya Pradesh’s Omkareshwar… In the wake of the alleged murder of Shraddha Walkar by his partner Aftab Amin… The video of a group of people stopping an e-rickshaw with BJP flags attached to… Last week during the G20 summit in Bali, world leaders were informed of a missile… Recently, several prominent BJP leaders claimed that Prime Minister Narendra Modi had intervened to stop…	news-altnews	2024-05-27T18:24:05.489452	11th November 2019 / 7:23 pm / Last updated: 11th November 2019	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/bruce-lee-playing-table-tennis-with-nunchaku-no-old-nokia-ad-viral/", "author": "Jignesh Patel" }
472	Video of German cop action against football fans viral as assault on price-rise protesters - Alt News Abhishek Kumar 20th October 2022 / 5:36 pm / Last updated: 20th October 2022 A video of police personnel pinning down protesters on the ground is being widely shared on social media. It has been claimed that protesters staging a demonstration against high inflation and energy shortage in Germany were beaten up by the police. Procurenet CEO Gurbaksh Singh Chahal made the claim while sharing the video. (Archived link) Johns Hopkins University economist Steve Hanke shared the video, claiming that German police beat up citizens who were protesting because of record-high inflation and energy shortages. (Archived link) Paytm founder Vijay Shekhar Sharma retweeted Hanke’s post. Based on the viral claim accompanying the video, Republic World claimed in its article that German police assaulted protesters rallying over rising inflation. (Archived link) Twitter user The Poll Lady also made the same claim while tweeting the video. (Archived link) The video is widespread on social media platforms with the same claim. Alt News performed a reverse image search using frames taken from the viral video. This led us to reports by web portals like TVP Info, Fakt, and Interia. When we translated these into English, we found that the video actually contained footage from the aftermath of a clash between two football clubs in Germany named FC St. Pauli and HSV Hamburg, in which German police had to intervene. This confirms that the video has nothing to do with the ongoing protests against rising inflation in Germany. This can be seen more clearly in the comparison of the two images given below. Referring to the row in an October 14 tweet, football club FC St. Pauli demanded a clarification on the action taken by the police personnel. Auf dem Heiligengeistfeld hat es einen massiven Polizeieinsatz gegeben, mehrere Personen wurden verletzt. Angesichts vorliegender Videos und Augenzeugenberichten stellt sich die dringende Frage nach der Verhältnismäßigkeit. Der FC St. Pauli fordert Aufklärung.#fcsp #fcsphsv — FC St. Pauli (@fcstpauli) October 14, 2022 The Hamburg Police posted a statement in a Twitter thread clarifying its stance on the clash. According to the police, the officers were trying to prevent a confrontation between football fans and began taking the furious fans into custody. The viral video was taken while fans were being detained, and showed the cops using coercion in the form of physical violence. Police insisted that this was the procedure when individuals were not cooperating with officers. An investigation is still underway. Als der Fanmarsch die Glacischaussee erreichte, versuchten etwa 150-200 #StPauli-Fans vom Vorplatz über das #Heiligengeistfeld zu den HSV-Fans zu gelangen. Dies konnte von Polizeikräften unterbunden werden.#fcsphsv — Polizei Hamburg (@PolizeiHamburg) October 14, 2022 The Hamburg Police issued two press releases related to the case on October 14 and October 17. To sum it up, several social media handles including that of Republic World, Steve Hanke, and Gurbaksh Singh Chahal shared a video falsely claiming that protesters staging a rally over rising inflation in Germany were beaten up by the police. In reality, the viral video is of the police crackdown on a clash between fans of two rival football clubs in Germany. Abhishek is a senior fact-checking journalist and researcher at Alt News. He has a keen interest in information verification and technology. He is always eager to learn new skills, explore new OSINT tools and techniques. Prior to joining Alt News, he worked in the field of content development and analysis with a major focus on Search Engine Optimization (SEO). Following Saudi Arabia’s 2-1 win against Argentina in the ongoing FIFA World Cup, speculation about… A minute-long video clip of a woman being physically assaulted is viral on social media…. Trigger Warning: The following story contains graphic imagery. Several users have shared images of the… The brutal murder of Shraddha Walker has been widely covered across news media over the… A 1:34-minute-long CCTV camera clip is being widely circulated on social media in which viewers…	news-altnews	2024-05-27T18:24:05.489452	20th October 2022 / 5:36 pm / Last updated: 20th October 2022	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/brutal-intervention-by-german-police-between-football-fans-falsely-shared-as-assault-on-protesters-rallying-over-inflation/", "author": "Abhishek Kumar" }
473	Brutal murder of two sadhus in Bihar's Madhubani falsely communalised online - Alt News Archit 28th April 2021 / 1:11 pm A widespread claim on social media suggests that two sadhus were killed in Madhubani’s Dharohar Temple for opposing ‘love jihad’. Vishva Hindu Parishad (VHP) member Vijay Shankar Tiwari’s tweet with the claim gained 4,500 retweets and over 10,000 likes. PM Modi supporter @Vinay_Dwivedii also made the claim. Fan account of the controversial Yati Narsinghanand @FansYati shared the claim too. It gained about 4,000 likes. Twitter users @TheAbhishek_IND and @OmPraka43229608 also posted the claim. @TheAbhishek_IND‘s tweet gained over 1,000 retweets. Twitter user @TheDeepak2020 wrote in Hindi, “Two sadhus were killed in Bihar’s Madhubani by slitting their throats !! It is reported that they stopped Muslim boys and Hindu girls from entering the temple !! #LoveJihad”. This was retweeted over 400 times. Several users wrote about the incident with the hashtag #LoveJihad. Twitter account @HinduJagrutiOrg and verified Facebook page Hindu Adhiveshan wrote, “In order to stop such incidents, Hindu Rashtra is needed.” The latter’s post gained over 1,000 likes. Right-wing propaganda outlet OpIndia also reported on the incident, stating that the sadhus used to oppose ‘love jihad’. Several media outlets reported that two sadhus were decapitated in Madhubani on April 21. Navbharat Times said that the victims were 60-year-old Heera Das and 38-year-old Anand Jha. Their bodies have been sent to Sadar Hospital Madhubani for postmortem. Hindustan Times reported that the chief priest of the temple, Narayan Mukhia, alleged both were hacked to death by Dipak Choudhary. “Police are looking at the robbery angle since donation boxes were found outside the temple premises and the offerings, mainly cash, was missing. Police said that before escaping, the miscreants also ransacked the sanctum sanctorum of the temple in search of more valuables and cash,” the report further said. According to The Times of India, Choudhary hails from Basopatti village. He dumped the beheaded bodies of the priests under a haystack. “Police later recovered the bloodstained spade from Choudhary’s house,” wrote TOI, adding that some locals said that he is mentally unstable. Two priests beheaded in Madhubani https://t.co/3OuX7jbPGc — TOI Patna (@TOIPatna) April 21, 2021 Dainik Jagran reported that Choudhary was arrested by the police after speaking with locals. “They informed the ASP that Choudhary was present at the scene of the crime. His mental condition was unstable. He used to loiter the premises of the temple intoxicated with bhang and marijuana. It is possible that he killed the sadhus after getting into a fight with them. The police raided Dipak Choudhary’s house after the incident and recovered bloodstained spade and axe,” stated the report. Station house officer (SHO) Anjesh Kumar at the Khirhar police station told Alt News, “Social media claim that this incident was related to love jihad is false. Choudhary, 30, was arrested under Section 302 (Punishment for murder) and Section 201/34 (Causing disappearance of evidence of the offence, or giving false information to screen offender) of the Indian Penal Code on April 21.” “As per our investigation, the accused was addicted to narcotics and wanted money from the temple’s donation box,” he added. The brutal murder of two sadhus in Madhubani was communalised on social media. Several attempted to rope in a ‘love jihad’ spin but the police has refuted the claim after making an arrest. 🙏 Blessed to have worked as a fact-checking journalist from November 2019 to February 2023. Following Saudi Arabia’s 2-1 win against Argentina in the ongoing FIFA World Cup, speculation about… In the wake of the alleged murder of Shraddha Walkar by his partner Aftab Amin… The CCTV footage of a man violently flinging a child on the ground has created… A minute-long video clip of a woman being physically assaulted is viral on social media…. Trigger Warning: The following story contains graphic imagery. Several users have shared images of the…	news-altnews	2024-05-27T18:24:05.489452	28th April 2021 / 1:11 pm	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/brutal-murder-of-two-sadhus-in-bihars-madhubani-falsely-communalised-online/", "author": "Archit" }
474	Buddhist man in burqa caught for terror attack in Sri Lanka? No, it's an old video - Alt News Mohammed Zubair 24th April 2019 / 1:00 am / Last updated: 24th April 2019 A video of man removing his burqa in front of two police personnel has gone viral on the Indian social media ecosystem. It is being claimed that Sri Lankan police has caught a Buddhist man masquerading as Muslim woman. The video caption declares that this man was “one of the rogues” involved in Sri Lanka Church bombing. A Buddhist dressed as a Muslim woman was caught by the Sri Lankan Police. He os one of the rouges who bombed the Sri Lankan Church.😡😡😡😡😡😡 Posted by Mohammad Shafi Mulla on Tuesday, 23 April 2019 Several Individual users on Facebook and Twitter have shared the video with an identical narrative in the backdrop of the recent bombings in Sri Lanka. Few more individuals on WhatsApp, have inquired about the veracity of the video, which is also indicative of the fact that it’s also viral on the social media platform. Alt News found that the video now shared in the backdrop of the bombings is actually an old video. The viral video has a watermark of a website (www.http://nethnews.lk). A relevant keyword search on this website bore no results. Alt News contacted a local Sri Lankan journalist, who contacted the owner of the said website seeking details about the video. Within an hour, Neth FM, a Facebook page associated with the website put out a clarification regarding the video. According to the website, it’s an old video from August 2018. දැනුවත් කිරීමයි! මේ මොහොතේ සාමාජජාල ඔස්සේ සංසරණය වන මෙම වීඩියෝව 2018 අගෝස්තු මස 29 වන දින පළවූ පුවතකට අදාළ වීඩියෝවක් බව සලකන්න. එම පුවතට අදාළ සබැඳිය – http://nethnews.lk/article/57706 Posted by Neth FM on Monday, April 22, 2019 According to this article published in August 2018, the man, who was dressed in a Burqa, was arrested by Welikada police. Welikada is a suburb of Colombo, Sri Lanka. He was arrested at Welikada plaza after the driver of a tuk-tuk (rickshaw) tipped off the police. The report also said that the police are investigating the matter further. We found the same video published by a YouTube channel Balanna Watinawa on Aug 29, 2018 In conclusion, an unrelated video of a man masquerading as a Muslim woman, being searched by the local police, was shared as of the accused arrested in the aftermath of the recent serial blasts in Sri Lanka. Co-founder, Alt News Co-Founder Alt News, I can be reached via Twitter at https://twitter.com/zoo_bear Following Saudi Arabia’s 2-1 win against Argentina in the ongoing FIFA World Cup, speculation about… Trigger Warning: The following story contains graphic imagery. Several users have shared images of the… The brutal murder of Shraddha Walker has been widely covered across news media over the… A 1:34-minute-long CCTV camera clip is being widely circulated on social media in which viewers… The teaser of a movie titled ‘The Kerala Story’ is being widely shared on social…	news-altnews	2024-05-27T18:24:05.489452	24th April 2019 / 1:00 am / Last updated: 24th April 2019	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/buddhist-man-in-burqa-caught-for-terror-attack-in-sri-lanka-no-its-an-old-video/", "author": "Mohammed Zubair" }
475	BUSTED: 'True' story by Manish Malhotra about Modi working 18-20 hours a day - Alt News Pratik Sinha 9th March 2017 / 12:24 am / Last updated: 23rd November 2018 There are several urban legends regarding Prime Minister Narendra Modi which circulate on social media. We’ve heard how “Narendra Modi had been declared the best prime minister in the world by UNESCO” or Julian Assange of Wikileaks fame stating that “Modi is incorruptible”. Both these claims turned out to be false. Similarly, an elaborate hoax started by certain supporters of PM Modi was about how a bureaucrat who had retired in February 2014 decided to rejoin Modi’s PMO and the story he narrates about Modi’s work ethic. Here’s the story. This tale about Mr Modi was widely circulated on social media with thousands and thousands of shares. It had become so viral that it even appeared on a Times of India blog. This is one of those typical posts which glorifies Mr Modi as to how hard working he is. Apparently, someone called Manish Malhotra, who is an ‘Indian MBA’ from UK and has a close relative in the PMO, is the source of the article. The close relative is referred to as Mr A. Alt News did some basic fact-checking to ascertain the veracity of this story. Here is what we found. 1) The post claims that Mr A. has been an officer in the Govt for last 44 years and retired in Feb 2014. The typical retirement age of IAS/IPS/IFS officers is 60. So if Mr A was 60 in 2014, he must be 62 now. 44 years of service means he was appointed at the age of 18! We googled for the youngest IAS/IPS officer and couldn’t find anyone less than 22 years of age. Some of the youngest officers have been enlisted in this Quora post. Even if we assume that Mr A got an extension for 3/4 years, he couldn’t have had 44 years of service. Moreover none of the youngest IAS/IPS officers that we found in our research are in the PMO. In fact, the lower age limit to appear for the UPSC exam through which IAS, IPS, IFS officers are chosen is 21. Wonder, in which country did Mr A appear for an IAS exam at the age of 18! 2) We checked the list of officers listed on PMO site and googled each one of them for their current employment status. Only 3 officers in the PMO right now are among retired IAS/IPS/IFS officers – Nripendra Mishra, Ajit Doval and PK Mishra. None of these officers retired in Feb 2014 or anywhere close to it. Nripendra Mishra’s age is 72 and Ajit Doval’s age is 73, so they retired almost a decade ago and much before Feb 2014 when Mr A supposedly retired. PK Mishra’s age is 68, so he retired at least 5-7 years ago, again much before Feb 2014. So, who is this Mr A who supposedly retired in Feb 2014? He’s nowhere to be found on the list of officers on PMO’s site. The complete list of officers can be found here. The story keeps getting posted and shared on various social media platforms at regular intervals. Thus it can be safely concluded that this entire post is someone’s figment of imagination, which has taken flight on social media. Co-Founder Alt News, I can be reached via E-mail at [email protected] and on Facebook at https://fb.com/freethinker. Follow @free_thinker Rahul and Priyanka Gandhi recently performed aarti at the Narmada Ghat in Madhya Pradesh’s Omkareshwar… In the wake of the alleged murder of Shraddha Walkar by his partner Aftab Amin… The video of a group of people stopping an e-rickshaw with BJP flags attached to… Last week during the G20 summit in Bali, world leaders were informed of a missile… Recently, several prominent BJP leaders claimed that Prime Minister Narendra Modi had intervened to stop…	news-altnews	2024-05-27T18:24:05.489452	9th March 2017 / 12:24 am / Last updated: 23rd November 2018	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/busted-true-story-manish-malhotra-modi-working-18-20-hours-day/", "author": "Pratik Sinha" }
476	CAA Protest: 2015 video of Bangladeshis caught with fake Indian passports in Kuwait revived - Alt News Archit 20th December 2019 / 11:01 pm On December 20, Jawahar Yadav, Officer on Special Duty to Manohar Lal, Chief Minister of Haryana, tweeted a video with the claim that a Bangladeshi man was caught at an airport in Saudi Arabia carrying an Indian passport. “Bangladeshi passenger travelling with Indian passports arrested at Saudi airport they are hiding their original Bangladeshi passport in their shoes sole .some shameless indians who are protesting against CAB should watch this video(बंगलादेशी भारतीय पासपोर्ट पर) @TajinderBagga,” reads the tweet which was retweeted over 970 times. Bangladeshi passenger travelling with Indian passports arrested at Saudi airport they are hiding their original Bangladeshi passport in their shoes sole .some shameless indians who are protesting against CAB should watch this video(बंगलादेशी भारतीय पासपोर्ट पर) @TajinderBagga pic.twitter.com/k3qakooK5b — Jawahar Yadav (@jawaharyadavbjp) December 19, 2019 Similarly, Twitter user @Meenu_71 posted the same video along with the same text. It was retweeted over 5,000 times. Several users have posted this video with the same claim on Twitter and on Facebook. Alt News used InVID to break the viral video into keyframes and perform a reverse image search on Yandex. The search results threw up the same video on YouTube with the title ‘الدخول بجواز مزور ونظر كيف تخبئت الجواز الاصلي (Enter using false passport and see how the original passport was hidden)’ from December 31, 2015. Alt News subsequently did a keyword search on Google and found a report by Arab Times from December 19, 2015. According to the report, several Bangladeshis were arrested by the immigration officers for attempting to enter Kuwait on forged Indian passports and hiding their Bangladesh passport inside shoes. The report cites Al- Shahed daily as the source. A time-search on Facebook also led us to a video posted by a Kwt Today. A Bangladeshi man enters Kuwait with a Indian Passport #fakepassport #passport #bangladeshi #kuwait #kuwaitairport #kuwaitinstagram #kwttoday Snap: kwttoday👻 Posted by Kwt Today on Thursday, 17 December 2015 The viral video is from 2015 and it is being shared with the Citizen’s Amendment Bill narrative. 🙏 Blessed to have worked as a fact-checking journalist from November 2019 to February 2023. Rahul and Priyanka Gandhi recently performed aarti at the Narmada Ghat in Madhya Pradesh’s Omkareshwar… In the wake of the alleged murder of Shraddha Walkar by his partner Aftab Amin… The video of a group of people stopping an e-rickshaw with BJP flags attached to… Last week during the G20 summit in Bali, world leaders were informed of a missile… Recently, several prominent BJP leaders claimed that Prime Minister Narendra Modi had intervened to stop…	news-altnews	2024-05-27T18:24:05.489452	20th December 2019 / 11:01 pm	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/caa-protest-2015-video-of-bangladeshis-caught-with-fake-indian-passports-in-kuwait-revived/", "author": "Archit" }
477	CAA Protest: No, Bengaluru cop did not threaten to punch historian Ramachandra Guha - Alt News Pooja Chaudhuri 19th December 2019 / 10:50 pm / Last updated: 21st December 2019 December 19 witnessed nationwide protests against the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA). People across the country took to the streets while the police in most states denied permission for protest and imposed Section 144. Among the protesters in Bengaluru, Karnataka was historian Ramachandra Guha who, with several others, was detained by the police. A video of the police detaining Guha is widely circulating on social media. However, some circulated it with the claim that a cop threatened to punch him. Congress MP Shashi Tharoor tweeted, “Is this cop threatening to hit ⁦@Ram_Guha with his fist? “ Is this cop threatening to hit ⁦@Ram_Guha⁩ with his fist? It’s bad enough to arrest a senior historian exercising his democratic right to protest. But to do so with the threat of force is disgraceful & the cop deserves stern disciplinary action. Does the Home Minister care? pic.twitter.com/ogjD47pgsd — Shashi Tharoor (@ShashiTharoor) December 19, 2019 Journalist Faye DSouza tweeted along similar lines, “The police man made a fist….. #Bangalore.“ In fact, several other journalists claimed the same – Rituparna Chatterjee, Rupa Subramanya, Saikat Datta and Amol Rajan. DMK’s IT-wing deputy secretary Isai tweeted, “The police in the right about to fist punch @Ram_Guha.“ The police in the right about to fist punch @Ram_Guha #CAA_NRC has come to this juncture! #BJPburningIndia pic.twitter.com/Ak2fJuP6vY — இசை (@isai_) December 19, 2019 Another user Md Asif Khan and historian William Dalrymple made similar assertions. Alt News analysed the viral video and found that the claim that a policeman threatened to punch historian Ramachandra Guha during anti-CAA protests is false. While it appears that the cop was making a fist when the video is watched at normal speed, a slowed-down version of the video reveals that he was reaching for the breast pocket on his uniform. The clip below is 16x times slower than the original. Furthermore, a screengrab of the exact moment when the cop raises his arm clearly shows that he was touching his breast pocket. Here, we can also see that his fingers are not forming a fist. Therefore, while the video of policemen detaining Ramachandra Guha gives the visual perception that a cop made a fist at the moment of detaining him, in reality the policeman was reaching for the breast pocket on his uniform. Pooja Chaudhuri is a senior editor at Alt News. Rahul and Priyanka Gandhi recently performed aarti at the Narmada Ghat in Madhya Pradesh’s Omkareshwar… In the wake of the alleged murder of Shraddha Walkar by his partner Aftab Amin… The video of a group of people stopping an e-rickshaw with BJP flags attached to… Last week during the G20 summit in Bali, world leaders were informed of a missile… Recently, several prominent BJP leaders claimed that Prime Minister Narendra Modi had intervened to stop…	news-altnews	2024-05-27T18:24:05.489452	19th December 2019 / 10:50 pm / Last updated: 21st December 2019	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/caa-protest-no-bengaluru-cop-did-not-threaten-to-punch-historian-ramachandra-guha/", "author": "Pooja Chaudhuri" }
478	CAA Protest: Old video from Rajasthan shared as elderly man beaten up by Muslim youth in Delhi - Alt News Arjun Sidharth 23rd December 2019 / 6:00 pm / Last updated: 23rd December 2019 In the wake of protests and violent clashes over the CAA and the NRC, a video has been circulated widely on social media with the claim that an elderly man was brutally beaten up by Muslim youth. Due to the graphic nature of the video, Alt News is not posting it in the article. The duration of the video which has been shared on Facebook is 1:45 minutes. In the video, an elderly, bearded man is seen in the frame. He seems to shout ‘Bharat Mata Ki Jai’, following which there is an altercation, and he is then beaten up by some youth. The video has been posted by numerous individuals with the same text- “See what Muslim youth are doing to this old man its in Delhi Zafarabad for shouting Bharat Mata ki Jai. Why is this not being shown by Media.? Why is this not being made viral by true Indians.” Meghalaya Governor Tathagata Roy tweeted the video with the claim, “See what Muslim youth are doing to this old man its in Delhi Zafarabad for shouting Bharat Mata ki Jai.” It has garnered more than 1,700 retweets so far. Twitter handle @MariaWirth1 also posted the video and claimed, “What type of youth are these?Was told that it happened in Jafarabad Seelampur area of NCR.” Alt News found that the same video had circulated in October this year with the identical narrative. We came across a tweet by a user in October 2019, who had uploaded another video relating to the same incident and claimed that it took place in Bhilwara, Rajasthan. The user claimed that this particular video was shot after the violence. yeh video bhilwara Rajasthan ke azad chowk ki h aur ye iske baad ki video h pic.twitter.com/JQ35AARyLU — SAM (@sameerk17355605) October 20, 2019 Alt News then looked at the video and found a shop’s board that read “Lady Bag Shopee”. Using Google Maps, we were able to trace the shop to a locality in Bhilwara and hence corroborate that the incident indeed took place in Azad Chowk, Bhilwara. In October this year, Alt News had spoken to Bhilwara’s Kotwali police station to get more details about the incident. SHO Yash Deep Bhalla said, “The person [elderly man] is mentally retarded. His son has filed an FIR against the people who had beaten him up.” We were informed that the son had been advised to admit his father to a mental asylum as the elderly man gets into frequent fights, conflicts and abuses people on the streets. SHO Bhalla further added that the man was beaten up for abusing someone and not for sloganeering. We also spoke to the shopkeeper of ‘Lady Bag Shopee’ who reiterated that the elderly man has a history of getting involved in fights. A relative of the victim’s family who spoke on condition of anonymity told Alt News that Hotchand Sindhi (victim) had changed his religion (Sindhi) to Sikhism. The member further added that he used to raise slogans on a regular basis and was ill from the last one month and admitted a few days back. At the time, Akali Dal leader Manjinder Sirsa had shared details regarding the case. The five accused were identified as Manoj alias Mulla Sindhi (39), Hemant Ramchandra Nathani (45), Bhagwan Das Sindhi (37), Manzoor Sheikh (31), and Irfan Sheikh(34). In November, the relative informed Alt News that all the accused were later released on bail. It may thus be noted that the viral video is from Bhilwara, Rajasthan and is over two months old. This video is unrelated to the recent spate of protests against the Citizenship Amendment Act 2019 across the country. Arjun Sidharth is a writer with Alt News. He has previously worked in the television news industry, where he managed news bulletins and breaking news scenarios, apart from scripting numerous prime time television stories. He has also been actively involved with various freelance projects. Sidharth has studied economics, political science, international relations and journalism. He has a keen interest in books, movies, music, sports, politics, foreign policy, history and economics. His hobbies include reading, watching movies and indoor gaming. Rahul and Priyanka Gandhi recently performed aarti at the Narmada Ghat in Madhya Pradesh’s Omkareshwar… In the wake of the alleged murder of Shraddha Walkar by his partner Aftab Amin… The video of a group of people stopping an e-rickshaw with BJP flags attached to… Last week during the G20 summit in Bali, world leaders were informed of a missile… Recently, several prominent BJP leaders claimed that Prime Minister Narendra Modi had intervened to stop…	news-altnews	2024-05-27T18:24:05.489452	23rd December 2019 / 6:00 pm / Last updated: 23rd December 2019	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/caa-protest-old-video-from-rajasthan-shared-as-elderly-man-beaten-up-by-muslim-youth-in-delhi/", "author": "Arjun Sidharth" }
479	Photo of Rajasthan BJP MLA falsely shared as RSS man impersonating Delhi cop - Alt News Jignesh Patel 24th December 2019 / 10:55 pm / Last updated: 30th January 2021 In the backdrop of protests against the centre’s farm laws, a video has been shared with the claim that RSS goons have posed as policemen. Must watch this video👇 Truth behind the Riots. They are RSS goons who were in Police uniforms. Even Police knowing this not taking any Action and Godi media are Silent. Shame on them#GodiMediaStopMisleading #Homeminister_should_resign pic.twitter.com/KfGvpH31CQ — Suraj G Naik (@yoursurajnaik) January 30, 2021 The claim that RSS members disguised as the Delhi police thrashed farmers during Republic Day tractor parade is widespread on both Twitter and Facebook. Members of RSS in fake police uniforms who beat up farmers during Jan 26th parade #farmersprotest #kisanmorcha #rssterrorists #fakepolice #kisanektazindabad Posted by Parmjit Chandi on Thursday, 28 January 2021 Twitter handle @Desipoliticks had posted the same video in December during protests against the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA). Here, Lok Sabha speaker Om Birla can also be spotted in the group. Twitter user Faizan tweeted two images – a screenshot from the viral video of the man in police dress and a man standing besides Lok Sabha speaker Om Birla in RSS attire. He wrote, “मार्केट में नकली पुलिस एक कदम विकास की ओर नारंगी का प्रमोशन (घेर ) वाले निकर से पेन्ट में विथ नकली टोपी ओर स्टार के साथ (Fake police in the market is a step towards development and promotion of the orange [colour identified with BJP/RSS]. From a half pant to a full pant with a fake cap and stars -translated)”. A similar claim conveyed in a graphic, wherein the same two images are juxtaposed against each other, was circulating on WhatsApp. “The man spotted in police uniform without badge is actually RSS goon”, read the text inscribed in the graphic. Alt News found that the claim that the man in the police dress is the same person who was seen in a picture with Lok Sabha speaker Om Birla, is simply put false. Alt News scourged through the public posts on Om Birla’s Facebook account and found some more images where he was spotted with the same man. राजकीय महाविद्यालय बूंदी मे छात्रसंघ कार्यलाय का उद्घाटन कर और शपथ ग्रहण समारोह मे शिरकत करते हुएI Posted by Om Birla on Wednesday, 21 December 2016 We then contacted Mahendra Gautam who among many other individuals was one of the people tagged in the images posted by Birla. He informed us that the man in the said images is BJP MLA Ashok Dogra from Bundi assembly constituency in Rajasthan. The comparison posted below clearly shows that the man in the RSS attire (in the viral image) and BJP MLA Ashok Dogra is the same person. Alt News found one more image of Dogra and Birla in RSS attire. A comparison of Dogra’s image with an image of the Delhi cop shows that these are two different men. In conclusion, a photograph of Rajasthan BJP MLA Ashok Dogra with Lok Sabha speaker Om Birla was falsely shared with the claim that Dogra was impersonating as a Delhi cop during recent protests against Citizenship Act. The same video and images were revived during the farmers’ protest. Jignesh is a writer and researcher at Alt News. He has a knack for visual investigation with a major interest in fact-checking videos and images. He has completed his Masters in Journalism from Gujarat University. Rahul and Priyanka Gandhi recently performed aarti at the Narmada Ghat in Madhya Pradesh’s Omkareshwar… In the wake of the alleged murder of Shraddha Walkar by his partner Aftab Amin… The video of a group of people stopping an e-rickshaw with BJP flags attached to… Last week during the G20 summit in Bali, world leaders were informed of a missile… Recently, several prominent BJP leaders claimed that Prime Minister Narendra Modi had intervened to stop…	news-altnews	2024-05-27T18:24:05.489452	24th December 2019 / 10:55 pm / Last updated: 30th January 2021	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/caa-protest-photo-of-rajasthan-bjp-mla-falsely-shared-as-rss-man-impersonating-delhi-cop/", "author": "Jignesh Patel" }
480	CAA Protest: Police lathicharge video from Lucknow shared as brutality by Ahmedabad police - Alt News Jignesh Patel 20th December 2019 / 10:35 pm A video of a group of policemen lathi-charging a crowd of protesters is circulating on WhatsApp. Alt News received fact-check requests where the accompanying claim reads, “शाहआलम मे पत्थरमारा करने से पहेले पुलीस ने बिना कीसी वजह के लाठीचार्ज कीया,,, पब्लिक पर (Before the stone-pelting in Shahalam, police had lathi-charged on public without any reason -translated)”, reads the text viral with the said video on WhatsApp. The clip has also been shared on Twitter with the same claim. Isko Godi media nhi dikhayegi Gujarat Ahmadabad Ke shahalam me @Aruuniimaa @ziddi__zoya_ @ziddi_zoya_ @ziddy_zoya_ pic.twitter.com/d1jTV5zh9o — Pathanshahalam (@Pathanshahalam) December 20, 2019 On December 19, protest against the Citizenship Amendment Act, 2019, took a violent turn and left several people including 19 police personnel injured in Shah Alam area of Ahmedabad, Gujarat. According to a report, at around 5 PM, violence erupted after protesters threw stones and attacked police personnel and their vehicles. The police had reportedly come to disperse the protesters from the agitation site. “Multiple videos showed crowd chasing police control room vans with stones after which police fired tear gas shells and resorted to lathi-charge,” reported The Indian Express on December 20. Speaking to news agency ANI, Ahmedabad Commissioner of Police Ashish Bhatia said, “We have detained around 32 people, we are registering FIR. We are identifying others based on CCTV footage. 19 police personnel were injured in the incident.” Alt News found that several other users on Twitter claimed that the video is from Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh. Journalist Saurabh Trivedi posted the video on December 19, 2019, with the message, “#Lucknow Police lathi-charged people who gathered to protest against the Citizenship (Amendment) Act and the National Register of Citizens. #CAA_NRC #lucknowprotest”. #Lucknow Police lathi-charged people who gathered to protest against the Citizenship (Amendment) Act and the National Register of Citizens. #CAA_NRC #lucknowprotest pic.twitter.com/w0tKBQ9kGu — Saurabh Trivedi (@saurabh3vedi) December 19, 2019 To corroborate that the video is from Lucknow and NOT Ahmedabad, we analysed it frame by frame and matched one of the frames with a photograph tweeted by The Indian Express. The Lucknow Police had to resort to lathicharge and use tear gas to disperse the crowd. Madheyganj and Sakhanda police outposts in the city were also vandalised by the mob. https://t.co/HkAcwhlEI8 pic.twitter.com/kqWEvn4YMD — The Indian Express (@IndianExpress) December 19, 2019 In the comparison below, we have juxtaposed a frame from the video with The Indian Express photograph. One more media report corroborates that the video is from Lucknow. Ahmedabad City Police’s official Twitter handle has also clarified that the video doing the rounds on social media is from Lucknow and NOT Ahmedabad. આ ફેક વિડીયોને સોશિયલ મીડિયા પર શેર કરવામાં આવી રહ્યો છે. તપાસ વિના ફેક વિડીયો અથવા ફોટો ફોરવર્ડ/શેર કરશો નહીં. અમે સતત સોશિયલ મીડિયા પર નજર રાખી રહ્યા છીએ. જે આ ફેક વિડીયો/ફોટો શેર કરશે, એમની સામે કાયદેસરની કાર્યવાહી કરવામાં આવશે. #AhmedabadPolice #FakeNews #FactCheck pic.twitter.com/9BZmcdupzh — Ahmedabad Police (@AhmedabadPolice) December 20, 2019 In conclusion, a video of police lathi-charging anti-CAA protesters in Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh was shared as Ahmedabad police instigating the protesters at Shah Alam. Jignesh is a writer and researcher at Alt News. He has a knack for visual investigation with a major interest in fact-checking videos and images. He has completed his Masters in Journalism from Gujarat University. Rahul and Priyanka Gandhi recently performed aarti at the Narmada Ghat in Madhya Pradesh’s Omkareshwar… In the wake of the alleged murder of Shraddha Walkar by his partner Aftab Amin… The video of a group of people stopping an e-rickshaw with BJP flags attached to… Last week during the G20 summit in Bali, world leaders were informed of a missile… Recently, several prominent BJP leaders claimed that Prime Minister Narendra Modi had intervened to stop…	news-altnews	2024-05-27T18:24:05.489452	20th December 2019 / 10:35 pm	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/caa-protest-police-lathicharge-video-from-lucknow-shared-as-brutality-by-ahmedabad-police/", "author": "Jignesh Patel" }
481	CAA Protest: Video of Jabalpur police vandalising vehicles shared as UP police - Alt News Jignesh Patel 31st December 2019 / 12:14 pm A video of cops vandalizing vehicles was shared on social media with the claim that the incident took place in Uttar Pradesh. Twitter user Fahad posted the video and wrote, “Mohsin Ansari ki Haddi & Fracture Clinic ke neeche khadi gaadiyon ko fracture karte hue @Uppolice ke janbaaz sipahi.” It has garnered more than 900 retweets. Mohsin Ansari ki Haddi & Fracture Clinic ke neeche khadi gaadiyon ko fracture karte hue @Uppolice ke janbaaz sipahi. Kya aapko in pe naaz nahin hai @AmitShah Sahab. ? We Indians are so proud of them. Shabaash UP Police pic.twitter.com/82mZH3QpqP — Fahad (@rjfahad) December 25, 2019 Alt News has received several requests on its official mobile application to fact-check the video. On December 25, Twitter handle UP police fact-check informed that the video is from Jabalpur, Madhya Pradesh. वीडियो में दिखाई जा रही घटना @UPPolice से संबंधित नहीं है, यह जबलपुर मध्य प्रदेश का वीडियो है।#UPPAgainstFakeNews pic.twitter.com/7GBEYkTw2W — UPPOLICE FACT CHECK (@UPPViralCheck) December 25, 2019 Jabalpur SP Amit Singh on December 27 was quoted by Times of India as saying, “We have constituted a committee to probe the alleged video. If any fact is found, then appropriate compensation will be provided to those who suffered losses.” Alt News analysed the video frame-by-frame and found a signboard, “MS Haddi and Fracture Clinic”. The clinic is located in Gohalpur area of Jabalpur and is recognised as MS Ortho clinic on Google Maps. The contact details of the clinic on the signage matches with the details available on Google. According to a Times of India report, violence broke out in Jabalpur on December 20 during a protest against the Citizenship Amendment Act. “Thirteen policemen were injured and curfew was clamped in Gohalpur, Hanumantal, Kotwali and Adhartal police station areas,” said the report. A YouTube search with relevant keywords showed several videos of police action and vehicle vandalism. We found a longer video representing the same police vandalism near MS Ortho Clinic in Gohalpur area. It was posted on December 20, A cursory comparison of buildings and structures in the video posted by Twitter user Fahad and the YouTube video matches. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SwlwDKnr_Gc A portion of the above video was also posted by the YouTube channel AIMIM News Today on December 20. One can spot the relevant portion from 3:12 mins to 5:26 mins. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c7OY9wvbb88 Moreover, one can spot a nursing home ‘Adarsh’ in the video. In the comparison below, we have positioned a screenshot taken at 2:25 in the video with an image of the clinic publically available on Google Maps. According to Google Maps, the distance between MS Ortho Clinic and Adarsh Nursing Home is 170 metres. This further corroborates the location where the police vandalism took place. In conclusion, a video of police vandalism in Jabalpur, Madhya Pradesh was shared as Uttar Pradesh police vandalizing vehicles. Jignesh is a writer and researcher at Alt News. He has a knack for visual investigation with a major interest in fact-checking videos and images. He has completed his Masters in Journalism from Gujarat University. Rahul and Priyanka Gandhi recently performed aarti at the Narmada Ghat in Madhya Pradesh’s Omkareshwar… In the wake of the alleged murder of Shraddha Walkar by his partner Aftab Amin… The video of a group of people stopping an e-rickshaw with BJP flags attached to… Last week during the G20 summit in Bali, world leaders were informed of a missile… Recently, several prominent BJP leaders claimed that Prime Minister Narendra Modi had intervened to stop…	news-altnews	2024-05-27T18:24:05.489452	31st December 2019 / 12:14 pm	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/caa-protest-video-of-jabalpur-police-vandalising-vehicles-shared-as-up-police/", "author": "Jignesh Patel" }
482	CAA Protests: Morphed image claims Shaheen Bagh protesters paid Rs 500 per day - Alt News Archit 23rd January 2020 / 7:32 pm Several social media users and pages have shared an image which shows women standing in front of a banner which reads ‘Fix rate 500/ day 7 pm to 12 pm Shaheen Bagh.’ It was shared by Facebook page ‘Rohit Sardana Fans Club’ on January 18. The photograph suggests that protesters at Delhi’s Shaheen Bagh are agitating against the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) and the National Register of Citizens (NRC) for money. It is noteworthy that BJP IT cell head Amit Malviya had tweeted a video on January 15 which alleged that protestors were gathering at Shaheen Bagh for Rs 500 per day. In response, Shaheen Bagh protesters reportedly filed a Rs 1 crore defamation lawsuit against Malviya. On January 18, Facebook user Megha Agarwal posted a collage of two images with the hashtag #शाहीन_बाग_की_बिकाऊ_औरते (#Shaheen_Bagh_Ki_Bikau_Auratey). The second photo in the collage shows a newspaper article written in Hindi whose headline reads ‘Reaching Shaheen Bagh for 500 rupees and biryani [Translated from 500 रुपए व बिरयानी के लिए पहंच रहे शाहीन बाग]’ Alt News did a reverse image search of the viral image on Google and found a January 16 article by The Statesman with the original photograph. According to the report, the picture was clicked by Money Sharma/ AFP (Agence France-Presse). Here, the banner reads, ‘Take back CAA Take back NCR [Translated from CAA वापस लो NRC वापस लो]’. The image is available on Getty Images as well. The stock photo agency also credits it to Money Sharma. According to Getty Images, the photograph was shot on January 7, 2020. The collage below shows that the viral image (left) has been morphed. A keyword search for the newspaper report shared by Megha Agarwal revealed that it was published by Punjab Kesari on January 17. The report essentially describes the video uploaded by Malviya which alleged that protesters at Shaheen Bagh joined the sit-in for monetary gains. The article however is misleading as the title poses an allegation as a fact. It may be reiterated that protesters have denied accepting cash and have filed a defamation suit against Amit Malviya. An anti-CAA and NRC poster was therefore morphed with words which suggest that protesters at Shaheen Bagh are gathering between 7 pm to 12 pm for a ‘fixed rate’ of Rs 500. 🙏 Blessed to have worked as a fact-checking journalist from November 2019 to February 2023. Rahul and Priyanka Gandhi recently performed aarti at the Narmada Ghat in Madhya Pradesh’s Omkareshwar… In the wake of the alleged murder of Shraddha Walkar by his partner Aftab Amin… The video of a group of people stopping an e-rickshaw with BJP flags attached to… Last week during the G20 summit in Bali, world leaders were informed of a missile… Recently, several prominent BJP leaders claimed that Prime Minister Narendra Modi had intervened to stop…	news-altnews	2024-05-27T18:24:05.489452	23rd January 2020 / 7:32 pm	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/caa-protests-morphed-image-claims-shaheen-bagh-protesters-paid-rs-500-per-day/", "author": "Archit" }
483	CAA Protests: Old video from MP shared as UP police thrashing stone-pelters - Alt News Jignesh Patel 20th January 2020 / 2:10 pm A video of policemen brutally thrashing several men has been shared with the claim that Uttar Pradesh police is beating stone-pelters for destructing public property. “UP Police प्रस्तुत शॉर्ट फिल्म अंजाम ऐ पत्थरबाजीदेश की संपत्ति को नुकसान पहुचाने वालो के साथ यही होना चाहिये (UP Police presents a short film ‘result of stone-pelting’. This should happen with those who cause destruction to nation’s property -translated)”, reads the tweet by Akash RSS. UP Police प्रस्तुत शॉर्ट फिल्म अंजाम ऐ पत्थरबाजी देश की संपत्ति को नुकसान पहुचाने वालो के साथ यही होना चाहिये pic.twitter.com/6nrAtv7Oiz — Akash RSS (@Satynistha) January 2, 2020 Akash RSS is ‘Akash Soni’. In a 2017 report, Alt News had investigated that he was the man behind a popular fake news website Coverage Times. Another report published in June 2018 revealed that he was one of the individuals running misinformation and propaganda Facebook page ‘BJP All India’. Soni was also found to be behind the targetted harassment of journalist Ravish Kumar through a WhatsApp group. On January 2, one Santosh Bhardwaj also tweeted the video with a similar message. जो लोग यह बोल रहे थे कि यह तो अभी शुरुआत है पत्थरबाजी कि, ये उनके लिए स्पेशल अंजाम ए पत्थरबाजी 😂😂👇👇 pic.twitter.com/SpJZtt8Gm6 — Santosh Bhardwaj (@SKBhardwaj_) January 2, 2020 Hardik Shandilya too posted the video on Twitter with the claim, “2020 की यूपी पुलिस की प्रस्तुति एक शॉर्ट फिल्म जिसका टाइटल है :- अंजाम-ऐ-पत्थरबाज़ी एवं तोड़फोड़ (In 2020, UP police presents a short film titled: ‘result of stone-pelting and vandalism’ -translated)”. Interestingly, all the caption shared along with this video include a common phrase, “अंजाम-ऐ-पत्थरबाज़ी (the result of stone-pelting)”. 2020 की यूपी पुलिस की प्रस्तुति एक शॉर्ट फिल्म जिसका टाइटल है :- अंजाम-ऐ-पत्थरबाज़ी एवं तोड़फोड़#नए_वर्ष_नया_अंदाज़#यूपी_पुलिस_जिंदाबाद pic.twitter.com/I9qW9C6WXU — 🚩हार्दिक सिंह🚩 (@hardikshandilya) January 1, 2020 With a keyword search on YouTube, Alt News found a video report published by ABP News on May 29, 2015. “Indore police beats criminals publicly on roads”, reads the title of the video. According to the report, Madhya Pradesh’s Indore police took a ‘Taliban’ approach to curb rising crime. Processions of criminals from about 15 police stations of Indore were taken out by the cops. Accused and suspects were among those who were beaten publicly by the police. The report claims that the police were taking out these goons from their homes and beating them up in their locality to reduce the fear of these men from people’s mind. UP Police’s fact-check division also took to Twitter and clarified that the video is not from the state. वीडियो में दिखायी जा रही घटना @UPPolice से संबंधित नहीं है कृपया भ्रामक प्रचार न करें!#UPPAgainstFakenewshttps://t.co/WDp95grvnX https://t.co/d60Mlj0vL0 — UPPOLICE FACT CHECK (@UPPViralCheck) January 17, 2020 In conclusion, a four-year-old video of men publicly thrashed by Madhya Pradesh police was shared as Uttar Pradesh police taking action against stone-pelters in the backdrop of protests against the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) in the state. Jignesh is a writer and researcher at Alt News. He has a knack for visual investigation with a major interest in fact-checking videos and images. He has completed his Masters in Journalism from Gujarat University. Rahul and Priyanka Gandhi recently performed aarti at the Narmada Ghat in Madhya Pradesh’s Omkareshwar… In the wake of the alleged murder of Shraddha Walkar by his partner Aftab Amin… The video of a group of people stopping an e-rickshaw with BJP flags attached to… Last week during the G20 summit in Bali, world leaders were informed of a missile… Recently, several prominent BJP leaders claimed that Prime Minister Narendra Modi had intervened to stop…	news-altnews	2024-05-27T18:24:05.489452	20th January 2020 / 2:10 pm	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/caa-protests-old-video-from-mp-shared-as-up-police-thrashing-stone-pelters/", "author": "Jignesh Patel" }
484	CAA Protests: Old video from Pakistan shared as cow slaughtered on Indian flag in Hyderabad - Alt News Nitika Amin 30th December 2019 / 5:53 pm A video is circulating on WhatsApp showing a group of men slaughtering a cow on the Indian national flag. Several individuals have sent verification requests of the video on the Alt News app specifically asking whether the incident took place in Hyderabad in the view of protests against the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA). A Facebook user Manasvi Arpitha posted a clipped version of the video with the message “ಮಿತ್ರರೇ ದಯವಿಟ್ಟು ನಿಮ್ಮಲ್ಲಿ ಕೈ ಜೋಡಿಸಿ ಹೇಳ್ತಿದೀನಿ ಈ ವಿಡಿಯೋ ಹೆಚ್ಚು ಹೆಚ್ಚು ಗ್ರೂಪ್ ಗಳಿಗೆ ಶೇರ್ ಮಾಡಿ, ನಾಳೆ ಸಂಜೆ ವರೆಗೂ ಪ್ರತಿಯೊಂದು ನ್ಯೂಸ್ ಚಾನೆಲ್ ನಲ್ಲಿ ಬರಲೇಬೇಕು ಜನತೆಯು ಧ್ವನಿ ಎತ್ತಬೇಕು, ಈ ಹಿಂಸೆಗಳು ನಿಲ್ಲಬೇಕು. ನಿಜವಾಗಲು ನಿಮಗೆ ದೇಶ ಭಾಷೆ ಕನ್ನಡದ ಬಗ್ಗೆ ಅಭಿಮಾನ ಇದ್ದರೆ ಶೇರ್ ಮಾಡಿ ಗೆಳೆಯರೇ Respect our nation language and our culture” (Google translation – “Friends, please join us and share this video with more and more groups. If you are a fan of country language Kannada for real, please share respect our nation language and our culture.” Alt News reserve searched one of the frames of the video and found the same clip uploaded on YouTube on March 2, 2019. The background music in the video is a song dedicated to Pakistan. There are several other clues which further suggest that the video is from Pakistan. Moreover, the video’s existence since at least March 2, 2019, proves that it cannot pertain to any incident that took place after the CAA was passed on December 11, 2019. Alt News also found pictures of this incident posted on UrduPoint, a Pakistani web portal, and Pakistan Point, a news outlet based in Pakistan. These pictures were posted on March 1, 2019. The picture posted on Pakistan Point is accompanied with the caption, “Workers of Pakistan Sunni Tehreek slaughtering a cow on Indian flag during a protest against Indian aggression in Kashmir and challenge the sovereignty of Pakistan, in Hyderabad.” A keyword search on Google – ‘Pakistan Sunni Tahreek Hyderabad’ – and filtering the results to view only news articles led us to an August 20, 2019, report by Jansatta. The article claims that the video was made by people associated with Pakistan Sunni Tehreek-e-Hyderabad on August 15 (India’s Independence Day) as a response to the repealing of provisions of Article 370 granting special state status to Jammu and Kashmir. Jansatta had based its claim on a tweet by @imamofpeace. Graphic warning. Pakistanis slaughtering a cow on the Indian flag to “own” and insult India on its independence day. This is not a normal society. They are a stain on this planet. They do not deserve our taxes or any foreign aid. pic.twitter.com/bIiCYADoJz — Imam of Peace (@Imamofpeace) August 19, 2019 However, Jansatta’s report is also factually incorrect because the video has been available on the internet at least five months before independence day was observed. Sunni Tahreek had organised a similar event in December 2015 after former external affairs minister Sushma Swaraj’s visit to Pakistan. یہ گھٹیا پن کی نیئ حد ھے حیدرآباد: سنی تحریک نے شُشماسوراج کے پاکستان آنے پر بھارتی جھنڈے پر گائے ذبح کر کے احتجاج pic.twitter.com/G9dml1xWyf — Haji S. Pasha (@HarPasha) December 10, 2015 Below is a collage of the events held in 2019 and 2015 where the same man can be seen. A video of people slaughtering a cow on the Indian national flag has thus been shared with the false claim that the incident is related to protests against the Citizenship Amendment Act. Rahul and Priyanka Gandhi recently performed aarti at the Narmada Ghat in Madhya Pradesh’s Omkareshwar… In the wake of the alleged murder of Shraddha Walkar by his partner Aftab Amin… The video of a group of people stopping an e-rickshaw with BJP flags attached to… Last week during the G20 summit in Bali, world leaders were informed of a missile… Recently, several prominent BJP leaders claimed that Prime Minister Narendra Modi had intervened to stop…	news-altnews	2024-05-27T18:24:05.489452	30th December 2019 / 5:53 pm	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/caa-protests-old-video-from-pakistan-shared-as-cow-slaughtered-on-indian-flag-in-hyderabad/", "author": "Nitika Amin" }
485	CAA Protests: Video from Pakistan shared as UP police beating women - Alt News Niddhi Rathi 30th December 2019 / 2:08 pm / Last updated: 30th December 2019 A video which shows policemen thrashing women is circulating in the context of protests against the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) and the National Register of Citizens (NRC). Among the group of women is one who’s worn a burqa. अगर #मिडिया नही‌ दिखायगा तो‌ हमे ही पुरे #भारत को‌ यह दिखाना होगा । VIRAL करो बजरडीहा वाराणसी pic.twitter.com/uff85Acd1m — Md Saqib Raza (@mdsaqibrazaaem) December 27, 2019 A Twitter user has shared the clip with the caption, “अगर मिडिया नही‌ दिखायगा तो‌ हमे ही पुरे भारत को‌ यह दिखाना होगा । VIRAL करो बजरडीहा वाराणसी” (Translation: If the media doesn’t show then we will have to show it to all of India. Make the video viral. Bajardiha Varanasi.). Another user tweeted the same video with the identical caption. An archived version of the tweet can be accessed here. The caption implies that the video is related to anti-CAA protests in Varanasi where police used force to disperse protestors in Bajardiha. A closer look at the video shows that the policemen are wearing a badge of the flag of Pakistan on their uniforms. A reverse search of a frame from the video on Yandex led us to several tweets by Pakistani users where the same video was shared. The earliest we found was from June 26, 2019. یہ تو واقعی نیا پاکستان بن رہا ھے😡 pic.twitter.com/hIBoTFSJT2 — T̤a̤l̤h̤a̤ G̤h̤o̤ṳr̤i̤ (@TalhaGhouri786) June 26, 2019 The same video was viral in September with the claim that Kashmiri women were assaulted by the Indian army. From the Facebook account of one Shamim Hossain, the clip garnered 41,000 shares. #Kashmir_Muslim_Woman_Tourture_By_Indian_Army \|\|😥 #Kashmir_Muslim_Are_Helpless_in_Current_Word \|\| #Free_Kashmir #Save_Muslim☪ Posted by Shamim Hossain on Saturday, 7 September 2019 AFP had then debunked the video and uploaded a June 27 YouTube video in its report which said, “punjab police beaten women in #multan – police beaten women in court.” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NUGGYL_KoCY An old video of Pakistan police assaulting women is being circulated with the false claim that the cops in Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh thrashed the women. Rahul and Priyanka Gandhi recently performed aarti at the Narmada Ghat in Madhya Pradesh’s Omkareshwar… In the wake of the alleged murder of Shraddha Walkar by his partner Aftab Amin… The video of a group of people stopping an e-rickshaw with BJP flags attached to… Last week during the G20 summit in Bali, world leaders were informed of a missile… Recently, several prominent BJP leaders claimed that Prime Minister Narendra Modi had intervened to stop…	news-altnews	2024-05-27T18:24:05.489452	30th December 2019 / 2:08 pm / Last updated: 30th December 2019	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/caa-protests-video-from-pakistan-shared-as-up-police-beating-women/", "author": "Niddhi Rathi" }
486	CAA Protests: Video of Irfan Pathan's visit to Kolkata shared as Shaheen Bagh - Alt News Nibedita Sen 31st January 2020 / 5:55 pm / Last updated: 31st January 2020 A video of former cricketer Irfan Pathan is viral on social media with the claim that he was at Shaheen Bagh lending support to protests against the Citizenship (Amendment) Act, 2019. A Facebook page titled ‘बोल कि “लब आज़ाद हैं तेरे” Shabnam‘ posted the 13-second video on January 24, 2020, with a caption in Hindi – “एक ओर शेर आ लिये शाहीन बाग नाम है Irfan Pathan” (In Translation: Another Lion arrived at Shaheen Bagh. His name is Irfan Pathan). The post has garnered 78,000 views, 31,00 shares and 666 likes so far. एक ओर शेर आ लिये शाहीन बाग नाम है Irfan Pathan एक ओर शेर आ लिये शाहीन बाग नाम है Irfan Pathan Posted by बोल कि “लब आज़ाद हैं तेरे” Shabnam on Friday, 24 January 2020 The same post with exactly the same caption has been shared by many other Facebook users too. On January 14, 2020, Irfan Pathan had shared a similar video of a crowd of youngsters on Twitter and Facebook. I will never know what retirement is… Thank you for all the love #kolkata #karamhati pic.twitter.com/F9XB6qj0UR — Irfan Pathan (@IrfanPathan) January 14, 2020 Pathan has also posted the same video from his verified Tik-Tok handle. Pathan’s attire in the videos is the same. Although the 13-second video does not show the man sitting behind or the car very clearly but a glimpse of Trinamool Congress leader Madan Mitra is visible. Alt News checked Mitra’s Twitter account and found that he shared photographs with Pathan that same day. Some beautiful moments with ex-India cricketer par excellence Irfan Pathan for Kamarhati Premier Knock-Out cricket tournament organised by Kamarhati Development Society. Truly a moment to cherish to meet the man who is grace and humbleness personified. pic.twitter.com/PCrGxyH1no — Citizen Madan Mitra\| নাগরিক মদন মিত্র (@madanmitraoff) January 14, 2020 “Some beautiful moments with ex-India cricketer par excellence Irfan Pathan for Kamarhati Premier Knock-Out cricket tournament organised by Kamarhati Development Society. Truly a moment to cherish to meet the man who is grace and humbleness personified,” he wrote. Hence, it is evident that the video is from Pathan’s visit to Kamarhati on the northern fringes of Kolkata on January 14, 2020, and not from Shaheen Bagh. Defence Correspondent turned fact-checker. Two times award winning journalist by Govt. of Goa. Rahul and Priyanka Gandhi recently performed aarti at the Narmada Ghat in Madhya Pradesh’s Omkareshwar… In the wake of the alleged murder of Shraddha Walkar by his partner Aftab Amin… The video of a group of people stopping an e-rickshaw with BJP flags attached to… Last week during the G20 summit in Bali, world leaders were informed of a missile… Recently, several prominent BJP leaders claimed that Prime Minister Narendra Modi had intervened to stop…	news-altnews	2024-05-27T18:24:05.489452	31st January 2020 / 5:55 pm / Last updated: 31st January 2020	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/caa-protests-video-of-irfan-pathans-visit-to-kolkata-shared-as-shaheen-bagh/", "author": "Nibedita Sen" }
487	Cadbury Australia's website screenshot shared to claim products with beef sold in India - Alt News Archit 21st July 2021 / 12:32 pm On July 17, right-wing influencer Madhu Purnima Kishwar tweeted shared a screenshot of confectionary company Cadbury’s website. The screenshot stated, “Please note, if any of our products contain gelatine in the ingredients, the gelatine we use is halal certified and derived from beef.” In her tweet, Kishwar wrote that Cadbury deserves to be “sued for forcing Hindus to consume halal-certified beef products”. The screenshot was also tweeted by RSS member Rajesh Gehani. These tweets gained over 3,000 retweets. Is this true @CadburyUK? If yes, Cadbury deserves to be sued for forcing Hindus to consume halaal certified beef products Our ancestors &Gurus sacrificed their lives but didn’t accept eating beef. But post “independence”rulers have allowed our Dharma to be violated with impunity pic.twitter.com/Ub9hJmG8gO — Madhu Purnima Kishwar (@madhukishwar) July 17, 2021 BJP supporter Arun Pudur also amplified the claim. In the past, he has shared misinformation on multiple occasions. Dear all, Please note, if any of #Cadbury @DairyMilkIn contain #gelatine in the ingredients, the gelatine we use is #halal certified and derived from #beef. pic.twitter.com/loMbhGL0I8 — Arun Pudur 🇮🇳 (@arunpudur) July 18, 2021 Similarly, many Twitter and Facebook users have shared the screenshot and expressed concern about Cadbury products in India allegedly containing beef. A closer look at the viral screenshot reveals that it is Cadbury Australia and not India. The text in the viral image about gelatin, if present in products, being halal-certified can also be found verbatim on the Cadbury Australia website. A day after Kishwar’s tweet, Cadbury India responded via its verified account @DairyMilkIn, “The screenshot shared in the Tweet is not related to Mondelez/Cadbury products manufactured in India. All the products manufactured and sold in India are 100% vegetarian. The green dot on the wrapper signifies that.” The account also clarified to multiple other Twitter accounts including Kishwar. pic.twitter.com/798qgPozsF — Cadbury Dairy Milk (@DairyMilkIn) July 18, 2021 Alt News checked multiple Cadbury products listed on Amazon India and food delivery platforms but couldn’t find any product without a green dot — identifier of vegetarian products. The following screenshot shows the product details of Cadbury Bournville Cocoa Dark Chocolate. Understanding the green indicator As per Food Safety and Standards (Packaging and labelling) Regulations, 2011 (view PDF), under Nutritional information sub-head, “Every package of Vegetarian Food shall bear a declaration to this effect by a symbol and colour code as stipulated below for this purpose to indicate that the product is Vegetarian Food. The symbol shall consist of a green colour filled circle.” The act also defines vegetarian food as, “any article of Food other than Non-Vegetarian Food as defined in regulation 1.2.1(7).” The specified definition (view PDF) of non-vegetarian food states, “an article of food which contains whole or part of any animal including birds, freshwater or marine animals or eggs or products of any animal origin, but excluding milk or milk products, as an ingredient.” In 2019, the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) sought action against food products including drugs and health supplements, which contained ingredients of animal origin and were depicting green dot on their package labels. This was reported by Mumbai-based FnBnews and the article was uploaded by FSSAI on its website. Readers should note that no companies were named in the said report. FSSAI instructed respective state authorities to take action as per Food Safety and Standards Act 2006. Cadbury has been targeted with misinformation in various countries in the past. In 2017, Alt News debunked the claim that Cadbury products were contaminated with HIV. To conclude, several right-wing influencers shared a screenshot of Cadbury Australia’s website and claimed that the company was selling products with beef in India. Last week, the Himalaya Drug Company was similarly targeted. 🙏 Blessed to have worked as a fact-checking journalist from November 2019 to February 2023. In the wake of the alleged murder of Shraddha Walkar by his partner Aftab Amin… The CCTV footage of a man violently flinging a child on the ground has created… A minute-long video clip of a woman being physically assaulted is viral on social media…. Trigger Warning: The following story contains graphic imagery. Several users have shared images of the… The brutal murder of Shraddha Walker has been widely covered across news media over the…	news-altnews	2024-05-27T18:24:05.489452	21st July 2021 / 12:32 pm	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/cadbury-australias-website-screenshot-shared-to-claim-products-with-beef-sold-in-india/", "author": "Archit" }
488	Cadbury products contaminated with HIV? Old image from Nigeria used to share false claim - Alt News Archit 26th November 2019 / 2:46 pm / Last updated: 26th November 2019 Over the last week, Alt News has received several requests on it’s Android application to fact-check an image which sources BBC and cautions people to not have Cadbury products as they are “contaminated with HIV (AIDS).” The text on the viral image states, “This is the guy who added his infected blood to Cadbury products. For the next few week do no eat any products from Cadbury, as a worker from the company has added his blood contaminated with HIV (AIDS). It was shown yesterday on BBC News. Please forward this message to people who you care.” Alt News first searched the terms “Cadbury” and “hiv” on BBC’s website. No results turned up thus hinting that the supposed news was not carried by the international media outlet. Next, we cropped the image of the man being arrested and performed a Google reverse image search. This redirected us to Nigerian news sites Information Nigeria, CKN Nigeria and Nairaland that identified the man as Aminu Sadiq Ogwuche, the alleged mastermind of the Nyanya bus station bombing of 2014. As per the BBC’s report, more than seventy people had died in the attack. Boom had debunked this misinformation earlier. The fact-checking organisation confirmed with a spokesperson from Mondelez (India), the company that makes Cadbury chocolate bars, who said, “The post you refer to is a hoax and there is no truth in it. It’s fake news. The person whose photograph is shown in the post has never worked /does not work for Mondelez. False and baseless posts like these are damaging for well-respected and loved brands. We call upon our consumers to please verify facts related to Mondelez products before sharing them further.” A photograph from Nigeria is doing the rounds on social media with the false claim that an HIV positive man contaminated Cadbury products with his blood. The same image was also shared to falsely claim that Pepsi was infected with the virus. 🙏 Blessed to have worked as a fact-checking journalist from November 2019 to February 2023. Rahul and Priyanka Gandhi recently performed aarti at the Narmada Ghat in Madhya Pradesh’s Omkareshwar… In the wake of the alleged murder of Shraddha Walkar by his partner Aftab Amin… The video of a group of people stopping an e-rickshaw with BJP flags attached to… Last week during the G20 summit in Bali, world leaders were informed of a missile… Recently, several prominent BJP leaders claimed that Prime Minister Narendra Modi had intervened to stop…	news-altnews	2024-05-27T18:24:05.489452	26th November 2019 / 2:46 pm / Last updated: 26th November 2019	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/cadbury-products-contaminated-with-hiv-old-image-from-nigeria-used-to-share-false-claim/", "author": "Archit" }
489	A call for lynching in Bengaluru after Jinnah's picture spotted on a bus. And the truth is .. - Alt News Alt News Desk 14th July 2017 / 4:32 pm / Last updated: 14th July 2017 “How many of you are campaigning against it and will Pledge to Lynch this Owner inside that Bus and Burn it?” This was the violent reaction of Abhishek Singh, a contributor at Postcard News, when he saw pictures of a bus on Bengaluru road with an image of Mohammad Ali Jinnah. Did you ever wonder where lynch mobs come from? Here is a seemingly normal person casually calling for a pledge to lynch someone without finding out the truth. What is the truth behind the bus? Read on… A bus with a picture on Jinnah? How would you react? When residents spotted a bus with the picture of Mohammad Ali Jinnah plying on Bengaluru roads, the reactions were varied. Some called up the travel company to check, others complained to the police. Some others took to social media to outrage and take pot shots at the non-BJP Karnataka government. Neeraj Kamath, also former core committee at Namo Brigade, was the first to report the green “Democracy travels” bus with a picture of Mohammad Ali Jinnah on social media. The post was shared over a 1000 times and as expected it caused much outrage. Bus With Muhammad Ali Jinnah’s Photo In Bengaluru @CPBlr @narendramodi @HMOIndia @CMofKarnataka @KirenRijiju @PTI_News @republic @TimesNow pic.twitter.com/gAYPE8naEq — Neeraj Kamath C (@kamathneeraj) July 13, 2017 It is normal to react on seeing the photograph but the right-wing fuelled the outrage. Here is the reaction of Prasanna Mudugabe, also a contributor to Postcard News. It drove Abhishek Singh to give a call for lynching the bus owner. This posts were later picked up by many right wing websites and Facebook pages including ‘Say “No” To Sold Media‘ and Atal Bihari Vajpayee. Reality: The picture of the bus is not fake. Yes, such a bus with the picture of Mohammad Ali Jinnah was spotted on the roads of Bengaluru. The bus was a prop for a Malayalam movie, Aabhaasam, that was being shot in the city. Here is the screenshot of the Facebook page of the movie. When Alt News spoke to the crew, they confirmed the bus was used for shooting. They put a board saying so but forgot to do it on the day the pictures were clicked. From what little we know of the movie from the IMDB page, the bus “Democracy travels” is an integral part of the movie script Kamath, who was the first to post the picture of the bus, reported that the picture has been deleted. In a second Facebook post, he wrote, “Democracy travels” is free From Jinnah. The Owner has apologised & removed the photo & confirmed by sending this photo. He didn’t even know what they had done with the sus and who Jinnah Was. The Bus Was Hired By A Malayalam Movie Crew For Shooting.” He also called for the nationalists to be united against the anti-nationals. As reported by Times of India, fearing backlash, the owner of the bus has removed the image. Nationalist pride is fragile. Freeing a bus called, “Democracy travels” which was a movie prop, from Jinnah is a victory for them. The Postcard contributor who used the picture to malign the Karnataka government has not deleted his post even after learning that truth about the bus. Nor has the one who called for lynching the bus owner. The bus owner could be under a real threat from such a call. We hope Bengaluru police have taken note of it. Follow @free_thinker Rahul and Priyanka Gandhi recently performed aarti at the Narmada Ghat in Madhya Pradesh’s Omkareshwar… In the wake of the alleged murder of Shraddha Walkar by his partner Aftab Amin… The video of a group of people stopping an e-rickshaw with BJP flags attached to… Last week during the G20 summit in Bali, world leaders were informed of a missile… Recently, several prominent BJP leaders claimed that Prime Minister Narendra Modi had intervened to stop…	news-altnews	2024-05-27T18:24:05.489452	14th July 2017 / 4:32 pm / Last updated: 14th July 2017	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/call-lynching-bengaluru-jinnahs-picture-spotted-bus-truth/", "author": "Alt News Desk" }
490	Calls from '+140' numbers will NOT empty bank accounts; Mumbai police video viral with false claim - Alt News Kinjal 14th July 2020 / 9:07 pm / Last updated: 8th October 2021 Multiple videos of Maharashtra Police making a public announcement are viral on social media. The accompanying claims suggest that the police is advising people to not receive calls from phone numbers that start with 140. In the video, it seems that the police are warning people that their bank balance will be emptied to zero if they accept calls from such a number. Alt News has received multiple verification requests for the video. A user tweeted one such video of Maharashtra police on July 10, 2020 and wrote, “@MumbaiPolice got this video on whatsapp informing not to pick up call from phone number starting with 140. This seems to be during covid pandemic as police is wearing a mask. Can you please confirm the authenticity of this news?” @MumbaiPolice got this video on whatsapp informing not to pick up call from phone number starting with 140. This seems to be during covid pandemic as police is wearing a mask. Can you please confirm the authenticity of this news? pic.twitter.com/ystIiIWPdQ — RV (@rvipani) July 10, 2020 Videos of the police making such announcements in different areas were floating on social media last year. Be aleart… Be safe.. Dont pickup the call If no start with +91 140#fraudalert pic.twitter.com/eIMzS7dyEi — H V R (@rhitesh711) July 10, 2020 The clip below was viral on Facebook. Mumbai Police Main Control has just received a message that call numbers starting with 140 should not be accepted. Posted by North East Assam 24 on Monday, 13 July 2020 Alt News has also received fact-checks requests for the third video on its official mobile application back then. After such videos began circulating online, Maharashtra Cyber Police tweeted that numbers starting with +140 number are of telemarketing calls. The police also wrote about the viral message claims that one’s bank account will be emptied if one receives calls from the numbers starting with 140. According to the tweet, this is just a rumour and bank accounts are at risk only if a person shares their PIN number or OTP. In the end, the tweet said that the clarification has been issued by the Inspector General of Special Police. डेबिट/ क्रेडिट कार्ड डिटेल्स जर कोणी विचारत असेल तर आपण आपली कोणतीही वैयक्तिक माहिती, बँक खात्याची माहिती, डेबिट/ क्रेडिट कार्डची माहिती अथवा पिन नंबर/ ओटीपी देऊ नये अथवा दिला जाणार नाही याची काळजी घ्यावी. धन्यवाद विशेष पोलीस महानिरीक्षक, महाराष्ट्र सायबर (4/n) — Maharashtra Cyber (@MahaCyber1) July 11, 2020 The viral videos actually show the police alerting people about the rumour. It is not possible that accepting calls from any numbers starting with 140 will empty bank accounts. It is important to note that people in Mumbai have been receiving calls from numbers starting with 140 or 40 figures in the past few days. Upon picking up the call, a person on the other end talks about a murder that happened in front of him. Tagging the official Twitter account of Mumbai Police, a verified user Smriti Kiran said that she had received a call from one such number starting with 140. She informed that a man said that he witnessed a murder and the person who committed the crime wants to kill him too. Kiran demanded the Mumbai Police to take action in this matter. Got a very disturbing call from this number +91 140 880 0135 @MumbaiPolice…The gentleman said he has witnessed a murder. Has recorded it on his phone & now those people want to kill him. He hung up after that. He was crying & quavering while speaking. Please look into this. — smriti kiran (@smritikiran) July 10, 2020 According to an NDTV report from July 11, people in Mumbai are receiving such prank calls for promotion of a web series. The report is based on PTI feed. Several people have contacted the police out of fear. The report adds that a person named Vaibhav Pawar told the police that he received a call from ‘Rishi’ at around 4 pm. Rishi was crying on the phone and telling him that he saw a murder happen in front of him and now the murderer wants to kill him too. Several people have informed the police of similar calls. Since these phone calls were part of the promotion of a web series, the murder story is made-up. The channel Sony LIV was making such fake calls to promote its new series ‘Undekhi’. While giving clarification in this matter on July 10 Sony LIV apologised. The channel claimed that its “intention was not to cause any kind of discomfort or panic.” Smriti Kiran tweeted that this method of promotion is shameful and requested Mumbai Police to take strict action against the channel. If you have received a call for our show Undekhi & it has disturbed you we would like to sincerely apologise to you. This was a test activity which has gone out accidentally & our intention was not to cause any kind of discomfort or panic. We sincerely regret any inconvenience. — SonyLIV (@SonyLIV) July 10, 2020 Mumbai police also criticised the promotional activity and tweeted, “Any publicity creating panic amongst citizens and suggesting a threat to their security will be dealt with necessary severity.” The era of ‘any publicity is good publicity’ is a passé. Any publicity creating panic amongst citizens and suggesting a threat to their security will be dealt with necessary severity. Hope the fake calls for promotions aren’t bothering you any longer, Mumbaikars #SoNotDone — Mumbai Police (@MumbaiPolice) July 10, 2020 Videos of Mumbai police alerting people across the city that a fake message claiming calls from any numbers starting will 140 will empty bank accounts were viral on social media. The cause of the rumour was a promotional activity by Sony LIV. Kinjal Parmar holds a Bachelor of Science in Microbiology. However, her keen interest in journalism, drove her to pursue journalism from the Indian Institute of Mass Communication. At Alt News since 2019, she focuses on authentication of information which includes visual verification, media misreports, examining mis/disinformation across social media. She is the lead video producer at Alt News and manages social media accounts for the organization. A minute-long video clip of a woman being physically assaulted is viral on social media…. Trigger Warning: The following story contains graphic imagery. Several users have shared images of the… A 1:34-minute-long CCTV camera clip is being widely circulated on social media in which viewers… Trigger Warning: Violent Content. Viewer discretion is advised. Over the past few months, rumours of… The teaser of a movie titled ‘The Kerala Story’ is being widely shared on social…	news-altnews	2024-05-27T18:24:05.489452	14th July 2020 / 9:07 pm / Last updated: 8th October 2021	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/call-starting-from-140-can-make-your-bank-balance-zero-mumbai-police-video-viral-with-false-claim/", "author": "Kinjal" }
491	Can BJP's 'Freedom of Speech' excuse cover up for PM following people who insult the dignity of women? - Alt News Pratik Sinha 10th September 2017 / 2:05 am “देखियो कोई तेरी इज्जत न लूट ले बावरी छोरी (Translation: Be careful that nobody rapes you)“, is how a Twitter handle called shiv982 responded to another handle called Rofl_Sardarni. The biography of the Twitter handle which issued this underhanded rape threat states, “[Student][@RSSOrg][Member @bjp4India] #mission2019 Honoured and blessed to be followed by prime minister sh. @narendramodi and @piyushgoyaloffc“. The tweet has now been deleted and shiv982 has changed his Twitter handle to shivamhindu45. In the last few days, the accounts that PM Modi follows on Twitter have come under spotlight. At AltNews, we wrote about the handles that PM Modi follow and were abusing Gauri Lankesh after her murder. This included one handle which said “A bitch died a dog’s death and all of her litter is crying in the same voice“. We wrote another article where we detailed a partial list of serial abusers, sexist bigots, rumour mongers that PM Modi follows on Twitter. Other than Alt News, multiple people on social media and main stream media raised this issue. BJP finally had to issue a statement regarding the issue and this is what they had to say. The controversy over PM following people on Twitter is mischievous and contorted: Shri @malviyamit, National Head – Information & Technology pic.twitter.com/8Ss6fgCOj2 — BJP (@BJP4India) September 7, 2017 The central argument seems to be that Prime Minister Modi firmly believes in people’s freedom of speech, “He is a rare leader who truly believes in freedom of speech and has never blocked or unfollowed anyone on Twitter. We have multiple examples of leaders curbing free speech on social media, including the previous PMO handle.” As far as freedom of speech is concerned, Gujarat Government had allowed a sedition case against Times of India journalists while PM Modi was the Chief Minister of Gujarat. The sedition case was eventually shot down by Gujarat High Court. That doesn’t speak very well for PM Modi’s love for freedom of speech. However, even if PM Modi has had a change of heart regarding the same, can rape threats, character assassination, rumour-mongering which could lead to riots be characterised as freedom of speech? Rishi Bagree, Alok Bhatt, Anurag Dixit and ‘Narendra Modi News’ are all followed by PM Modi on Twitter. Nikunj Sahu who is followed by PM Modi says, “मेघा पाटकर जैसी कुतिया भौकि अपनी बहन के मरने पे। गौरी लंकेश की हत्या कर्नाटक सरकार का काम है इस काम की हम सरहाना करते है। (Translation: A bitch like Medha Patkar is barking on her sister’s death. Karnataka Government is responsible for Gauri Lankesh’s murder and we support this)“. Is this freedom of speech? If all of this is freedom of speech, why did BJP have such a huge problem with the events in JNU? Is it ‘Nationalistic’ to brand women as prostitutes? Is it ‘Nationalistic’ to issue rape threats? Rashtra ke viruddh ke vichar ko Freedom of speech ka chola nahi pehnaya ja sakta: Amit Shah,BJP Pres in Mangaluru pic.twitter.com/HK9o278KEU — ANI (@ANI) August 21, 2016 The claim that PM Modi doesn’t unfollow anyone also looks suspect. Jwala Gurunath who had a spat with Delhi BJP Spokesperson Tajinder bagga was allegedly unfollowed by PM Modi. Welcome to @narendramodi s #NewIndia .I get unfollowed by PM instead of getting justice.He makes molester spokie n unfollows victim — Dr Jwala Gurunath (@DrJwalaG) March 26, 2017 The second part of the argument is even more specious. The statement issued by BJP IT Cell Head Amit Malviya states, “PM following someone is not a character certificate of a person is not in anyway a guarantee of how a person would conduct himself. However, PM also follows Rahul Gandhi, who is an accused in loot and fraud. PM also follows Arvind Kejriwal, who abused him on Twitter and told a woman ‘Settle Kar Lo’ when she complained of a party member molseting her.” PM follows Donald Trump who once stated in a private conversation “Grab ’em by the pussy” while referring to a woman. He also follows Haryana CM ML Khattar who said “If they (women) want freedom, why don’t they just roam around naked?“. In the same capacity that PM follows Donald Trump and ML Khattar, PM also follows Arvind Kejriwal and Rahul Gandhi – because they are established political leaders. Comparing following them to following party workers and enthusiasts is the most ridiculous argument ever. Finally, isn’t the Prime Minister of the country supposed to lead by example? Or is the Prime Minister supposed to give indirect endorsement to such people by following them? All of them invariably feature the following their biography, “Proud/Blessed/ to be followed by PM Modi“. People whom PM Modi follows are issuing rape threats, branding women as prostitutes, abusing them again and again. How on the planet can that be justified in any which way? Did you not deride the opposition on this same issue? From Tandoor Case to recent Latur Case, Congress' 'commitment' to safety & dignity of women is evident. Nothing has changed in so many years — Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) April 9, 2014 Respected PM, kindly do not promote such shameful elements of the society. You represent India on the world stage. Co-Founder Alt News, I can be reached via E-mail at [email protected] and on Facebook at https://fb.com/freethinker. Follow @free_thinker Rahul and Priyanka Gandhi recently performed aarti at the Narmada Ghat in Madhya Pradesh’s Omkareshwar… In the wake of the alleged murder of Shraddha Walkar by his partner Aftab Amin… The video of a group of people stopping an e-rickshaw with BJP flags attached to… Last week during the G20 summit in Bali, world leaders were informed of a missile… Recently, several prominent BJP leaders claimed that Prime Minister Narendra Modi had intervened to stop…	news-altnews	2024-05-27T18:24:05.489452	10th September 2017 / 2:05 am	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/can-bjps-freedom-speech-excuse-cover-pm-following-people-insult-dignity-women/", "author": "Pratik Sinha" }
492	Can genetic mutation occur in women due to gravitational matrix at Sabarimala temple? - Alt News Ronak Borana 25th November 2018 / 7:26 pm On 19 October, 2018, Dr Subramanian Swamy, a Rajya Sabha MP nominated by BJP, sent out a series of tweets justifying the demand that women should not be allowed to enter Sabarimala. The arguments to support this ban have emerged from the ancient notion that menstrual blood is impure. Dr Swamy’s contention was that the women should not be allowed inside the temple due to health reasons. He claimed that “admission of women in menstruation period in Sabarimalai was to protect the women from mutation from gravitational matrix“. He further claimed the during the menstruation period, “the gravitational matrix in the said temple can affect pregnancy“. The denial of admission of women in menstruation period in Sabarimalai was not twisted to their being “unclean” and that instead it was to protect the women from mutation from gravitational matrix of the Temple location then such women would have voluntarily abstained from coming — Subramanian Swamy (@Swamy39) October 19, 2018 A compromise in Sabarimalai Temple issue proposed: 1) Menstruating women are not in the eyes of the divinity impure 2) However during that period the gravitational matrix in the said temple can affect pregnancy 3) Hence such women as a custom voluntarily don’t enter the temple — Subramanian Swamy (@Swamy39) October 18, 2018 Dr Swamy’s tweets were seen as a reversal of his position from what he had expressed right after the Supreme Court verdict where he suggested that he had always been advocating gender equality in worship on the Sabarimala issue. He had even suggested that the Supreme Court order should be enforced with the assistance of military. I am happy that SC has decided that gender equality in worship is to be followed in Sabarimalai. This what I had been advocating — Subramanian Swamy (@Swamy39) September 28, 2018 Thereafter, Dr Swamy changed his position on the Sabarimala issue and suggested that the supreme court should reconsider its verdict. In the course of this article, we will examine Dr Swamy’s scientific claim that a unique ‘gravitational matrix’ within the Sabarimala temple may be a cause of genetic mutations in women thereby impacting their health. Dr Swamy claims that there is something called as ‘gravitational matrix’ which is a distinct form of gravitational force only present in the Sabarimala Temple. Many theories including that of Newton and Einstein have tried to explain gravitation – the phenomenon that attracts everything with mass and energy to one another. Matrix theory of gravitation is one such proposed theory which is identical to what Einstein estimated. Gravity is the force of attraction that pins us to Earth and prevents us from floating off our roughly spherical planet. This force of gravity throughout the land’s surface on Earth is largely the same, at least perceptually. Due to changes in ground altitude from the sea level across the Earth’s land surfaces, there may be a small variation in the gravitational forces. This is because gravity changes as we go further away or higher in altitude from the sea level on Earth. NASA and the European space agency map have extremely sensitive accelerometers that have mapped out the gravitational field of Earth with over 3 billion points. With this form of high resolution, there were differences of gravitation measured by the gravitational acceleration (standard g= 9.80665 m/s), i.e. the speed gained by an object in a free fall due to gravity. For example, Mount Nevado Huascarán in Peru has the lowest gravitational acceleration, at 9.7639 m/s, while the highest is at the surface of the Arctic Ocean, at 9.8337 m/s. As opposed to the minimal or lack of gravity in space, this difference due to uneven landmasses on Earth is just 0.7% and has no impact on any complex living organism such as humans. Our body’s entire set of genetic material is called our genome- which is packed in smaller bundles called chromosomes. Our chromosomes reside in the nucleus of our cells that carry the genetic information (or genes) for growth, development and other bodily functions. This genetic material (genotype) is largely inherited and determines physical attributes (phenotype) such as height, skin colour or eye colour of a newborn. These genes are made of several molecules of DNA which can be broken or changed due to a mutation. However, there are other ways to change this genetic material. While mutations are permanent changes to genetic material that can occur at random, either during replication of genes, which is an ongoing process of new cell formation and growth, external influences can such as prolonged exposure to chemicals or UV light can also cause mutations. While most of these mutations are harmless, and can be automatically ‘fixed’ by your body’s internal mechanism, a small fraction of them can be either injurious or beneficial to humans. For example, certain mutations can provide resistance to HIV, while others can often cause many diseases, for example skin cancer or melanoma caused due to prolonged sun exposure that can cause mutations in the melanin pigment producing cells int he skin. Even if there was some mutation causing factor (mutagen) at Sabarimala temple complex, it cannot selectively and precisely cause mutation only in women between the age of 10-50 and spare the rest of female and male devotees, just like the sun’s UV rays. Like most bodily functions there is a lot of variability in menstruation. The age of menarche (start of menstruation) and menopause (end of menstruation) often goes beyond the range of 10-50. Women regularly and naturally start menstruation as young as 9 years old and continue having it, often beyond the age of 50. With respect to menstruation or fertility, the age segment doesn’t seem to be justified. Even so, small changes in gravitation has no impact on menstruating women’s bodies, unless they are in space, which is more of a logistical issue in hygiene. Studies on women astronauts have shown that even large gravitational changes such as a spaceflight had no impact on women’s reproductive health or fertility. For reference, the international space station in the Earth’s orbit in the space has about 90% of the Earth’s gravity. This is about 9-10% change in gravitational force and impacts neither genders’ fertility, except the supportive tissues such as muscles and bones. Hence, it is unlikely for any smaller gravitational change on Earth to cause any short- or long-term physiological damage, or even so, in a particular gender or age-group. Along with making little scientific sense, Dr Swamy’s tweets are particularly problematic as they shift the onus of ban on women of a particular age-group, by suggesting that the ban was actually in their favour to protect their health. Ronak is a science communicator based in Mumbai In a 2-minute video, a man recommends a “technique” to prevent infection from Omicron, the… A video of a set of iron nails that appear to melt after being placed… Several social media users have shared an image that shows two columns — ‘Cepa/variante’ (Spanish… A 90-second video of a man dissecting a banana has been shared on the internet…. The Taliban has formed an all-male government after taking over control in Afghanistan. On September…	news-altnews	2024-05-27T18:24:05.489452	25th November 2018 / 7:26 pm	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/can-genetic-mutation-occur-in-women-due-to-gravitational-matrix-at-sabarimala-temple/", "author": "Ronak Borana" }
493	Can PM Modi's gesture at Sardar Patel's birth anniversary event be equated with Nazi salute? - Alt News Archit 4th November 2020 / 6:53 pm Karnataka Congress leader Jairam Ramesh tweeted a photograph of prime minister Narendra Modi and wrote, “The Sardar would have been shocked at such a salute. It is an insult to him.” This was retweeted over to 1,000 times and gathered more than 5,000 likes (archived link). Ramesh’s tweet was quote-tweeted by writer Farrukh K Pitafi. (archived link) The Sardar would have been shocked at such a salute. It is an insult to him. pic.twitter.com/IpTgiDSCjW — Jairam Ramesh (@Jairam_Ramesh) October 31, 2020 Ashok Swain, professor at Uppsala University, also hinted that PM Modi was mimicking the Nazi salute. “If Hitler can do why not Modi?” he wrote. His tweet was retweeted over 800 (archived link). Alt News has documented multiple instances when Swain posted misinformation in the past. If Hitler can do why not Modi? pic.twitter.com/71EtC5td5F — Ashok Swain (@ashoswai) October 31, 2020 Nazir Ahmed, Member of Kashmir-based All Party Parliamentary Group, quote-tweeted All India Radio‘s tweet carrying a similar image of PM Modi. “Nazi salute by Modi,” he wrote (archived link). PM Modi was taking an oath on the occasion of India’s first deputy prime minister Vallabhbhai Patel’s 144th birth anniversary on October 31. The event held in Gujarat’s Kevadia was broadcast by several channels, including Rajya Sabha TV. The visual being shared can be spotted at the 35-second mark in the broadcast. [youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9jTAjB45uo8?start=35] While the gesture made by PM Modi was equated with the Nazi salute and has been internationally recognised as one, oaths have been taken in a similar manner in India from time immemorial, including on the occasion of National Unity Day to mark Patel’s birth anniversary. It is commonly practised in schools as well. Moreover, this is not the first time a political leader took an oath extending their arm in front. A 2018 image shows Congress president Rahul Gandhi with Kamal Nath and Jyotiraditya Scindia (former Congress member) making a similar gesture. World War researcher and The Times of India editor Manimugdha Sharma elaborated on the practice of oath-taking in India and its possible linkages to the Nazi salute, if any. “The answer will have to be a bit complex. This style of salute originates from the American Pledge of Allegiance that was started in the late 19th century. The Italian fascists most likely took it from the Americans and modified it, and the Nazis took it from the fascists [Italians] – Hitler himself said that he took it from Il Duce (Benito Mussolini). But after the Second World War, the Americans had to abandon the salute due to its Nazi association and modify it to the present version where the right hand is kept over the heart. It’s hard to pinpoint exactly when Indians started using this for oath-taking, but my guess is from the National Pledge that was instituted in the early 1960s. That again was inspired by the American Pledge of Allegiance,” he told Alt News. Sharma, author of ‘Allahu Akbar: Understanding the Great Mughal in Today’s India’, added, “It must be said, however, that Hindu nationalism borrowed heavily from European nationalist movements, mostly those of the fascist kind. And therefore, a lot of things started or adopted by the European fascists became part of the iconography of Hindu nationalist groups. After a while, these became divorced from their original contexts. That this style of oath-taking became popular in India after it was abandoned everywhere else or became a punishable offence only goes on to show how divorced Indian public consciousness was from fascism and the horrors it produced. Nationalism is still not a problematic term in India, and even its exclusivist forms are not frowned upon outside liberal circles when globally it raises worries. Linking Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s administration of oath on the birth anniversary of Sardar Patel with the Nazi salute is surely smart Twitter behaviour. But academically speaking, it’s lazy work. It would be wrong to assume that the Prime Minister is doing that just because the Nazis did so. In our schools and colleges, we have been taking similar oaths in a similar way for ages now.” Congress leader Jairam Ramesh and others selectively criticised PM Modi whereas the oath-taking gesture that reminds many of the ‘Seig Heil’ salute has been used across India for decades. 🙏 Blessed to have worked as a fact-checking journalist from November 2019 to February 2023. Rahul and Priyanka Gandhi recently performed aarti at the Narmada Ghat in Madhya Pradesh’s Omkareshwar… In the wake of the alleged murder of Shraddha Walkar by his partner Aftab Amin… The video of a group of people stopping an e-rickshaw with BJP flags attached to… Last week during the G20 summit in Bali, world leaders were informed of a missile… Recently, several prominent BJP leaders claimed that Prime Minister Narendra Modi had intervened to stop…	news-altnews	2024-05-27T18:24:05.489452	4th November 2020 / 6:53 pm	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/can-pm-modis-gesture-at-sardar-patels-birth-anniversary-event-be-equated-with-nazi-salute/", "author": "Archit" }
494	Canada thanked PM Modi for COVID vaccines? Misleading news run by Indian media - Alt News Priyanka Jha 20th March 2021 / 1:22 pm On March 11, ANI reported that a billboard was put up in Greater Toronto, Canada to thank Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi for providing COVID-19 vaccines to the country. Billboards come up in Greater Toronto area thanking PM Narendra Modi for providing COVID-19 vaccines to Canada pic.twitter.com/0AaQysm6O1 — ANI (@ANI) March 11, 2021 Soon after, nearly every media outlet carried the news. Amar Ujala’s piece on print was headlined, ‘Canada praises India after receiving COVID vaccines’. Zee News reported, “In the midst of the coronavirus pandemic, PM Narendra Modi has provided vaccines to countries around the world. He is being praised in Canada and on the streets of Greater Toronto. Billboards have been put up that thank Prime Minister Modi. ” CNN News18 ran the news during a broadcast. It was widespread on mainstream media. Alt News also received a verification request for the claim on its mobile application. While billboard thanking PM Modi was indeed sighted in Canada, news reports did not mention that they were put up by the organisation ‘Hindu Forum Canada’. Hindu Forum Canada had in fact tweeted that the organisation installed a billboard to thank the Indian Prime Minister. Hindu Forum Canada’s billboards across Greater Toronto Areas thanking #India & PM ⁦@narendramodi⁩ for providing #CovidVaccine to #Canada ⁦@JustinTrudeau⁩ ⁦@erinotoole⁩ ⁦@theJagmeetSingh⁩ pic.twitter.com/po4LLFKFyE — HinduForumCanada (@canada_hindu) March 10, 2021 What is the Hindu Forum Canada? The website of the organisation states that it was set up under the Canada Not-for-profit Corporations Act to combat Hinduphobia. A section on the website reads, “Hinduphobia becomes ever so clear when the world media unproportionally reports the instant uproar of a crime against a Christian or a Muslim, but little in the case when it comes to Hindus…Quite a few killings of RSS/BJP workers have taken place in Kerala recently, notwithstanding the uproar, we hardly find a mention of these crimes against Hindus in either print or digital. [sic]” Hindu Forum Canada President is Nageshwar Rao Yendamuri, whom Narendra Modi had addressed in a letter dated August 11, 2006 when he was the Chief Minister of Gujarat. Yendamuri was convicted of immigration fraud by the Canadian government in 2017. A report in CTV News published in 2015 says that he was arrested under similar charges six years ago. “The CBSA (Canada Border Services Agency) said Yendamuri was arrested last week in Toronto and is facing 44 charges under the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act for counsel misrepresentation and misrepresentation. He is also facing 44 charges under the Criminal Code for forgery and use of forged documents.” He was out on bail with a $100,000 bond. Hindu Forum strongly supports the Citizenship Amendment Act and the farm laws introduced by the Modi government. The organisation praises PM Modi, including his work for farmers, on its Facebook page. We found that on February 5, 2021, the page had also shared misinformation aired by Sudarshan News. This was an old video where a bus was attacked by Nihang Singhs and the incident was given a ‘Khalistani’ angle. Alt News report on the video can be read here. How is India supplying vaccines to Canada? The website of the Canadian government states that the country will procure 20 million doses of the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine supplied by AstraZeneca and two million doses of the same vaccine manufactured by the Serum Institute of India and its Canadian partner Verity Pharma. Update: We’ve secured 20 million doses of AstraZeneca’s COVID-19 vaccine – and on top of that, we’ve now reached an agreement with the Serum Institute of India for another 2 million doses. Our first shipment of half a million doses is expected to arrive within weeks. — Justin Trudeau (@JustinTrudeau) February 27, 2021 According to the website of the Ministry of External Affairs of India, 0.5 million doses were delivered to Canada on March 2. This is listed under ‘commercial’ sales agreement. Canada also has agreements to purchase 44 million vaccines from Moderna and 76 million from Pfizer. Out of the millions of vaccines being purchased by the Canadian government, SII is providing a small portion of two million doses. Till now, half a million vaccines have been delivered. Media outlets reported partial information about the hoarding installed in Canada to thank PM Modi for COVID vaccines. It was put by Hindu Forum Canada, not the Canadian administration. Furthemore, SII is providing 2 million does of vaccines to Canada as part of commercial sales. She specializes in information verification, examining mis/disinformation, social media monitoring and platform accountability. Her aim is to make the internet a safer place and enable people to become informed social media users. She has been a part of Alt News since 2018. Inter-faith relationships between Hindu women and Muslim men have been a sore point for the… Rahul and Priyanka Gandhi recently performed aarti at the Narmada Ghat in Madhya Pradesh’s Omkareshwar… In the wake of the alleged murder of Shraddha Walkar by his partner Aftab Amin… Right after Elon Musk took over the reins of microblogging site Twitter, the organization carried… The video of a group of people stopping an e-rickshaw with BJP flags attached to…	news-altnews	2024-05-27T18:24:05.489452	20th March 2021 / 1:22 pm	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/canada-thanking-pm-modi-for-providing-covid-19-vaccine-media-omitted-that-billboards-were-from-hindu-forum-canada/", "author": "Priyanka Jha" }
495	Cannabis kills coronavirus? Vivek Agnihotri shares scientific misinformation via meme - Alt News Pooja Chaudhuri 8th February 2020 / 4:44 pm / Last updated: 8th February 2020 On February 8, 2020, filmmaker Vivek Agnihotri tweeted a screenshot which says, ‘Breaking News: Weed kills coronavirus.’ Posting the image, which looks like a ‘news’ broadcast, Agnihotri made a case for legalising cannabis in India. “Cannabis is a magic plant. Till mid-80s it was sold by Govt. Because of Rajiv Gandhi and western Pharma companies it got bad name,” he wrote, ending his tweet with the following appeal: “Make cannabis legal.” A few other also claimed that cannabis kills coronavirus after Agnihotri’s tweet. Solution to a lot of world’s problems lie in India. But you can’t find them as long as you ridicule our ancient wisdom. Cannabis is a magic plant. Till 1980 it was sold by Govt. Becoz of Rajiv Gandhi & West Pharma Companies it got bad name. Make #Cannabis legal !!#CoronaVirus pic.twitter.com/ciDsFIwM9x — NATIONALISM (@BeingNationali1) February 8, 2020 A simple reverse-image search revealed that the screenshot shared by Agnihotri does not correspond to a news broadcast but is a meme. It was created on the website en.dopl3r.com. The website gives users the option to select a meme temple, a category and add images and text. Alt News Science editor Dr Sumaiya Sheikh weighed in on the claim that cannabis, commonly termed as ‘weed’ has antibiotic properties: “There is some ongoing research with natural fibre hemp plants (cannabis plant) to have cannabinoids that show some anti-bacterial activity. The research is ongoing for various biomedical applications. However, unlike bacteria which is a single-celled pathogen, viruses are even smaller pathogens that can have bacteria or other live cells such as human, animal and plant cells for growth and reproduction. There is no evidence that cannabis (hemp plants) can have any effect on coronavirus infections.” Hence, not only did Vivek Agnihotri share a meme as ‘news’, but he also circulated potentially dangerous misinformation that cannabis can kill coronavirus. Alt News Science has been dunking both scientific and generic misinformation surrounding the outbreak of coronavirus. You can read our reports here. Pooja Chaudhuri is a senior editor at Alt News. In a 2-minute video, a man recommends a “technique” to prevent infection from Omicron, the… A video of a set of iron nails that appear to melt after being placed… Several social media users have shared an image that shows two columns — ‘Cepa/variante’ (Spanish… A 90-second video of a man dissecting a banana has been shared on the internet…. The Taliban has formed an all-male government after taking over control in Afghanistan. On September…	news-altnews	2024-05-27T18:24:05.489452	8th February 2020 / 4:44 pm / Last updated: 8th February 2020	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/cannabis-kills-coronavirus-vivek-agnihotri-shares-scientific-misinformation-via-meme/", "author": "Pooja Chaudhuri" }
496	Car bomb explosion in Iraq revived as CCTV footage of Pulwama terror attack - Alt News Arjun Sidharth 14th February 2020 / 7:45 pm / Last updated: 14th February 2020 January 14, 2020 marks one year since the Pulwama terror attack took place. Over 40 CRPF personnel were martyred in the attack. Several people have shared a CCTV video which shows a convoy of vehicles in the distance before a huge explosion takes place. This is claimed to be from the Pulwama terror attack in 2019. A Twitter user posted the video and wrote, “RIP: We remember always 14 Feb #PulwamaAttack #NationSalutesCRPF.” RIP: We remember always 14 Feb #PulwamaAttack #NationSalutesCRPF pic.twitter.com/0ICJ8VET9W — Fayaz (@Faiyaz_kashmiri) February 12, 2020 Another user tweeted the 1:19 minute video with the Hindi text, “शहीदों की चिताओं पर लगेंगे हर बरस मेले! वतन पे मरने वालों का यही आखिरी निशां होगा!! #पुलवामा में शहीद जवानो को शत शत नमन #PulwamaNahinBhulenge.” This video uses 10 seconds of the viral CCTV video. It was retweeted 100 times. Alt News has received several requests to fact-check the images on WhatsApp (+91 76000 11160) and on our official mobile application. Alt News broke the video into keyframes and reverse searched one of them on Google. The result suggested that this video is of an explosion which took place in Iraq. Alt News found that the earliest instance of this video on YouTube is of March 5, 2008, when it was uploaded with the title ‘Truck Bomb’. All the descriptions of the video that we found online said that the incident took place in Iraq. The video is more than 10 years old and is obviously in no way related to Pulwama. Therefore the social media claim that the viral video is related to Pulwama is false. Last year, two videos went viral with a similar. Arjun Sidharth is a writer with Alt News. He has previously worked in the television news industry, where he managed news bulletins and breaking news scenarios, apart from scripting numerous prime time television stories. He has also been actively involved with various freelance projects. Sidharth has studied economics, political science, international relations and journalism. He has a keen interest in books, movies, music, sports, politics, foreign policy, history and economics. His hobbies include reading, watching movies and indoor gaming. Rahul and Priyanka Gandhi recently performed aarti at the Narmada Ghat in Madhya Pradesh’s Omkareshwar… In the wake of the alleged murder of Shraddha Walkar by his partner Aftab Amin… The video of a group of people stopping an e-rickshaw with BJP flags attached to… Last week during the G20 summit in Bali, world leaders were informed of a missile… Recently, several prominent BJP leaders claimed that Prime Minister Narendra Modi had intervened to stop…	news-altnews	2024-05-27T18:24:05.489452	14th February 2020 / 7:45 pm / Last updated: 14th February 2020	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/car-bomb-explosion-in-iraq-revived-as-cctv-footage-of-pulwama-terror-attack/", "author": "Arjun Sidharth" }
497	Car bomb explosions in Syria and Iraq passed off as Pulwama CCTV footage - Alt News Arjun Sidharth 16th February 2019 / 3:39 pm / Last updated: 15th March 2019 In the wake of the Pulwama terror attack in which a car bomb killed over 40 CRPF personnel on February 14, two videos have surfaced on social media. These are CCTV videos, and are claimed to be of the Pulwama terror attack. The first video is grainy, and shows a convoy of vehicles in the distance, before a huge explosion takes place. CCTV Footage Of Pulwama Terror Attack \| Jammu Kashmir Posted by ਕਮਾਊ ਪੁੱਤ ਮਾਪਿਆਂ ਦੇ Kamau putt maapya de on Friday, February 15, 2019 The above video, posted by a Facebook page with close to 300,000 followers, has been shared almost 600 times and viewed over 22,000 times. The same video has been shared by another Facebook page I Love Punjab, apart from a large number of individual users. Alt News broke the video into key frames, and reverse searched one of them on Google. The result suggested that this video is of an explosion which took place in Iraq. Alt News found that the earliest instance of this video on YouTube is of March 5, 2008 when it was uploaded with the title ‘Truck Bomb’. All the descriptions of the video that we found online referred to this incident having taken place in Iraq. The video is more than 10 years old and is obviously in no way related to Pulwama. Another video which has been shared as CCTV footage of the Pulwama attack shows movement of vehicles on a road, followed by a huge explosion. पुलवामा मे आंतकवादी हमले के CCTV वीडियो… 🇮🇳🇮🇳🇮🇳🇮🇳🇮🇳#Pulwama #PulwamaAttack #IndiaWantsRevenge #CRPF pic.twitter.com/zk0u3mGSkq — अशोक-सिरोही 😭😭 (@Ashok9898114017) February 15, 2019 The video has been shared on Twitter as well as Facebook. A Google reverse image search of a frame from the video suggested that it is from Syria. Alt News found a video uploaded on YouTube by the Russian international news channel Russia Today. The attack had occurred at the Turkey-Syria border. According to reports, at least three people were injured after a car bomb hit a border gate between Syria and Turkey on February 12, 2019. The Chinese news agency Xinhua states, “According to broadcast A Haber news channel, the explosion happened on Syrian side of the Cobanbey border gate, which located between the northern Syria and the Turkish southeastern province Kilis.” In conclusion, videos of car bomb explosions from Iraq and Syria have been passed off as CCTV footage of the Pulwama attack. Arjun Sidharth is a writer with Alt News. He has previously worked in the television news industry, where he managed news bulletins and breaking news scenarios, apart from scripting numerous prime time television stories. He has also been actively involved with various freelance projects. Sidharth has studied economics, political science, international relations and journalism. He has a keen interest in books, movies, music, sports, politics, foreign policy, history and economics. His hobbies include reading, watching movies and indoor gaming. Rahul and Priyanka Gandhi recently performed aarti at the Narmada Ghat in Madhya Pradesh’s Omkareshwar… In the wake of the alleged murder of Shraddha Walkar by his partner Aftab Amin… The video of a group of people stopping an e-rickshaw with BJP flags attached to… Last week during the G20 summit in Bali, world leaders were informed of a missile… Recently, several prominent BJP leaders claimed that Prime Minister Narendra Modi had intervened to stop…	news-altnews	2024-05-27T18:24:05.489452	16th February 2019 / 3:39 pm / Last updated: 15th March 2019	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/car-bomb-explosions-in-syria-and-iraq-passed-off-as-pulwama-cctv-footage/", "author": "Arjun Sidharth" }
498	CCTV clip falsely viral as RSS activists murder, rape daughter of Dalit IAS officer in Nagpur - Alt News Aqib Pathan 12th October 2020 / 4:28 pm A CCTV footage of a man sitting inside his car mercilessly thrashed by a group of men is being shared on Facebook with the claim that a Dalit IAS officer was murdered by RSS activists in Nagpur. The Malayalam caption also adds that they raped his 16-year-old daughter in the car. നാഗപ്പൂരിൽ RSS പ്രവർത്തകർ ദളിത് IAS ഓഫീസറെ പരസ്യമായി വെട്ടിയും കുത്തിയും കൊലപ്പെടുത്തുന്നു . അദ്ദേഹത്തിന്റെ 16 വയസ്സുകാരി മകളെ കാറിൽ കൂട്ടാബലാത്സംഗം ചെയ്യുന്ന ഭീകര കാഴ്ചകൾ ഇതുപോലെ കേരളമാക്കി തീർക്കാനാണ് ലീഗ് കോൺഗ്രസ്സ് ബീജെപി ശക്യം രൂപീകരിക്കുന്നത് സുഹൃത്തുക്കളെ ഒരു വോട്ടുപോലും ഈ കള്ളനാറികൾക്ക് ഇട്ട് പോകരുത് .. 😡😡😡😡😬 Posted by Sunyd Hassan on Tuesday, September 29, 2020 This video is massively circulating on Facebook. Alt News performed a Google search with simple keywords ‘Nagpur murder CCTV’ and found several reports on the incident. According to The Indian Express, “The victim has been identified as Balya Belekar, who has a lengthy criminal record. According to sources, Belekar used to run a gambling den and was killed to avenge the death of a man he had murdered in 2001.” Chetan Hazare, Rajat Tambe, Aasim Ludelkar, Bharat Pandit, Chintu Nagachari, Aakash Khare, and Aniket Manthapurvar were arrested by the police. There is no mention of rape in the reports. Maharashtra: Nagpur Crime Branch arrests four accused of the murder of a suspected gambling den kingpin, Kishor Binekar. He was allegedly stabbed to death by five assailants at a petrol pump in Nagpur yesterday. pic.twitter.com/Y7X9e96ADl — ANI (@ANI) September 27, 2020 The allegation that RSS members murdered a Dalit IAS officer and raped his minor daughter are false. Aqib is monitoring and researching mis/disinformation at Alt News Rahul and Priyanka Gandhi recently performed aarti at the Narmada Ghat in Madhya Pradesh’s Omkareshwar… In the wake of the alleged murder of Shraddha Walkar by his partner Aftab Amin… The video of a group of people stopping an e-rickshaw with BJP flags attached to… Last week during the G20 summit in Bali, world leaders were informed of a missile… Recently, several prominent BJP leaders claimed that Prime Minister Narendra Modi had intervened to stop…	news-altnews	2024-05-27T18:24:05.489452	12th October 2020 / 4:28 pm	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/cctv-clip-falsely-viral-as-rss-activists-murder-rape-daughter-of-dalit-ias-officer-in-nagpur/", "author": "Aqib Pathan" }
499	CCTV clip of murder and bike robbery in Uganda viral in Indian social media ecosystem - Alt News Niddhi Rathi 4th July 2019 / 9:57 pm A video is viral on social media showing two men strangling a bike rider and hitting him on the head with a stone to steal his bike. The video is being circulated with the message – “Be careful at nights while giving lift to unknown”. Other variants of the message have also been shared – “kisi ko lift dete time 100 baar socho (think 100 times before giving a lift to someone).” Be careful while giving lift, especially during night hours. Be careful while giving lift, especially during night hours. #JBE_Scams <<Click hashtag to see similar posts \| Pls signup in our website www.jbeglobal.com & complete profile 100%. Login, browse vacancies & apply vacancies relevant to you. Candidates can choose Rs.500, Rs.2400, Rs.4200 & other paid options for confirmed postings. Companies can take candidates at “Zero cost to companies”. Posted by StartUps and Experiences on Wednesday, 3 July 2019 It is quite viral on WhatsApp, however, the clip has not been shared with any additional details of when and where the incident occured. The video is also circulating with a Hindi text – “किसी को लिफ्ट देने से पहले जरूर सोचिए (Think before giving somebody a lift.)” किसी को लिफ्ट देने से पहले जरूर सोचिए👇👇👇 Posted by Aakib khan on Tuesday, 2 July 2019 A Keyword search on YouTube led Alt News to a June 30, 2019 video which suggested that the incident took place in Uganda. As per the description, “The Uganda Police in Kampala are currently investigating a gruesome murder of a boda boda rider, by two unidentified robbers on Friday night who murdered him as he was driving them to an unknown destination.” Boda Boda is a motorcycle taxi service common in East Africa. The victim wasn’t giving a lift but was taking passengers. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m27gB7yyeEA We also found various articles and videos from multiple African websites, including Softpower News and SDE, which said that the video is of a robbery that took place on June 29, 2019 in Kampala district, Uganda. The incident was captured on CCTV cameras of a nearby nursery and primary school. The robbers posed as clients and attacked a Boda Boda rider, strangled and hit him with a stone repeatedly to kill him. A video from NTV Uganda’s YouTube channel shows the crime scene, identifies the victim and gives details of the whole event, including the people who found the body and also a statement from the police. The Uganda Police Force also released an official statement with details of the incident on their website. It said, “The territorial police in Old Kampala Divisional Headquarters is actively investigating a gruesome murder of a boda boda rider by two unidentified male robbers, who posing as clients, attacked, strangled and repeatedly hit him with a stone to the head, killing him instantly. They immediately after, stole his motorcycle and fled from the scene. The incident, which occurred on 29th June 2019 at around 0400 am, at Kakeeka Zone, Rubaga Division, in the Kampala district, was captured on CCTV cameras…at the moment, our cyber forensic experts are analyzing the CCTV footage for facial recognition and formal identification of the suspects…” A video from Uganda is viral in the Indian social media ecosystem, which might give users the impression that the crime took place in India. Such videos, when shared without the context, can give rise to a fear psychosis. Rahul and Priyanka Gandhi recently performed aarti at the Narmada Ghat in Madhya Pradesh’s Omkareshwar… In the wake of the alleged murder of Shraddha Walkar by his partner Aftab Amin… The video of a group of people stopping an e-rickshaw with BJP flags attached to… Last week during the G20 summit in Bali, world leaders were informed of a missile… Recently, several prominent BJP leaders claimed that Prime Minister Narendra Modi had intervened to stop…	news-altnews	2024-05-27T18:24:05.489452	4th July 2019 / 9:57 pm	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/cctv-clip-of-murder-and-bike-robbery-in-uganda-viral-in-indian-social-media-ecosystem/", "author": "Niddhi Rathi" }
500	Video from Gujarat falsely viral as Muslims attacked after 'The Kashmir Files' release - Alt News Kinjal 29th March 2022 / 4:18 pm A CCTV clip has been making the rounds on social media recently. The footage shows a man attacking a group of Muslims inside a shop with a sword. The victims tried to shield themselves by throwing chairs, a cycle, and a gas cylinder at the assailant. The video is being shared as the after-effects of the film ‘The Kashmir Files’. Twitter user Aadil Sheikh shared the clip with this claim. (Archive link) Another Twitter user also promoted the visuals and accompanying claim. (Archive link) मुसलमानों को सुरक्षा के लिए सोचना पड़ेगा और तैयारियां रखनी पड़ेगी ये सब कश्मीर फाइल्स फ़िल्म देकने के बाद का सिन हे pic.twitter.com/qvYRfnt5hz — Akhtarul Qadri (@MAQuadri92) March 23, 2022 The clip is widespread on Facebook and Twitter with the same message. Alt News performed a reverse image search using frames from the video, which led us to a tweet by News18 Gujarati. Reporting on the incident, the outlet also stated that the attack occurred in Surat, Gujarat. સુરતમાં લુખ્ખાઓનો આતંક, દુકાનદાર ઉપર કર્યો તલવાર વડે હુમલો, ઘટના સીસીટીવીમાં કેદ #surat #Gujarat pic.twitter.com/uo5CH5DLEe — News18Gujarati (@News18Guj) March 20, 2022 News18 Gujarati covered the incident in a March 20, 2022 story which said that two young miscreants attacked some shopkeepers in the Bhathena area of Surat, after demanding money from them. When the shopkeepers refused and decided to file a police complaint, the young men began attacking them with a sword. We also reached out to the Salabatpura Police Station, where charges were filed by both parties in the matter. The police informed us that the video has no connection to ‘The Kashmir Files’. They revealed that the incident occurred on March 15, and there was some mutual enmity between the two sides. However, there was no communal angle to it. The attackers and the victims were all Muslims. The police filed complaints on behalf of both parties and also made two arrests in the case. Boomlive accessed a copy of the FIR and found that out of the 11 accused, 10 were Muslim. To sum it up, a man attacked a few shopkeepers with a sword over a case of mutual enmity. A video of this was falsely circulated on social media as the after-effect of the film, ‘The Kashmir Files’. Kinjal Parmar holds a Bachelor of Science in Microbiology. However, her keen interest in journalism, drove her to pursue journalism from the Indian Institute of Mass Communication. At Alt News since 2019, she focuses on authentication of information which includes visual verification, media misreports, examining mis/disinformation across social media. She is the lead video producer at Alt News and manages social media accounts for the organization. Rahul and Priyanka Gandhi recently performed aarti at the Narmada Ghat in Madhya Pradesh’s Omkareshwar… In the wake of the alleged murder of Shraddha Walkar by his partner Aftab Amin… The CCTV footage of a man violently flinging a child on the ground has created… The video of a group of people stopping an e-rickshaw with BJP flags attached to… A minute-long video clip of a woman being physically assaulted is viral on social media….	news-altnews	2024-05-27T18:24:05.489452	29th March 2022 / 4:18 pm	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/cctv-footage-of-an-attack-in-gujarat-shared-as-after-effect-of-kashmir-files-movie/", "author": "Kinjal" }
501	CCTV video of unrelated incident shared as Haryana BJP MLA thrashed - Alt News Priyanka Jha 6th August 2020 / 3:01 pm A CCTV footage that shows some people enter an office and brutally beat up a person has been shared with the claim that a BJP MLA in Haryana was thrashed. On Facebook, a page named ‘Sukhdev Singh Chak’ posted this video on August 3, drawing over 1,000 shares as of this writing. हरियाणा में BJP MLA की धुलाई, अब भक्तों की बारी हो सकती है धीरे-धीरे लोगों में जागरूकता आ रही है..👇👇 Posted by Sukhdev Singh Chak on Monday, 3 August 2020 A user named Mehul Kumar NSUI also shared this video and wrote, “Watch this video of Haryana BJP MLA thrashed. People have recognised these thieves. (हरियाणा के BJP विधायक की धुलाई का यह वीडियो देखें। पब्लिक इन चोरो को जान गई है।) Alt News has received verification requests for the video on its official mobile application. A reverse image search of one of the keyframes of the video led us to an article by The Times of India published on July 23, 2020. As per the report, “Police has registered a case against five people for brutally thrashing 2 men at SDO office in Haryana’s Munak.” A video report by Punjab Kesari said, “In Gagsina village of CM City Karnal, an electricity line being installed was passing through a person’s field. Some people of the village reached the office of the Electricity Department regarding the inconvenience and complained to the SDO. The SDO called the contractor and said that the power line should be removed from there. While the discussion was ongoing, 5-6 people from the same village entered the SDO’s office and start beating the complainants.” A July 22 report by India TV carries the police’s statement. Police officials said that a complaint was filed against five people, out of which three were arrested. The other two’s involvement is being investigated. The officer informed that personal enmity sparked the violence. A two-week-old case has been shared with the false claim that a Haryana BJP MLA was beaten. She specializes in information verification, examining mis/disinformation, social media monitoring and platform accountability. Her aim is to make the internet a safer place and enable people to become informed social media users. She has been a part of Alt News since 2018. Rahul and Priyanka Gandhi recently performed aarti at the Narmada Ghat in Madhya Pradesh’s Omkareshwar… In the wake of the alleged murder of Shraddha Walkar by his partner Aftab Amin… The video of a group of people stopping an e-rickshaw with BJP flags attached to… Last week during the G20 summit in Bali, world leaders were informed of a missile… Recently, several prominent BJP leaders claimed that Prime Minister Narendra Modi had intervened to stop…	news-altnews	2024-05-27T18:24:05.489452	6th August 2020 / 3:01 pm	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/cctv-footage-of-assault-on-villagers-in-sdo-office-shared-with-false-claim-that-bjp-mla-was-attacked-in-haryana/", "author": "Priyanka Jha" }
502	CCTV footage of car explosion from China viral in India with a false claim - Alt News Jignesh Patel 8th May 2019 / 8:55 pm / Last updated: 8th May 2019 A video of a minibus catching fire on a street is being shared on social media. “There was a couple in a car. The lady sprayed perfume on her body. The man next to her was smoking… causing an explosion! With the fire burning, and the door couldn’t be opened to escape, the two were charred to death; advised ladies/gents not to use perfume-spray inside the car when someone smoking or anywhere near fire-site, like, kitchen, havan, open-fire, etc”, reads the message posted with the same video, by a Facebook page CCTV in Pune. The name of the Facebook page ‘CCTV In Pune’ misleads users into believing that the incident had occurred in Pune. It can be noted that the details regarding the location of the incident have not been disclosed. The message claims that the woman seated next to the man (not clearly visible) in the car sprayed perfume while he smoked a cigarette when suddenly the vehicle burst into flames. The video has been viewed over 16 lakh times and shared close to 25,000 times. There was a couple in a car. The lady sprayed perfume on her body. The man next to her was smoking… causing an explosion! With the fire burning, and the door couldn’t be opened to escape, the two were charred to death; advised ladies/gents not to use perfume-spray inside the car when someone smoking or anywhere near fire-site, like, kitchen, havan, open-fire, etc.. Posted by CCTV in PUNE on Tuesday, 16 April 2019 This video, posted with the same narrative by Facebook pages – Punjab Update and Citizen Journalist of Arunachal Pradesh – has garnered more than 100,000 views. Many other pages and individuals on Facebook have shared the video. With the help of Invid, Alt News broke the video into multiple key-frames. On performing a Google reverse image search on one of the key-frames, we found many articles about the incident published by Chinese media. According to these articles, the video pertains to a car explosion which took place at a village of Liquan County in Shaanxi Province, China. The video is NOT from Pune, as implied. Newsflare reported that a minibus transporting gas cylinders exploded after catching fire in northern China’s Xianyang city. One person, who was the driver seated in the car, died in the explosion. China Global Television Network had also reported about the incident on March 19. Minibus driver dies in car explosion in NW China pic.twitter.com/tcuAPoDK4e — CGTN (@CGTNOfficial) March 19, 2019 The video had also gone viral in the Chinese social media ecosystem with the same narrative which is currently circulating in India. Sample this tweet, with the identical narrative (Chinese language), posted below. A video of a car explosion in China was shared in India with a false narrative misleading social media users into believing that this incident took place here. Jignesh is a writer and researcher at Alt News. He has a knack for visual investigation with a major interest in fact-checking videos and images. He has completed his Masters in Journalism from Gujarat University. Rahul and Priyanka Gandhi recently performed aarti at the Narmada Ghat in Madhya Pradesh’s Omkareshwar… In the wake of the alleged murder of Shraddha Walkar by his partner Aftab Amin… The video of a group of people stopping an e-rickshaw with BJP flags attached to… Last week during the G20 summit in Bali, world leaders were informed of a missile… Recently, several prominent BJP leaders claimed that Prime Minister Narendra Modi had intervened to stop…	news-altnews	2024-05-27T18:24:05.489452	8th May 2019 / 8:55 pm / Last updated: 8th May 2019	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/cctv-footage-of-car-explosion-from-china-viral-in-india-with-a-false-claim/", "author": "Jignesh Patel" }
503	CCTV footage of man sexually assaulting children is from Pakistan - Alt News Archit 27th April 2020 / 7:03 pm / Last updated: 27th April 2020 A 44-second CCTV footage of a man in a skull cap sexually assaulting children is circulating on the Indian social media ecosystem. The video has been not been attached in the report to protect the children’s identities. Founder of fake news website Postcard News Mahesh Vikram Hegde tweeted the video and wrote “Watch what this “peaceful” is doing with kids!” This tweet was retweeted over 3,000 times. Despite Hedge’s history of peddling misinformation, he is followed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Twitter. Several users have shared the viral video with a Tamil text – “look what a single source is doing (இந்த தனியார் அமைப்பை சேர்ந்தவன் என்னா பண்றானு பாருங்க..)” – linking it with the coronavirus outbreak. Twitter user @my_keechu was among those who posted the message in Tamil. This tweet has been retweeted over 700 times. The video was also shared with a message in Hindi which claims that the man was applying his spittle on children during the ongoing month of Ramzan. “जानवर भी कांप जांए जालीदार टोपी वाले जानवरों से रमजान में छोटी बच्चियों को थूक लगा रहा है मौलवी निहायत ही घिनौना और वहशी दरिंदा,” reads the complete message. Alt News has received several requests to fact-check the video on WhatsApp (+91 76000 11160) and on our official Android application. Alt News performed several keyword searches on Google. The keywords ‘CCTV paedophile viral video Pakistan’ led us to the video posted by the website newpakweb.com on April 21. According to the report, the man in the video was arrested by Dera Ghazi Khan police over charges of child abuse in Punjab, Pakistan. Dera Ghazi Khan is a city in the Punjab province of Pakistan. Using this as a clue, we rummaged through tweets by the official account of Punjab police, Pakistan. On April 21, Punjab Police quote-tweeted a tweet by another user who brought the viral video to the police’s attention. “Punjab police have arrested the accused. Further legal proceedings are underway against the accused,” reads the police’s tweet. In another reply to the same user, Punjab police shared a photograph of the accused behind bars. Thus, an incident of child abuse in Pakistan caught on CCTV camera has been widely shared by Indian social media users. Some even claimed that it was an attempt to apply spittle on children during the coronavirus pandemic. 🙏 Blessed to have worked as a fact-checking journalist from November 2019 to February 2023. Following Saudi Arabia’s 2-1 win against Argentina in the ongoing FIFA World Cup, speculation about… In the wake of the alleged murder of Shraddha Walkar by his partner Aftab Amin… The CCTV footage of a man violently flinging a child on the ground has created… A minute-long video clip of a woman being physically assaulted is viral on social media…. Trigger Warning: The following story contains graphic imagery. Several users have shared images of the…	news-altnews	2024-05-27T18:24:05.489452	27th April 2020 / 7:03 pm / Last updated: 27th April 2020	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/cctv-footage-of-man-sexually-assaulting-children-is-from-pakistan/", "author": "Archit" }
504	CCTV from 2020 falsely viral as COVID patient killed in Bengaluru's Oxford hospital - Alt News Archit 27th April 2021 / 6:52 pm / Last updated: 28th April 2021 A CCTV footage from a hospital that shows the staff thrashing a patient behind curtains is being circulated on WhatsApp. It is being shared with the claim that the government is paying hospitals for killing people in the name of COVID-19. The clip is viral on WhatsApp in the name of Bengaluru’s Oxford Hospital. [Disclaimer: The video may be distressing for some.] The above clip video has been shared with English and Kannada audio notes on WhatsApp. The English audio says, “There is a hospital called Oxford University Hospital in Anneka close to Bannerghatta (Bengaluru). So people get admitted for surgery or any health-related issues, suspecting Corona… They get them admitted and they don’t give them proper treatment and they kill them. Once they die, the government gives money to the hospital… About 5 to 7 lakhs. So every day, they’re killing like five to seven people. So somehow hidden cameras… and people have taken videos and it’s now gone viral. [sic]” Another narrator says in Kannada, “Share this video! After this video, we don’t know if we should call doctors God or Devil. Please watch this video and share with friends… the way they are killing people by saying the patient has corona, they put them on a ventilator and after 4-5 days they kill them… Please share this with all.” Alt News has received multiple verification requests for the video on our WhatsApp helpline number (76000 11160). Readers can also send queries on our mobile application. (Android, iOS) Alt News noticed that the top left corner of the video identifies the location as Patiala, Punjab. The Tribune had reported the incident in August 2020. Gurdeep Singh and Mohammed Rahul, staff members at Prime Hospital, thrashed a patient suffering from depression on August 21 According to Amar Ujala, the victim was admitted because he was suffering from depression after his mother’s demise. The Tribune reported both culprits were arrested and booked under Section 323 (Punishment for voluntarily causing hurt) and Section 342 (Punishment for wrongful confinement) of the IPC. To conclude, a video from Patiala was shared with the false claim that hospitals are killing patients to get funds from the government amidst the ongoing pandemic. A 30-second video package is being shared with a similar claim. The video begins with a masked woman giving a bite to NewsFirst Kannada. In the opening 17-seconds she says, “… Daily seven are dying… are being killed people! They are not dying, they are being killed. Please take immediate action. [Breaks down in tears] Please save people! I lost my father.” The interview was aired on April 22 by NewsFirst Kannada. The video is from Bengaluru’s Oxford Hospital. The woman’s bite begins around the 2:40 mark. The part in the viral video begins from the 3:58 mark. The woman is in a state of distress after losing her father and she can be seen blaming the hospital for his death. [youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LzbqMYl4e4s?start=231&w=560&h=315] After the women’s bite, a video of a man wearing a medical mask can be seen choking a patient is played followed by the viral video which was earlier debunked in this report. The video of a man choking another is from Bangladesh and was debunked by Alt News last year. Our report found that the same clip was viral in Bangladesh with the claim that a son was strangling his sick father to death. But a few other users also claimed that the son was force-feeding medicine to his father. 🙏 Blessed to have worked as a fact-checking journalist from November 2019 to February 2023. A minute-long video clip of a woman being physically assaulted is viral on social media…. Trigger Warning: The following story contains graphic imagery. Several users have shared images of the… A 1:34-minute-long CCTV camera clip is being widely circulated on social media in which viewers… Trigger Warning: Violent Content. Viewer discretion is advised. Over the past few months, rumours of… The teaser of a movie titled ‘The Kerala Story’ is being widely shared on social…	news-altnews	2024-05-27T18:24:05.489452	27th April 2021 / 6:52 pm / Last updated: 28th April 2021	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/cctv-from-2020-falsely-viral-as-covid-patient-killed-in-bengalurus-oxford-hospital/", "author": "Archit" }
505	CCTV video from Sri Lanka falsely viral as Muslim man attacks Hindu in India - Alt News Alt News Desk 2nd March 2021 / 8:10 pm / Last updated: 3rd July 2021 “This is how Hindus are killed and their deaths are made to look like an accident,” is a message shared with a CCTV video of a man in a skull cap beating another man with a rod. कुछ इस तरह हिंदुओं को मार कर एक्सीडेंट साबित कर दिया जाता है केरल में। कुछ इस तरह हिंदुओं को मार कर एक्सीडेंट साबित कर दिया जाता है केरल में। इस जेहादी की उस हिन्दू से कोई परिचय या दुश्मनी नहीं थी. सिर्फ अकेले में मौका मिला तो उसने ऐक और हिन्दू कम कर दिया अगर cc tv न होता तो ये जेहादी कभी न पकड़ाया होता।।। सावधान रहें-सतर्क रहें।। . . . . . . #viralpost #viralvideos #viralvideo #viralindia #faridabadjyoti #faridabad #Faridabadnews #cpfaridabad #faridabadpolice #haryanapolice #haryananews #haryana #faridabadwale #hr51wale #faridabadcrime #ballabgarh #ballabgarhnews Posted by FaridabadjyotiNews on Tuesday, 29 June 2021 It is quite widely circulating on Facebook. Alt News has also received verification requests on its WhatsApp helpline number +91 76000 11160. The same clip was circulating earlier in February. कुछ इस तरह हिंदुओं को मार कर एक्सीडेंट साबित कर दिया जाता है केरल में इस जेहादी की उस हिन्दू से कोई परिचय या दुश्मनी नहीं थी केवल अकेले में मौका मिला तो उसने एक और हिन्दू कम कर दिया, यही कुरान इनको सिखाती है। अगर CCTV न होता तो ये जेहादी कभी न पकड़ में आता।सावधान रहें सतर्क रहें। pic.twitter.com/ik8nhLwwgI — 🚩🇮🇳उमा शंकर राजपूत 🇮🇳🚩7k (@UmaShankar2054) April 5, 2021 It was also shared with a differently-worded message – “We lack killer instinct, including me. We worry abt the consequences later. They are like “Jo hoga dekha jayega”. @narendramodi this is increasing their power! Please take some strict action (sic),” wrote Twitter user @TheMehtaji while another suggested that the Muslim community in India should be economically boycotted. BJP Delhi social media head Naveen Kumar also shared the video. He wrote, “कपड़ों से पहचाना जा सकता है” referring to Prime Minister Modi’s statement during anti-CAA protests that those inciting violence “can be identified by their clothes”. His tweet was quote-tweeted by @seriousfunnyguy who is followed by PM Modi and BJP leaders Piyush Goyal, Smriti Irani and Kapil Mishra. कपड़ों से पहचाना जा सकता है pic.twitter.com/qFxVIoiAV4 — Naveen Kumar (@naveenjindalbjp) February 26, 2021 BJP supporter Sonam Mahajan tweeted, “Miyan bhai ki darin in true sense.” Several people in her comments believe that a Hindu man was attacked in India. Another user @thakkar_sameet who is followed by PM Modi also shared the clip. It has also been circulated with Tamil captions. தொப்புள் கொடி உறவின் செயல் இந்தியர்களே பத்திரமா இருங்க… pic.twitter.com/CrsGB2Y6Dv — 🔱🇮🇳Sri.Sri.Yadav🇮🇳🔱 ஓம் சிவாய நம🚩 (@iamSri_Sri) February 25, 2021 In the background, people can be heard talking in Sinhalese. This was the first clue that suggested the video could be from Sri Lanka. Fact Crescendo Sri Lanka contacted Galaha police station in the central province of Sri Lanka. Acting OIC Rodrigo told the outlet that the attack was not religiously motivated. “The Muslim person is mentally ill. He suddenly engaged in the attack. We arrested him immediately and kept him in police custody. At present, the injured person is being treated at the hospital,” he said. According to Fact Crescendo, the incident took place in the Galaha area of Kandy. The attack has not been reported in Sri Lankan media but it is circulating in the country’s social media ecosystem. A video of a Muslim man attacking a person in Sri Lanka was shared to malign the Indian Muslim community. As confirmed by the police, the incident does not have communal overtones but the perpetrator, who is now arrested, is mentally unstable. Follow @free_thinker In the wake of the alleged murder of Shraddha Walkar by his partner Aftab Amin… The CCTV footage of a man violently flinging a child on the ground has created… A minute-long video clip of a woman being physically assaulted is viral on social media…. Trigger Warning: The following story contains graphic imagery. Several users have shared images of the… The brutal murder of Shraddha Walker has been widely covered across news media over the…	news-altnews	2024-05-27T18:24:05.489452	2nd March 2021 / 8:10 pm / Last updated: 3rd July 2021	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/cctv-video-from-sri-lanka-falsely-viral-as-muslim-man-attacks-hindu-in-india/", "author": "Alt News Desk" }
506	CCTV video of suicide from Cairo Tower, Egypt viral as Burj Khalifa, Dubai - Alt News Archit 11th December 2019 / 7:05 pm Since December 9, several people have uploaded a CCTV footage of a man committing suicide by jumping from a building as “Dubai Burj Khalifa live suicide ….” on Twitter and YouTube. A 45-second clip posted by a Twitter user, @stay_awayyy_ has been retweeted over 80 times. In Dubai Burj Khalifa live suicide …. AstagfiruAllah 💔 pic.twitter.com/WhZGL9RuuU — ماہ رخ 🌸 (@stay_awayyy_) December 9, 2019 Alt News received multiple requests to fact-check this claim on its app. Alt News used a screenshot from the video and did a reverse image search on Google. We found a report from December 1 on a website Teller Report which wrote on the incident and quoted an Al Jazeera article from November 30, 2019, as its source. According to the Al Jazeera report, a student committed suicide by jumping from Cairo Tower, Egypt. The report identified the individual as an engineering student at Helwan University and said, “According to preliminary investigations conducted by the Egyptian authorities, the student was found to be in a bad psychological condition and informed his friend a few days ago of his intention to commit suicide.” On December 4, Al Jazeera reported that Egyptian Public Prosecutor, Hamada El-Sawy, announced that investigations will take place to identify who published the records of surveillance machines in Cairo Tower, related to the suicide case. Searching the keywords “Egypt Ciaro Tower Suicide” on YouTube, Alt News also found a video by BBC with the title ” فيديو انتحار طالب مصري من أعلى برج القاهرة يثير ضجة (Google translate: A video of an Egyptian student committing suicide from the top of the Cairo Tower is making a fuss).” Since this incident was reported, several people have tweeted using the hashtag الانتحار_منتشر_بسبب (Suicidal_ due to) to express concern. The claim that the video depicts a suicide from Burj Khalifa, Dubai is false. The video is from Cairo, Egypt. 🙏 Blessed to have worked as a fact-checking journalist from November 2019 to February 2023. Rahul and Priyanka Gandhi recently performed aarti at the Narmada Ghat in Madhya Pradesh’s Omkareshwar… In the wake of the alleged murder of Shraddha Walkar by his partner Aftab Amin… The video of a group of people stopping an e-rickshaw with BJP flags attached to… Last week during the G20 summit in Bali, world leaders were informed of a missile… Recently, several prominent BJP leaders claimed that Prime Minister Narendra Modi had intervened to stop…	news-altnews	2024-05-27T18:24:05.489452	11th December 2019 / 7:05 pm	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/cctv-video-of-suicide-from-cairo-tower-egypt-viral-as-burj-khalifa-dubai/", "author": "Archit" }
507	Central govt employees DA has not been suspended, fake memorandum viral - Alt News Kalim Ahmed 4th January 2022 / 7:59 pm An alleged “office memorandum” is circulating on WhatsApp in the name of the Department of Expenditure under the Ministry of Finance. As per the notice, Dearness Allowance (DA) and Dearness Relief (DR) payable to Central Government employees and Central Government pensioners respectively will be suspended to tackle any “unprecedented situation” that may arise due to the Omicron variant of the Coronavirus. It further states that the decision will be in effect from January 1, 2022, and the programme will be resumed in the near future with revised rates. A copy of the viral memorandum is attached below. The notice also says, “The finance department of all ministries is hereby directed to control additional expenditure as justifiable.” Alt News has received multiple requests on its official WhatsApp helpline number (+91 76000 11160) to verify the authenticity of this notice. The notice is in circulation on Facebook as well. In October 2021, the Ministry of Finance had increased Dearness Allowance for Central Government employees. The rates were revised upwards from 28 per cent of the ‘Basic Salary’ to 31 per cent. The new rates were made effective from July 1, 2021. The viral office memorandum comes just a few months after the hike was announced. We looked at the memorandum closely and observed a few anomalies when compared with a genuine memorandum: We have juxtaposed the viral memorandum with a genuine memorandum issued by the Department of Expenditure in the past. This is the same pattern used in other memorandums issued in recent years, which can be accessed in the archives of the Department of Expenditure. We also checked the “Who’s who” section on the website of the Department of Expenditure for an “Anand Prakash” under whose name the letter is undersigned and did not find anybody by this name. It is important to note that the website does not display the full name of some of the employees. Further, the website of the Department of Expenditure has not issued any circular under “Dearness Allowance” since August 2021. The viral notice was also debunked by the government’s fact-checking wing PIB Fact Check. A #Fake order issued in the name of the Ministry of Finance claiming that the ‘Dearness Allowance & Dearness Relief payable to Central Govt employees and pensioners will be kept in abeyance’ is in circulation.#PIBFactCheck ▶️No such order has been issued by the @FinMinIndia. pic.twitter.com/DnZ4IY91FF — PIB Fact Check (@PIBFactCheck) January 3, 2022 Hence, an order issued in the name of the Ministry of Finance stating that the Dearness Allowance and Dearness Relief payable to Central Government employees and Central Government pensioners has been suspended is fake. Kalim is a journalist with a keen interest in tech, misinformation, culture, etc Following Saudi Arabia’s 2-1 win against Argentina in the ongoing FIFA World Cup, speculation about… Trigger Warning: The following story contains graphic imagery. Several users have shared images of the… The brutal murder of Shraddha Walker has been widely covered across news media over the… A 1:34-minute-long CCTV camera clip is being widely circulated on social media in which viewers… The teaser of a movie titled ‘The Kerala Story’ is being widely shared on social…	news-altnews	2024-05-27T18:24:05.489452	4th January 2022 / 7:59 pm	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/central-govt-employees-da-has-not-been-suspended-fake-memorandum-viral/", "author": "Kalim Ahmed" }
508	CGI clip and old video shared as devastation caused by Cyclone Nivar - Alt News Aqib Pathan 26th November 2020 / 9:43 pm / Last updated: 27th November 2020 Parts of Tamil Nadu and Puducherry witnessed heavy rainfall and storm due to Cyclone Nivar. Three people have died in the torrential downpour. Since then, social media is ripe with videos of storms claimed to represent Cyclone Nivar. One Twitter user shared a video on November 25 and captioned it, “Human lifes gonna end soon” with the hashtag #CycloneNivar. The video drew 48,000 views. (Archive link) Human lifes gonna end soon One after another,bad things happening to humans Advance RIP humans#ChennaiRain #ChennaiFloods #CycloneNivar #CycloneNivarUpdate #Chennaiweather pic.twitter.com/R4bWORJ8Uf — Kurma Vishnu Priya (@PriyaKurma) November 25, 2020 A Facebook user shared another video showing heavy rainfall. He too claimed it depicts Cyclone Nivar. Nivar cyclone CHENNAI Posted by Gadde Rajapudi on Wednesday, November 25, 2020 Alt News found that both videos are old and unrelated to the recent calamity. Video 1 This video shows clouds gathering overhead, then they suddenly turning into a water tornado. This was earlier fact-checked by The Quint. A keyword search ‘Tornado CGI’ leads one to a video from December 2018. This video was posted by YouTuber Alexandru Dineci and titled, “Tornado CGI simulation (Cinema 4D TurbulenceFD)”. The viral video begins from the 00:10 mark. [youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cLCg5QedEvY] Alexandru Dineci posted the same video on his Instagram profile @orphicframer. A post shared by ORPHICFRAMER 🌪 (@orphicframer) He had also uploaded a breakdown of the CGI effects in his Instagram story highlights. Video 2 Alt News broke down this video into multiple keyframes and reverse searched them on Yandex. We came across a YouTube video uploaded on September 12, 2017. A Twitter user had also posted the video a few days later on September 17, 2018. The title of the YouTube upload is in Turkish — “IRMA Kasırgası ABD” — which translates to “Hurricane IRMA USA”. The Twitter user posted the clip with a Spanish caption, “Poderoso tifón #Manghkut en Hong Kong”, that translates to, “Powerful typhoon #Manghkut in Hong Kong”. While Alt News was unable to verify the location of the second video, it certainly does not represent devastation caused by Cyclone Nivar. One of the clips has been made using CGI while the other is at least three years old. Aqib is monitoring and researching mis/disinformation at Alt News Following Saudi Arabia’s 2-1 win against Argentina in the ongoing FIFA World Cup, speculation about… Trigger Warning: The following story contains graphic imagery. Several users have shared images of the… The brutal murder of Shraddha Walker has been widely covered across news media over the… A 1:34-minute-long CCTV camera clip is being widely circulated on social media in which viewers… The teaser of a movie titled ‘The Kerala Story’ is being widely shared on social…	news-altnews	2024-05-27T18:24:05.489452	26th November 2020 / 9:43 pm / Last updated: 27th November 2020	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/cgi-clip-and-old-video-shared-as-devastation-caused-by-cyclone-nivar/", "author": "Aqib Pathan" }
509	CGI video by Russian inventor viral as Israeli drones supplied to India - Alt News Pooja Chaudhuri 21st February 2019 / 11:02 pm / Last updated: 21st February 2019 “यह वही ड्रोन है जिसे भारत इज़राइल से खरीद रहा है।इसे खरीदने का प्रयास चीन ने भी किया लेकिन भारत का विरोधी होने के कारण इज़राइल ने बेचने से साफ मना कर दिया\|आप भी देखिए इस ड्रोन का कमाल (This is the same drone that India is purchasing from Israel. Even China tried to buy this (drone) but as it opposes India, Israel denied selling it to China. You also watch this amazing drone),” is a message currently viral on social media, accompanied with a CGI video of combat aircrafts and drones. इसको देख कर ऐसी फटेगी सायद कोई सील न पाए 😁* यह वही ड्रोन है जिसे भारत इज़राइल से खरीद रहा है।इसे खरीदने का प्रयास चीन ने भी किया लेकिन भारत का विरोधी होने के कारण इज़राइल ने बेचने से साफ मना कर दिया* आप भी देखिए इस ड्रोन का कमाल👇👇👇👇👇 Posted by मीरा मान on Wednesday, 20 February 2019 Several individual users have shared the 6:16 minutes clip. Alt News found that the video has been floating on both Twitter and Facebook with the identical claim since last year. The viral video carried the stamp – ‘Semenov Dahir Kurmanbievich’. When Alt News looked up the phrase on YouTube, we found that it was the name of a Russian inventor, Dahir Semenov. We discovered his YouTube channel where, in 2016, he had uploaded the same video which is currently viral on social media. We also found his LinkedIn and Facebook profiles which said that he is a Russian citizen currently residing in Turkey. Semenov is also a director of a technology company called Dahir Insaat Corporation, which provides clients with construction techniques. He made news in 2015 for designing an earthquake-proof bed. In the aftermath of Pulwama attack, Israel offered “unconditional help” to India to tackle terrorism. Recently, the Indian government also approved 54 killer drones from Israel made for the Indian air force. However, the viral video is not representative of the India-Israel defence deal as it was a concept design uploaded by a Russian inventor. Pooja Chaudhuri is a senior editor at Alt News. Rahul and Priyanka Gandhi recently performed aarti at the Narmada Ghat in Madhya Pradesh’s Omkareshwar… In the wake of the alleged murder of Shraddha Walkar by his partner Aftab Amin… The video of a group of people stopping an e-rickshaw with BJP flags attached to… Last week during the G20 summit in Bali, world leaders were informed of a missile… Recently, several prominent BJP leaders claimed that Prime Minister Narendra Modi had intervened to stop…	news-altnews	2024-05-27T18:24:05.489452	21st February 2019 / 11:02 pm / Last updated: 21st February 2019	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/cgi-video-by-russian-inventor-viral-as-israeli-drones-supplied-to-india/", "author": "Pooja Chaudhuri" }
510	Chandrashekhar Azad Ravan did not say "Bharat Jalana Jaante hai"; Misquoted by Zee News, News18 - Alt News Alt News Desk 3rd February 2019 / 6:06 pm “हम भारत बंद करना जानते है, तो हम भारत जलाना भी जानते हैं” “If we know how to shut down India, we also know how to burn it too” (translated). A provocative statement threatening to burn India has been attributed to Dalit organisation, Bhim Army’s chief, Chandrashekhar Azad Ravan by Zee News Hindi and News18. According to articles by these two media outlets, speaking at a Dalit event in Muzaffarnagar, Chandrashekhar reportedly said that the crowd is only waiting for his signal, if we can shut down India, we can burn it too. There is a limit to our patience, there is a limit of the atrocities too” (translated) “जितनी भीड़ यहां खड़ी है, उसे सिर्फ एक बार मेरे इशारे का इंतजार है. अगर हम भारत बंद करना जानते हैं, तो हम भारत को जलाना भी जानते हैं. हमारे सब्र का इम्तिहान नहीं लिया जाए, एक सीमा होती है उत्पीड़न की भी” भीम आर्मी के चंद्रशेखर का विवादित बयान, 'हम भारत बंद कराना जानते हैं, तो जलाना भी जानते हैं'https://t.co/4OXj2lW4aT — Zee News Hindi (@ZeeNewsHindi) February 2, 2019 The reports predictably led to an outrage and reaction on social media. A twitter user, @shrialokmishra, who describes himself as a nationalist, threatened to use the same fire to make a biryani out of those threatening to burn India and feed it to the dogs. “Try it and watch the fun”, he tweeted. हम भारत जलाने वालों को उसी में पका कर, बिरियानी बनाकर, फिर गली के कुत्तों को खिलाना भी जानते हैं। एक कोशिश तो करो। फिर देखो मज़ा…….।https://t.co/mTO0eUJZhf — Bhaiyya ji (@shrialokmishra) February 3, 2019 Did Chandrashekhar Azad really make a controversial statement threatening to burn down India? Alt News accessed the video recording of the event to confirm if he indeed made such a statement. His statement can be heard starting 1:30 in the following video clip. [youtube https://youtu.be/ljS8k3OzPCI?t=81] It is evident from the video clipping that Chandrashekhar said “भारत चलाना” and not “भारत जलाना” (“run India” and not “burn India”). We slowed the video down and listened to that specific portion of the speech in a loop. In the slow-motion video, it even more clear that Chandrashekhar said “Chalana” and not “Jalana”. [vimeo https://vimeo.com/315073201] To make sure that there was no element of misinterpretion, Alt News also listened to older speeches of Chandrashekhar and found that he has made the same claim about the ability of Bhim Sena to run India (“भारत चलाना”) in another speech as well. At 2:07 in the speech below, Chandrashekhar makes the same statement that he’s made in the present rally. भीम आर्मी प्रमुख की कल दिल्ली में दहाड़ जब भी अधिकारों की लड़ाई लड़ी जाएगी , चन्द्र शेखर सबसे आगे रहेगा माँगने से भीख मिलेगी अधिकार छीनने पड़ेंगे कल अधिकारों के लिए किए जा रहे संघर्ष में दिल्ली पहुंचे सभी साथियो को साधुवाद, कल दिल्ली में 13 पॉइंट रोस्टर नियम के विरोध प्रदर्शन में भीम आर्मी की तरफ से समर्थन करते हुए , भीम आर्मी प्रमुख चन्द्र शेखर आजाद , जय भीम , जय भीम आर्मी जय बहुजन , जय सँविधान Posted by BHIM ARMY on Thursday, 31 January 2019 Tweeting from his twitter handle, Chandrashekhar slammed Zee TV and News18 for being anti-Dalit and wrote that he had said “भारत चलाना” not “भारत जलाना” (“run India” and not “burn India”). He also threatened legal action against them. मैंने भारत चलाना बोला और ये भाजपा का दलाल चैनल जलाना चला रहा है क्या ऐसे दलित विरोधी मनुवादी चैनलों का बहिष्कार नही होना चाहिए? https://t.co/PG7XvZqobs — Chandra Shekhar Aazad (@BhimArmyChief) February 3, 2019 Chandrashekhar also published a video statement on his Twitter account. मीडिया चैनल @News18India @ZeeNewsHindi के दलित विरोधी हमारी छवि खराब करने के झूठे एजेंडे के खिलाफ मेरा स्टेटमेंट, न्यूज़ 18 ने खबर हटा ली है लेकिन बेशर्म ज़ी न्यूज़ ने अबतक खबर नही हटाई है आज की रैली में इनके बहिष्कार की बात रखूंगा।#ZeeNewsIsFakeNews #ZeeNewsIsHateNews pic.twitter.com/hFazeNH7Ws — Chandra Shekhar Aazad (@BhimArmyChief) February 3, 2019 In a conversation with Alt News, Chandrashekhar reiterated that he had been misquoted by Zee News and News18. Till the time of writing the article, there was no official statement or apology from the two media outlets. Follow @free_thinker Following Saudi Arabia’s 2-1 win against Argentina in the ongoing FIFA World Cup, speculation about… Trigger Warning: The following story contains graphic imagery. Several users have shared images of the… The brutal murder of Shraddha Walker has been widely covered across news media over the… A 1:34-minute-long CCTV camera clip is being widely circulated on social media in which viewers… The teaser of a movie titled ‘The Kerala Story’ is being widely shared on social…	news-altnews	2024-05-27T18:24:05.489452	3rd February 2019 / 6:06 pm	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/chandrashekhar-azad-ravan-did-not-say-bharat-jalana-jaante-hai-misquoted-by-zee-news-news18/", "author": "Alt News Desk" }
511	Chennai-based activist's image shared as Amulya Noronha at farmers' protest - Alt News Archit 15th February 2021 / 2:38 pm / Last updated: 15th February 2021 Two images have been shared with the claim, “The girl who said ‘Pakistan Zindabad’ is now our farmers’ leader.” One of the photos shows 19-year-old activist Amulya Leona Noronha with president of the All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM) Asaduddin Owaisi. Amulya was arrested last year under the sedition law for chanting “Pakistani Zindabad” in a speech. The other image shows a woman, claimed to be Amulya, posing with farm bill protestors. (Viral Telugu text: పాకిస్తాన్ జిందాబాద్ అన్న ఈ పిల్ల, ఈ రోజు రైతు నాయకురాలు, ఇది మన దరిద్రం) The images have been shared with both English and Telugu (1, 2) texts on social media. Twitter user @shankstar16‘s tweet gained over 300 retweets. Twitter user @SanggitaT wrote, “The same girl in Farmers protest …. Who raised Pakistan Zindabad in MIM meeting …. What is this connection … Who are the forces behind this …. All the same faces seen in every Anti National protest ..” The post is widespread on Facebook. While rummaging the replies to the tweet by @shankstar16 we found a tweet by @rana_dheeran that stated that the name of the woman in the picture with Sikh men is Valarmathi. Adhu amulya illa Namma ooru puratchi pulltee Valarmathi — தீரன்🚩🇮🇳 (@rana_dheeran) January 27, 2021 Using relevant keyword search on Facebook, we found that the image in question was posted by Chennai-based Valarmathi Sums on January 26. Posted by Valarmathi Sums on Tuesday, 26 January 2021 Valarmathi, a student activist, told The Quint, “I am in the first photo, not Amulya. We had gone to Delhi for the 26 January farmers’ rally because we wanted to understand the issues by being directly on the ground and extend our solidarity. The picture was taken at Tikri border, and the man in the image is a close relative of Bhagat Singh, which is why we wanted to get a picture clicked.” Amulya had participated in protests against the Citizenship Amendment Act. In February 2020, she raised “Pakistan Zindabad” slogans in the presence of AIMIM chief Asaduddin Owaisi during a protest rally. Her friends said that Amulya wanted to reiterate a Facebook post where she hailed several countries in an attempt to show that people who fight for fundamental rights are not bound by borders. Amulya spent four months in prison on sedition charges before she was granted bail. An image of Chennai-based student activist Valarmathi Sumsat at Tikri border was shared with the false claim that she is Amulya Leona Noronha, anti-CAA student activist from Hyderabad. 🙏 Blessed to have worked as a fact-checking journalist from November 2019 to February 2023. Rahul and Priyanka Gandhi recently performed aarti at the Narmada Ghat in Madhya Pradesh’s Omkareshwar… In the wake of the alleged murder of Shraddha Walkar by his partner Aftab Amin… The video of a group of people stopping an e-rickshaw with BJP flags attached to… Last week during the G20 summit in Bali, world leaders were informed of a missile… Recently, several prominent BJP leaders claimed that Prime Minister Narendra Modi had intervened to stop…	news-altnews	2024-05-27T18:24:05.489452	15th February 2021 / 2:38 pm / Last updated: 15th February 2021	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/chennai-based-activists-image-shared-as-amulya-noranha-at-farmers-protest/", "author": "Archit" }
512	Chennai man severed head of sister's rapist? No, gory video from 2018 viral - Alt News Arjun Sidharth 20th June 2019 / 3:46 pm / Last updated: 11th September 2020 “This guy Akku Yadav from chennai, India whose sister was raped and the next thing he did was chopped off the rapist’s head and brought it to the police station. Your trending hashtags are just as useless as our government and laws,” is a message viral on social media. This guy Akku Yadav from chennai, India whose sister was raped and the next thing he did was chopped off the rapist’s head and brought it to the police station.. Your trending hashtags are just as useless as our government and laws. #HangRapistsPublically pic.twitter.com/sPItr3cavq — Wasiq Awan 🇵🇰 (@IamWasiq_) September 11, 2020 A video of the same incident was viral last year with the message, “चेन्नई में बहन के साथ बलात्कार हुआ तो भाई ने बलात्कार करने वाले आरोपी का सर काट कर पुलिस स्टेशन ले गया इस तरह का कार्य करने से पहले 100 बार सोचे कि ऐसा भी अंजाम हो सकता है (In Chennai, a person beheaded the accused who had raped his sister; beheaded him and took it to the police station; think a hundred times before doing such acts, the consequences could be such- translation).” The disturbing video showed a man wearing a bloodied shirt walking around with a severed head. The video is 1:38 minutes long and shows the man accosted by police personnel as he walks. Due to the gory nature of the video, Alt News has not posted it here. The video had been uploaded by several individual users on Twitter in 2019. On Facebook, users have uploaded it on their timelines with an identical message. This suggested that the same is circulating on WhatsApp as well. Alt News searched Google with the keywords “Chennai beheading”, and found several news articles related to this incident. The claim floating on social media platforms along with this video is false. Firstly, this incident did not occur in Chennai. It took place in Mandya district of Karnataka in 2018. Secondly, the narrative accompanying the video is false. The incident had occurred on September 29, 2018 in the Mandya district of Karnataka. According to reports, the man seen in the video had beheaded his friend following a heated scuffle. Police had stated that the person had severed his friend’s head after the latter had made disgraceful remarks against his mother. TheNewsMinute states, “According to the police, Pashupathi brought the severed head to Malavalli from Chikkabagilu village, where the duo resided. “He (Pashupathi) informed the police officials that Girish spoke ill of his mother, which triggered a fight between the two,” added the SP.” In conclusion, the claim surrounding this video on social media is false. The incident took place in Mandya district, Karnataka in 2018 and was related to a petty quarrel. [This article was updated on September 11, 2020.] Arjun Sidharth is a writer with Alt News. He has previously worked in the television news industry, where he managed news bulletins and breaking news scenarios, apart from scripting numerous prime time television stories. He has also been actively involved with various freelance projects. Sidharth has studied economics, political science, international relations and journalism. He has a keen interest in books, movies, music, sports, politics, foreign policy, history and economics. His hobbies include reading, watching movies and indoor gaming. A minute-long video clip of a woman being physically assaulted is viral on social media…. Trigger Warning: The following story contains graphic imagery. Several users have shared images of the… A 1:34-minute-long CCTV camera clip is being widely circulated on social media in which viewers… Trigger Warning: Violent Content. Viewer discretion is advised. Over the past few months, rumours of… The teaser of a movie titled ‘The Kerala Story’ is being widely shared on social…	news-altnews	2024-05-27T18:24:05.489452	20th June 2019 / 3:46 pm / Last updated: 11th September 2020	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/chennai-man-severed-head-of-sisters-rapist-no-gory-video-from-2018-viral/", "author": "Arjun Sidharth" }
513	Cherry-picked photos, misleading narratives: How Postcard News, India Today got it wrong - Alt News Arjun Sidharth 30th July 2018 / 11:49 pm “See the difference…” said a post by Facebook page Postcard English which juxtaposed two photographs- one showed former Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh and the other showed Prime Minister Narendra Modi. The photographs were placed together and compared the attitude of the two Prime Ministers vis-a-vis athletes who were successful at the Commonwealth Games. Dr. Manmohan Singh can be seen sitting while posing for a photo with the athletes, whereas PM Modi can be seen standing and interacting with them while they are seated. See the difference….. 👇👇👇👇 Commonwealth Medal Winners Pic. Pic 1- Everyone is sitting except Medal winners. Pic 2- Everyone is sitting except Prime Minister Posted by Postcard English on Thursday, July 26, 2018 The post was uploaded on July 27, 2018 and has been shared over 4200 times till now. The implication of the post is clear- there is a sea of difference in the attitude and behaviour of the two Prime Ministers. While the former PM is seated, PM Modi engages with sportspersons. Indeed there is, but not in the manner that Postcard News has claimed. The two photographs which have been juxtaposed represent athletes who were successful at two different events and not the Commonwealth Games as claimed by the post by Postcard News. The athletes present in the picture taken with Dr. Singh are the medal winners of the 2012 Olympic games held in London. This photograph along with others can be accessed here in this article by Firstpost dated August 17, 2012. As for the photograph of PM Modi seen interacting with athletes, it was clicked in April 2018 when the Prime Minister met athletes who were victorious at the Commonwealth Games held in Australia. It is a boon for our country to have a Prime Minister in @narendramodi ji who believes in the power of sports to transform our nation. I thank him again for showing belief and appreciation for our #CWG2018 stars. His words are a great motivation for every athlete. #KheloIndia pic.twitter.com/YvgD4Zh6tR — Rajyavardhan Rathore (@Ra_THORe) April 30, 2018 So, is there a difference in the way the two Prime Ministers and by extension, the two regimes in the manner in which athletes have been treated? The photographs comparing the two as posted by Postcard News are misleading. This is because PM Modi is seen seated in the presence of athletes on other occasions. For instance, when he met the medal winners of the Asian Games of 2014. With our medal winning athletes. pic.twitter.com/RntpmE1v5f — Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) October 14, 2014 On another occasion, PM Modi can be seen seated in the presence of athletes bound for the 2016 Olympics at Rio de Janeiro. Meanwhile, there are photographs of Dr. Singh as well, seen interacting with athletes, like the photograph below taken in 2012. Cherry-picking images to drive home a certain narrative is misleading at the very least. India Today attempted to ‘fact check’ this claim by Postcard News, but the move backfired when the news outlet ‘busted’ a claim that was absent in the first place. India Today in its article claimed that Postcard News had faked data ‘to show more sports medals during NDA rule than UPA’. However, there was no data present in the post by Postcard News and the conjecture was arrived at on the basis of the juxtaposed photographs referred to in this article. India Today‘s goof-up did not go unnoticed and Postcard News hit back at the media organisation for what it claimed was a misrepresentation of the post and its intent. Postcard News has been notorious for spreading misinformation in the garb of news and can neither absolve itself of its bigoted role or claim vindication on the basis of an incorrect fact-check. Two images were put together to create a false impression in favour of PM Modi. Political propaganda expectedly works on the basis of optics and for supporters of political parties on social media, such tactics have become par for the course. Arjun Sidharth is a writer with Alt News. He has previously worked in the television news industry, where he managed news bulletins and breaking news scenarios, apart from scripting numerous prime time television stories. He has also been actively involved with various freelance projects. Sidharth has studied economics, political science, international relations and journalism. He has a keen interest in books, movies, music, sports, politics, foreign policy, history and economics. His hobbies include reading, watching movies and indoor gaming. Rahul and Priyanka Gandhi recently performed aarti at the Narmada Ghat in Madhya Pradesh’s Omkareshwar… In the wake of the alleged murder of Shraddha Walkar by his partner Aftab Amin… The video of a group of people stopping an e-rickshaw with BJP flags attached to… Last week during the G20 summit in Bali, world leaders were informed of a missile… Recently, several prominent BJP leaders claimed that Prime Minister Narendra Modi had intervened to stop…	news-altnews	2024-05-27T18:24:05.489452	30th July 2018 / 11:49 pm	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/cherry-picked-photos-misleading-narratives-how-postcard-news-india-today-got-it-wrong/", "author": "Arjun Sidharth" }
514	Chhattisgarh dargah wasn't attacked by Hindu groups, video viral with false claim - Alt News Mohammed 7th April 2022 / 8:09 pm On April 5, Facebook user Rukhsar, who has over 5 lakh followers, posted a video of men with saffron flags gathered outside a mosque. She wrote, “After BJP-ruled states, Muslims and mosques in Congress-ruled states are also being attacked.” She claimed that during a rally organised by Hindu organisations, miscreants barged into a mosque in Chhattisgarh and raised ‘Jai Shri Ram’ slogans. BJP शासित प्रदेशों के बाद अब कांग्रेस शासित प्रदेशों में भी मुस्लिमों और मस्जिदों पर हमले बढ़ गये है,यह वीडियो छत्तीसगढ़ का बताया गया है जहां हिन्दू संगठनो के कार्यकर्ता रैली के दौरान मस्जिद में घुसे और जय श्री राम के नारे लगाये व उत्पात मचाया। Posted by Rukhsar on Tuesday, 5 April 2022 The video shows a large number of men dawning saffron attire in front of a Muslim religious structure. A song where ‘Jai Shri Ram’ can be heard in the lyrics is playing in the background. It has been shared by several users on Facebook. From the Twitter account of one Neha Bharti, the video received close to 1,000 likes. मुस्लिमों और मस्जिदों पर हमले बढ़ गये है,यह वीडियो कांग्रेस शासित राज्य छत्तीसगढ़ का बताया जा रहा है जहां हिन्दू संगठनो के कार्यकर्ता रैली के दौरान मस्जिद में घुसे और जय श्री राम के नारे लगाये व उत्पात मचाया। रमज़ान का ना सही कम से कम नवरात्रि का तो लिहाज कर लेते उपद्रवियों। pic.twitter.com/GObrykGKSK — Neha Bharti (@IAmNehaBharti) April 5, 2022 On April 6, a similar claim was made by YouTuber Faraz Malik on his channel ‘Mera Safar’, which has over 11 lakh subscribers. At 1:30 minutes, the channel claimed that saffron-clad people barged into a mosque in Chhattisgarh and chanted ‘Jai Shri Ram’ slogans. The YouTube video has received over 1.55 lakh views in the past 24 hours. Alt News found that the earliest instance of the video was shared on April 4 by one Subhash Gupta on Facebook. https://www.facebook.com/permalink.php?story_fbid=3236761236560241&id=100006791898448 Chhattisgarh state government’s ‘Chhattisgarh State Fake News Control and Special Monitoring Cell’ shared a WhatsApp post with local journalists that carried a “fake” stamp on the video. However, it did not clarify whether the video was “fake”, meaning that the incident did not take place in Chhattisgarh, or the viral social media claims are incorrect. Alt News reached out to Umesh Mishra, who is the secretary of the fake news monitoring committee, Chhattisgarh. He said, “The video was being shared with the claim that it is from Chhattisgarh. No other information was given. We feared that it may cause disturbance hence, stamped it fake.” He also said that senior officials in the administration have sought a detailed report about the video. We went through the comments on Subhash Gupta’s Facebook post and found that he had replied to a user that the video is from Bilaspur in Chhattisgarh. Upon contacting Bilaspur police, it was found that the video was shot outside Dargah Luthra Sharif which is situated under the jurisdiction of Sipat police station. Inspector Rajkumar Suri of Sipat PS informed us, “Each year Samrat Vikramaditya Samiti organises a huge rally to mark Hindu New Year. This year too it was organised on April 2. During the rally, the vehicle with a DJ music system inadvertently took a turn towards the dargah and the participants of the rally too tailed the vehicle to the dargah.” The officer said that there was an appropriate police bandobast during the rally and no untoward incident took place when the rally passed in front of the dargah, which is revered by people of all faith. Dainik Bhaskar journalist and former member of Dargah Luthra Sharif committee, Riyaz Atrasi, echoed inspector Rajkumar Suri’s statement. “Though it was the first time that this rally had reached the dargah, reports about mischief or desecration are absolutely false and misleading.” He also said that local Muslims had arranged cold drinks and snacks for the members of the rally. Mohammed Ibrahim, who owns Baba Book Store situated in the vicinity of the dargah, too confirmed that the rally passed in front of the dargah. “A rally by Bajrang Dal was organised 3-4 days back on the occasion of Hindu New Year. The rally is taken out annually but this was the first time they entered the internal road to the dargah and played ‘Jai Shri Ram’ songs in front of the dargah.” However, Ibrahim also clarified that the participants did not enter the dargah premises. They stayed for a while in front of the dargah while ‘Jai Shri Ram’ songs were playing and left. Police statements, ground reports and witness statements corroborate that the dargah wasn’t attacked by Hindu groups but a vehicle with a DJ music system took an inadvertent detour and led the members of the rally in front of the dargah. They did not enter the premises. Fact-checking journalist Following Saudi Arabia’s 2-1 win against Argentina in the ongoing FIFA World Cup, speculation about… In the wake of the alleged murder of Shraddha Walkar by his partner Aftab Amin… The CCTV footage of a man violently flinging a child on the ground has created… A minute-long video clip of a woman being physically assaulted is viral on social media…. Trigger Warning: The following story contains graphic imagery. Several users have shared images of the…	news-altnews	2024-05-27T18:24:05.489452	7th April 2022 / 8:09 pm	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/chhattisgarh-dargah-wasnt-attacked-by-hindu-groups-video-viral-with-false-claim/", "author": "Mohammed" }
515	Chhattisgarh PWD minister Rajesh Munat passes off a Vietnamese bridge as one in Raigarh - Alt News Alt News Desk 23rd August 2017 / 3:35 pm / Last updated: 23rd August 2017 The trend of using fake images to showcase development continues. Just yesterday, we wrote about how Union Minister Piyush Goyal used a 8 year old image of unknown origins to showcase LED street lighting in India. Previously, on Alt News, we have written about Coal Ministry plagiarising a picture from Amnesty International Report and 2016-17 Annual report of Ministry of Home Affairs using a Morocco-Spain border picture to claim Indian border lighting. The latest addition to this series is Rajesh Munat who is the Chhattisgarh Minister of State for Public Works Department, Housing, Environment, and Transport. He posted a picture on his Facebook Timeline with the text, “जिला रायगढ़ लमदरहा मार्ग केलो नदी पर पुल का निर्माण (Translation: Inauguration of the bridge over River Kelo on Lamdarha Marg in District Raigadh)“. An Alt News reader who wishes to remain anonymous alerted us about the dubious origins of the image posted by the Minister. He claimed that when he used Google Reverse Image Search on the image , a tool that we widely use at Alt News, the bridge showed up as one in Vietnam. We followed his lead and ran the image through Google Reverse Image Search and the image is indeed of a bridge in Vietnam. Saigon Online had reported the inauguration of Co Chien Bridge in Mekong on May 16, 2015, “Co Chien Bridge linking Ben Tre with Tra Vinh provinces was opened for traffic this morning at a ceremony attended by Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung, National Assembly Deputy Chairwoman Nguyen Thi Kim Ngan, Minister of Transport Dinh La Thang and leaders of the two provinces.” Vietnam’s leading newspaper Thanh Nien also posted the same picture the following day on their website while reporting the inauguration of Co Chien Bridge. Funnily enough, a commentator on Mr Munat’s post praised him for putting up a real picture and not a fake one and he acknowledged the commentator by thanking him. How is that when crores are spent after infrastructure of all kind, so very often, representatives of the Government and various politicians have to resort to using misleading images to represent their claims? We are again thankful to the person who tipped us about this issue. If anyone wishes to reach out to Alt News, they can do so via our Contact Email Address. We have also created a video tutorial for our readers who wish to learn how to fact-check fake/dubious/misleading images via Google Reverse Image Search. Please do spend a few minutes to go through the following video. Follow @free_thinker Following Saudi Arabia’s 2-1 win against Argentina in the ongoing FIFA World Cup, speculation about… Trigger Warning: The following story contains graphic imagery. Several users have shared images of the… The brutal murder of Shraddha Walker has been widely covered across news media over the… A 1:34-minute-long CCTV camera clip is being widely circulated on social media in which viewers… The teaser of a movie titled ‘The Kerala Story’ is being widely shared on social…	news-altnews	2024-05-27T18:24:05.489452	23rd August 2017 / 3:35 pm / Last updated: 23rd August 2017	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/chhattisgarh-pwd-minister-rajesh-munat-passes-vietnamese-bridge-one-raigarh/", "author": "Alt News Desk" }
516	Old, unrelated news of BJP leader's Naxal connection falsely linked to Bijapur attack - Alt News Anuradha Prasad 8th April 2021 / 4:52 pm / Last updated: 9th April 2021 A deadly Maoist attack in Bijapur, Chhattisgarh on April 2 left 22 soldiers martyred and 31 injured. In the backdrop of this, Chhattisgarh Youth Congress tweeted two newspaper clippings and wrote, “It is now evident who are urban Naxals… See BJP’s real nationalism.” The first clipping is a report on the Bijapur Maoist attack. It claims that two people including a BJP member were arrested for Naxal connections. The report states, “It has been found that BJP leader Jagat Pujari, vice president from Dantewada district and son of former BJP MLA Dhaniram Pujari, has Naxal connections. He and one other accused have been arrested for supplying tractor to Naxalites.” “Naxalites urban connection busted… BJP district vice president was supplying goods to Naxals for 10 years,” is the headline of the other report. Twitter user Ajitesh Bansal shared the first clipping and wrote, “Pulwama attack happened before Lok Sabha election… Galwan attack took place before the Bihar elections… And now this happened in Chhattisgarh during elections.” लोकसभा चुनाव था पुलवामा हुआ… बिहार का चुनाव था गलवान हुआ… 👇 अभी फिर चुनाव के समय में छत्तीसगढ़ हो गया…@DeependerSHooda @LambaAlka @sushant_says @lokeshchugh09 pic.twitter.com/NxnVPt6uQf — Ajitesh Bansal (@AjiteshBansal1) April 6, 2021 Several Facebook users also shared the clipping. A similar message has been shared with an IBC24 broadcast that reports Pujari was arrested in Dantewada for aiding Naxalites. BJP का नक्सल कनेक्शन – छत्तीसगढ़ में नक्सल हमले में 22 जवान शहीद हो गए। कल भाजपा के दंतेवाड़ा जिलाध्यक्ष को गिरफ्तार किया गया। दो दिनों से भाजपा वाले सरकार पर हमला कर रहे थे आज वे सभी इस मुद्दे पर बोलने नहीं आ रहे हैं! ये है भाजपा का चाल, चेहरा और चरित्र!#ChhattisgarhNaxalAttack pic.twitter.com/Y2Nx1BOfp8 — Abhay Tiwari \| अभय तिवारी (@INCAbhayTiwari) April 7, 2021 From the Facebook account of one Khan A S Lassoi, the broadcast received over 11,000 shares as of this writing. He shared it with the following Punjabi caption, “बीजेपी ਬੀਜੇਪੀ ਦੀ ਮੱਦਦ ਨਾਲ ਹੋਇਆ ਨਕਸਲੀ ਹਮਲਾ ਜਿਸ ਵਿੱਚ ਕਈ ਜਵਾਨ ਸ਼ਹੀਦ ਹੋ ਗਏ ਤੇ ਕਈ ਜਖਮੀ.” The image of soldiers carrying a coffin is captioned, ‘भारत न्यूज़ नेटवर्क’. We searched for the e-paper and found the news on epaper.enavabharat.com published on April 5, 2020. The front page of this e-paper carries the news with the same layout as the viral clipping. But the original does not report that a BJP leader was booked for Naxal connection. The report is on the recent Bijapur attack. The sub-heading in the original report reads, “2,059 jawans were looking for Hidma.” Maoist leader Madvi Hidma has emerged as the mastermind of the massacre of 22 security personnel. The collage below shows the parts that have been morphed. As far as the other clipping is concerned, BJP leader and vice president of Dantewada district was indeed arrested for his involvement with Naxalites however, the news is from last year. According to a report by Dainik Jagran published on June 14, 2020, BJP leader Jagat Pujari was found supplying a tractor to Naxalites. Jagat Pujari is the son of former BJP MLA from Chitrakot, Dhaniram Pujari. ANI had quoted Abhishek Pallav, SP Dantewada, stating that Pujari was supplying goods to Naxals for the last 10 years with the help of villagers. On further investigation, it was found that Jagat Pujari (BJP leader) was supplying goods to naxals since last 10 yrs. He used to meet them regularly&supplied goods to them with the help of villagers. Jagat Pujari&a naxal arrested: Abhishek Pallav,SP Dantewada.#Chhattisgarh (2/2) pic.twitter.com/QwD6egJs79 — ANI (@ANI) June 14, 2020 The IBC24 broadcast viral is also from last year. It was uploaded by the channel on YouTube in June 14, 2020. BJP जिला उपाध्यक्ष और एक अन्य आरोपी Arrest \| नक्सलियों की मदद करने का आरोप BJP जिला उपाध्यक्ष और एक अन्य आरोपी Arrest \| नक्सलियों की मदद करने का आरोप Posted by IBC24 on Sunday, 14 June 2020 Two people, including a BJP leader, were not arrested from Chhattisgarh in relation to the recent Maoist attack in Bijapur. The arrest happened last year when BJP leader Jagat Pujari was found supplying a tractor to Naxalites. A journalist and a dilettante person who always strives to learn new skills and meeting new people. Either sketching or working. Rahul and Priyanka Gandhi recently performed aarti at the Narmada Ghat in Madhya Pradesh’s Omkareshwar… In the wake of the alleged murder of Shraddha Walkar by his partner Aftab Amin… The video of a group of people stopping an e-rickshaw with BJP flags attached to… Last week during the G20 summit in Bali, world leaders were informed of a missile… Recently, several prominent BJP leaders claimed that Prime Minister Narendra Modi had intervened to stop…	news-altnews	2024-05-27T18:24:05.489452	8th April 2021 / 4:52 pm / Last updated: 9th April 2021	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/chhattisgarh-youth-congres-uses-morphed-image-to-accuse-bjp-the-news-is-real-but-one-year-old/", "author": "Anuradha Prasad" }
517	Child abduction rumours resurface: Provocative audio clip and 2015 image from Pakistan in circulation - Alt News Arjun Sidharth 30th March 2019 / 4:35 pm Child abduction rumours have once again revived on WhatsApp. A message doing the rounds on WhatsApp groups claims that bodies of children, who were abducted, have been recovered from inside containers, and that their internal organs were found missing. The message has been shared in the form of an audio clip, and is accompanied by a photograph which shows dead bodies lined together in a grave. Alt News was alerted about this message in circulation by a reader. The voice in the audio clip is of a male, and he is speaking in Hindi. He says, “तमिलनाडू पुलिस को एक कनटेनर से बच्चों की लाश मिली, इन बच्चों के जिस्म के अन्दर का हिस्सा निकाला गया है, जैसे किडनी, लीवर। तमिलनाडू पुलिस ने बताया इन सारे बच्चों को अलग अलग देशों से किडनैप करके लाया गया है ..नोट:-अपने घर के बच्चों को सम्भालो, उनका ख्याल रखो, अपने सारे ग्रुप मे ये मैसेज सेन्ड करो। इस फोटो को इतना फैलाओ ताकि कुत्ता पकड़ा जाना चाहिए। अगर जिसने ये नहीं फैलाया वो अपनी माँ का सपूत नहीं। अपने फोन में चाहे कितने भी ग्रुप हो 1, 2 , 3, 4 या 25, ये सारे ग्रुप मे भेजो, हरामखोर पकड़ा जाना चाहिए।” Translation: “Tamil Nadu police found bodies of children inside a container. Internal organs were removed from their bodies, like kidney and liver. Tamil Nadu police has said these children were abducted from various countries and brought here. Note: Take care of your children. Send this message to every group. Spread this photograph so much that this dog is caught. Who does not circulate this is not his/mother’s child. Send this to as many groups- 1, 2, 3, 4, or 25. This rascal must be caught.” The message and photo have also found their way to Facebook. Alt News has decided not to post the audio clip, for fear of misuse. The photograph showing dead bodies in white shrouds, shared along with the message is from June 2015. It was clicked in Pakistan. According to Getty Images, where this image is available,“Pakistani Edhi charity volunteers bury the bodies of unclaimed heatwave victims at a graveyard in Karachi on June 26, 2015. Pakistani welfare volunteers on June 26 held a mass funeral for 50 victims of Karachi’s worst heatwave in decades, whose bodies had gone unclaimed.” In the aftermath of the IAF airstrike in February 2019, this photo had been shared as ‘proof’ of casualties caused by the attack. Alt News’ fact-check can be read here. Alt News found that the exact message had been shared earlier as well, in 2017. The photograph accompanying it, however, was not the one being shared now. According to the fact-checking website Snopes, the above photograph is actually of the aftermath of the Ghouta chemical attack of 2013, in Syria. Child abduction rumours were rampant in April-May 2018, which resulted in a spate of mob lynching incidents in various states. Alt News had found that these rumours followed a highly customised pattern; the language and places referred to in the viral messages would be altered depending on where the message is being circulated. These rumours were viral across the country, from Uttar Pradesh to Gujarat to Tamil Nadu to Odisha. These messages had taken a communal turn, when Rohingya Muslims were targeted in July 2018 as child abductors. Users of messaging and social media platforms are advised to be extremely circumspect with regard to such messages, and not forward them. Arjun Sidharth is a writer with Alt News. He has previously worked in the television news industry, where he managed news bulletins and breaking news scenarios, apart from scripting numerous prime time television stories. He has also been actively involved with various freelance projects. Sidharth has studied economics, political science, international relations and journalism. He has a keen interest in books, movies, music, sports, politics, foreign policy, history and economics. His hobbies include reading, watching movies and indoor gaming. Rahul and Priyanka Gandhi recently performed aarti at the Narmada Ghat in Madhya Pradesh’s Omkareshwar… In the wake of the alleged murder of Shraddha Walkar by his partner Aftab Amin… The video of a group of people stopping an e-rickshaw with BJP flags attached to… Last week during the G20 summit in Bali, world leaders were informed of a missile… Recently, several prominent BJP leaders claimed that Prime Minister Narendra Modi had intervened to stop…	news-altnews	2024-05-27T18:24:05.489452	30th March 2019 / 4:35 pm	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/child-abduction-rumours-resurface-provocative-audio-clip-and-2015-image-from-pakistan-in-circulation/", "author": "Arjun Sidharth" }
518	Child abuse video from Mexico falsely linked to 'DPS Rajbagh, Valsad' - Alt News Archit 7th October 2021 / 4:36 pm / Last updated: 7th October 2021 [CW: References to child abuse. The video has not been included in the fact-check due to its graphic nature.] A video of a person physically assaulting a minor girl has been widely shared on WhatsApp. The person stands on the child’s legs, chest and arm. While the perpetrator’s face isn’t revealed, we can see a tattoo on the left ankle. As per social media claim, the person in the video is ‘Shakeel Ahmed Ansari’, a teacher at DPS Rajbagh in Gujarat’s Valsad. The video and Hindi text associated with it have been labelled forwarded many times on WhatsApp. Alt News has received several requests to fact-check this claim on our WhatsApp helpline number (+91 76000 11160) and official mobile application. (iOS and Android). [Viral text: आप के whatsapp पे जितने भी नंबर एवं ग्रुप हैं एक भी छूटने नही चाहिए, ये वीडियो सबको भेजिए ये वलसाड के DPS SCHOOL Rajbag का टीचर शकील अहमद अंसारी है इसको इतना शेयर करो की ये टीचर और स्कूल दोनों बंद हो जाए । वीडियो वायरल होने से काफी फ़र्क पड़ता है ओर कार्यवाही होती है जिसे दया न आये वो अपना मुंह (टाइपिंग) बंद रखे] In addition to the above-mentioned claim, some texts also urge users to share this video so that it is brought to PM Narendra Modi’s attention. Since the video shows a woman attacking a minor, the claim that Shakeel Ahmed Ansari is the perpetrator is false. On further analysis, we found that the video is not even from India. In 2019, UK-based media outlets Metro and Mirror published reports on the viral video. As per the reports, the video was widely shared with the claim that it is from the US-based town Corpus Christi in Texas. Metro stated that the video may have been uploaded by the woman as part of a private Facebook ‘watch’ party which viewers must be invited to join. Mirror reported that Corpus Christi Police believe that the incident occurred in Mexico’s Nuevo Leon in 2018. The police also stressed that the woman has an easily identifiable tattoo on her left ankle. On November 8, 2019, the said police station tweet seeking help from netizens to identify the abuser. HELP US IDENTIFY CHILD ABUSE SUSPECT https://t.co/or1J5jSewV — Corpus Christi PD (@CorpusChristiPD) November 8, 2019 Three days later, they shared an update, “At this time all indications are that the incident did not occur in our jurisdiction and that it occurred in Nuevo Leon, Mexico. We have also received information that this incident may have happened over a year ago.” They are yet to identify the culprit or the specific location of the incident. Child abuse Video update https://t.co/zgx9jPMdit — Corpus Christi PD (@CorpusChristiPD) November 11, 2019 Earlier in October, the false claim was circulated with a different video. A 2019 clip of an activist’s interview during an anti-CAA protest in Banaras was shared with the false claim that he is Shakeel Ahmed Ansari, a teacher at DPS Rajbagh in Gujarat’s Valsad. DPS Rajbagh is not based in Gujarat but in Jammu and Kashmir. Valsad is in Gujarat. In 2019 alone, Alt News debunked three false claims about DPS School Rajbagh. 🙏 Blessed to have worked as a fact-checking journalist from November 2019 to February 2023. A minute-long video clip of a woman being physically assaulted is viral on social media…. Trigger Warning: The following story contains graphic imagery. Several users have shared images of the… A 1:34-minute-long CCTV camera clip is being widely circulated on social media in which viewers… Trigger Warning: Violent Content. Viewer discretion is advised. Over the past few months, rumours of… The teaser of a movie titled ‘The Kerala Story’ is being widely shared on social…	news-altnews	2024-05-27T18:24:05.489452	7th October 2021 / 4:36 pm / Last updated: 7th October 2021	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/child-abuse-video-from-mexico-falsely-linked-to-dps-rajbagh-valsad/", "author": "Archit" }
519	Child abuse video from Syria used to target RM VM School in Valsad, Gujarat - Alt News Pooja Chaudhuri 20th May 2019 / 4:01 pm / Last updated: 7th April 2021 A video of a child being brutally thrashed has been shared with the message, “None of your WhatsApp contacts and groups should be left behind. Send this video to everyone and make it viral. This teacher is from RM VM School. Share this video to an extent and the teacher and school both are shut.” [Viral Hindi text: आप के whatsapp पे जितने भी नंबर एवं ग्रुप हैं एक भी छूटने नही चाहिए, ये वीडियो सबको भेजिए ये वलसाड के RM VM SCHOOL का टीचर है इसको इतना शेयर करो की ये टीचर और स्कूल दोनों बंद हो जाए।] Alt News has also received requests on its WhatsApp helpline number (+917600011160) to verify the claim. Jignesh Mevani, an independent MLA from Vadgam, Gujarat, had tweeted the same video on May 20, 2019 while tagging PMO. After a few people claimed that the video is from Egypt, Mevani quote-tweeted his earlier post and asked people to tell him if it’s from Valsad or Egypt. Alt News broke the video into multiple frames and reversed-searched the images on the Russian search engine Yandex. We found several foreign websites carrying the video last year. A Middle-Eastern online news portal Al-Masdar News published a report on the incident in February 2018. According to the media platform, ” A group of Free Syrian Army (FSA) fighters kidnapped a nine-year-old boy travelling to his school in the eastern countryside of the Dara’a Governorate last month [January 2018]…Since the nine-year-old boy’s kidnapping, the Free Syrian Army fighters have demanded the child’s family pay a ransom of $1 million (USD) in exchange for securing their son’s release.” Al-Masdar News claimed that the video was sent by FSA rebels to the child’s family. We also found a tweet by a Syrian journalist Nedal Al-Amari who had shared the video in February 2018 and said that it was sent by the kidnappers to the boy’s family. The video is, thus, not from India. This was also evident from the language that the child spoke. The same institution, RM VM School, was targeted with a child abuse video in 2018 as well. A video of a man performing ‘exorcism’ on a girl in Chhattisgarh was also shared as a teacher of RM VM School abusing a student. Pooja Chaudhuri is a senior editor at Alt News. A minute-long video clip of a woman being physically assaulted is viral on social media…. Trigger Warning: The following story contains graphic imagery. Several users have shared images of the… A 1:34-minute-long CCTV camera clip is being widely circulated on social media in which viewers… Trigger Warning: Violent Content. Viewer discretion is advised. Over the past few months, rumours of… The teaser of a movie titled ‘The Kerala Story’ is being widely shared on social…	news-altnews	2024-05-27T18:24:05.489452	20th May 2019 / 4:01 pm / Last updated: 7th April 2021	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/child-abuse-video-from-syria-used-to-target-rm-vm-school-in-valsad-gujarat/", "author": "Pooja Chaudhuri" }
520	Child beaten up inside orphanage in India? No, 2015 video from Turkey viral - Alt News Arjun Sidharth 12th June 2019 / 3:30 pm “इस वीडियो में जो लेडीज है यह शायद हो सकता है की भारत मे कोई अनाथ आश्रम चला रही हो और इसकी आड़ मे यह खूब धन भी बटोर रही हो,इसने बच्चो के साथ जो किया है। इस विडियो को पुरे भारत मे फेलाओ शायद इसे कोई पहचान ले और इसको सजा मिल सके उन बेचारे छोटे बच्चो की दुआ लगेगी”। (It is possible that the lady seen in this video could be running an orphanage and would be collecting a lot of money, from what she has done to this kid. Spread this video all over India so that someone may identify her and she gets punished- translation). The above message has been circulated on social media and WhatsApp, along with a video. In the video, the woman can be seen beating the child with a stick. Several individual users have shared the video with an identical message. This suggests that users uploaded the video with the accompanying text on to their Facebook timelines. Apart from Facebook and WhatsApp, the video is also viral on Twitter. Although the video uploaded on Twitter is different from the one shared on Facebook, the background in both the videos is similar. Moreover, the woman seen in both the videos look strikingly similar. Among those who posted it on Twitter include Pakistani-Canadian writer Tarek Fatah. This happens when arranged marriages result in teenagers getting wed to much older men, producing children who these mothers treat as unwanted burdens, not beloved bundles of joy. pic.twitter.com/3hdR7hZnJ2 — Tarek Fatah (@TarekFatah) May 16, 2019 Alt News broke up the video into multiple frames using InVid. Upon reverse-searching one of the key frames on Yandex, multiple articles from 2015, related to the video sprung up. According to these reports, the incident had occurred in Kayseri, Turkey. According to Istiklal, “In Kayseri, a stepmother would mercilessly beat up her two children in the absence of their father. After neighbours complained, the father installed CCTV cameras in the house due to which the incident came to light.” (translation). Apart from Istiklal, other publications such as www.karar.com and www.habarinadresi.com have also published reports on this. The same had been reported by ABP News in its programme Viral Sach. However, no information about the video was provided in this report. It may be noted that the incident is not from India. It is from Turkey, and reports related to the video date back to 2015. Arjun Sidharth is a writer with Alt News. He has previously worked in the television news industry, where he managed news bulletins and breaking news scenarios, apart from scripting numerous prime time television stories. He has also been actively involved with various freelance projects. Sidharth has studied economics, political science, international relations and journalism. He has a keen interest in books, movies, music, sports, politics, foreign policy, history and economics. His hobbies include reading, watching movies and indoor gaming. Rahul and Priyanka Gandhi recently performed aarti at the Narmada Ghat in Madhya Pradesh’s Omkareshwar… In the wake of the alleged murder of Shraddha Walkar by his partner Aftab Amin… The video of a group of people stopping an e-rickshaw with BJP flags attached to… Last week during the G20 summit in Bali, world leaders were informed of a missile… Recently, several prominent BJP leaders claimed that Prime Minister Narendra Modi had intervened to stop…	news-altnews	2024-05-27T18:24:05.489452	12th June 2019 / 3:30 pm	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/child-beaten-up-inside-orphanage-in-india-no-2015-video-from-turkey-viral/", "author": "Arjun Sidharth" }
521	Old video from Egypt shared as DPS Rajbagh teacher thrashing children - Alt News Jignesh Patel 20th July 2019 / 5:49 pm / Last updated: 28th July 2022 A video of a man brutally thrashing children is circulating on WhatsApp with the claim that he is DPS Rajbagh teacher Shakil Ahmed Ansari. The accompanying message also calls for a shutdown of the school. Alt News has received multiple requests on its helpline number (+91 7600011160) to verify this video. Viral since 2019 On July 20, 2019, the then Meghalaya Governor Tathagata Roy quote-tweeted the same video and wrote that the man who brutally thrashed the children in the video has been identified as ‘Sakil Ahmed Ansari’, a teacher of DPS Rajbagh School. It is to be noted that DPS Rajbagh is in Kathua, Jammu and Kashmir. Alt News had received a request to fact-check the video on its official WhatsApp number in 2019 as well. In July 2018, Alt News debunked the same video when it went viral with a claim that a school teacher at RM VM school in Gujarat’s Valsad district was brutally thrashing the children. We found that the video in question is not from India but from Egypt, where an orphanage manager named Osama Mohammed Othman was secretly filmed by his estranged wife, beating the children with a stick and kicking them. “The video shows Osama Mohamed Othman hitting the children before kicking them as they run away, screaming in pain. State-run Al-Ahram newspaper said Othman’s estranged wife filmed the video two months ago at Dar Mecca Al-Mokarama Orphanage in Giza,” according to an article published by Daily Mail on August 5, 2014. According to a 2014 BBC report, Othman was sentenced to three years imprisonment for assaulting seven children in his care and endangering their lives. The sentence included two years of hard labour while the third year was suspended pending the payment of $110 (£87) bail. A video from Egypt was circulated with the false claim that a school teacher from J&K was brutally beating up children. Earlier as well, the same video was shared with the narrative the teacher is from a school in Valsad, Gujarat. Several videos of child beating have been falsely attributed to DPS Rajbagh in the past. Jignesh is a writer and researcher at Alt News. He has a knack for visual investigation with a major interest in fact-checking videos and images. He has completed his Masters in Journalism from Gujarat University. In the wake of the alleged murder of Shraddha Walkar by his partner Aftab Amin… The CCTV footage of a man violently flinging a child on the ground has created… A minute-long video clip of a woman being physically assaulted is viral on social media…. Trigger Warning: The following story contains graphic imagery. Several users have shared images of the… The brutal murder of Shraddha Walker has been widely covered across news media over the…	news-altnews	2024-05-27T18:24:05.489452	20th July 2019 / 5:49 pm / Last updated: 28th July 2022	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/child-beating-video-from-egypt-circulating-as-an-incident-from-dps-rajbagh-in-kathua-jk/", "author": "Jignesh Patel" }
522	Child beating video from Egypt shared as atrocity by teacher from RM VM School, Valsad - Alt News Jignesh Patel 10th July 2018 / 5:05 pm / Last updated: 20th July 2019 A video is being circulated on social media as seen in the screenshot below. The text claims that the man who is brutally thrashing the children in the video is a teacher at RM VM School at Valsad in Gujarat. It has a request for its readers to share the video and make it viral as stated in the message, “If a video goes viral it makes a lot of difference and instant action is taken”. Message: “आप के जितने भी ग्रुप हैं एक भी छूटने नही चाहिए, ये वीडियो सबको भेजिए ये वलसाड के RMVMSCHOOL का टीचर है इसको इतना शेयर करो की ये टीचर और स्कूल दोनों बंद हो जाए । वीडियो वायरल होने से काफी फ़र्क पड़ता है ओर कार्यवाही होती है जिसे दया न आये वो अपना मुंह (टाइपिंग) बंद रखे । You shouldn’t miss a single group, send this video to everyone, He is a teacher at Valsad’s RM VM School. So, share this so that both the teacher and school shut down. If a video goes viral it makes a lot of difference and instant action is taken, those who don’t sympathize can keep their mouth shut(typing) -translated) The video shared on Facebook and Twitter has attributed the horrific images to a school in Valsad named R.M & V.M Desai Vidhyadham. Alt News used Invid to a do a reverse image search on Google of the keyframes in the video and found a Daily Mail article published on August 5, 2014, titled, “Wife films secret footage of orphanage manager beating children with a stick and kicking them until they burst into tears in case that has shocked Egypt“. The article states, “The video shows Osama Mohamed Othman hitting the children before kicking them as they run away, screaming in pain. State-run Al-Ahram newspaper said Othman’s estranged wife filmed the video two months ago at Dar Mecca Al-Mokarama Orphanage in Giza”. It may be noted that the video belongs to an orphanage in Egypt and not R.M & V.M Desai Vidyadham School of Valsad as claimed on social media. According to a 2014 BBC report, Osama Mohammed Othman, the head of a Cairo orphanage was sentenced with three years imprisonment for assaulting seven children in his care and endangering their lives. The sentence included two year’s hard labour while the third was suspended pending the payment of $110 (£87) bail. Moreover, Alt News found a statement on the homepage of R.M. & V.M. Desai Vidyadham’s website which clarified, “There are a number of videos being uploaded under the R.M. & V.M. School name. These videos are 100% spurious and have been collected from different incidents which are unrelated to the School. Below is a video from ABP News that proves the illegitimacy of these videos”. As said in the statement, many videos have been shared on Facebook and Twitter with the same claim about a teacher at RM VM school using the text “RM VM School“. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fxbfON7I8EI Misinformation degrading the reputation of a political party, public figure or historical figure has been a regular trend on social media. But this time, a school’s reputation has been besmirched with a barrage of videos depicting violence against children. Despite the video having been debunked several times, it continues to be shared extensively on social media. Jignesh is a writer and researcher at Alt News. He has a knack for visual investigation with a major interest in fact-checking videos and images. He has completed his Masters in Journalism from Gujarat University. A minute-long video clip of a woman being physically assaulted is viral on social media…. Trigger Warning: The following story contains graphic imagery. Several users have shared images of the… A 1:34-minute-long CCTV camera clip is being widely circulated on social media in which viewers… Trigger Warning: Violent Content. Viewer discretion is advised. Over the past few months, rumours of… The teaser of a movie titled ‘The Kerala Story’ is being widely shared on social…	news-altnews	2024-05-27T18:24:05.489452	10th July 2018 / 5:05 pm / Last updated: 20th July 2019	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/child-beating-video-from-egypt-shared-as-atrocity-by-teacher-from-rm-vm-school-valsad/", "author": "Jignesh Patel" }
523	Child deaths in Indonesia: No evidence so far of Indian syrups causing fatal kidney diseases - Alt News Kalim Ahmed 2nd November 2022 / 6:30 pm In the first week of October, the World Health Organization (WHO) made a medical product alert about substandard (contaminated) pediatric medicines identified in The Gambia, a small west African country. These products (cough syrups) were manufactured by an Indian manufacturer called Maiden Pharmaceuticals Limited (Haryana, India) and the syrups had been “potentially linked with acute kidney injuries and 66 deaths among children,” said the report. The number of deaths has since risen to 70. The WHO identified the medicines as Promethazine Oral Solution, Kofexmalin Baby Cough Syrup, Makoff Baby Cough Syrup, and Magrip N Cold Syrup. These products contained unacceptable amounts of diethylene glycol (DEG) and ethylene glycol (EG) as contaminants. The report says, “Diethylene glycol and ethylene glycol are toxic to humans when consumed and can prove fatal.” It also adds that the “toxic effects can include abdominal pain, vomiting, diarrhoea, inability to pass urine, headache, altered mental state, and acute kidney injury which may lead to death.” The press release requested ‘increased surveillance and diligence within the supply chains of countries and regions likely to be affected by these products.’ It also advised increased surveillance of the informal/unregulated markets. Below is a screengrab of the four products mentioned by WHO. Later, a joint team of the Central Drugs Standard Control Organisation (CDSCO) and the Haryana Drugs Controller Authority inspected the Sonipat unit of Maiden Pharmaceuticals during which it found 12 violations or deficiencies. The state government took cognizance of this and ordered that all drug production at that unit be stopped. Weeks after this alert, reports started pouring in about the death of at least 99 children in Indonesia due to acute kidney failure after allegedly taking ‘Indian-made’ cough syrup. Among the proponents of this claim was the social media page called South Asia Index (@SouthAsiaIndex). On October 20, the page tweeted, “Just IN:— Death of 99 children in Indonesia linked to Indian-made cough syrups. Govt bans all cough syrups.” The page sent out subsequent tweets making a correlation between the two events with the prefix ‘Just IN’. At the time of writing, the first tweet by the page garnered around 5k likes and 1800+ retweets. A Twitter user, KJ (@KarenJohnstone), while sharing an Al Jazeera article, tweeted that “…99 in Indonesia, have died due to ingredients in Indian-manufactured Paracetamol Syrup that caused Fatal Acute Kidney Injury (AKI).” Readers should note that the Al Jazeera article did not contain any information about Indian-manufactured liquid syrup causing fatal Acute Kidney Injuries in Indonesia. To find information related to the incidents of AKI in Indonesia, Alt News performed a keyword search on Google and came across various news reports on the issue. According to The Guardian, Indonesia is investigating 206 cases of acute kidney injury (AKI), mostly in children under the age of five. It added that as precaution, the government had put a blanket ban on the sale of all cough syrups medicines warning that the liquids may contain ingredients linked to fatal kidney injuries. As per Al Jazeera, the rise in cases of AKI in the south east Asian country began in January this year and accelerated further since late August, and a probe related to it was launched last week. The report also adds, “A health ministry letter dated October 18, and seen by Reuters, requested hospitals collect all medicines that families had given to those children admitted with AKI, so toxicology tests could be conducted. Chemists should halt the sale of syrup-based medicine until further notice, the letter stated.” It is pertinent to note that both The Guardian and Al Jazeera clearly mention that Indonesia’s food and drug agency has clarified that the four cough and cold syrups in question in the Gambia, believed to have been manufactured by India-based Maiden Pharmaceuticals, were not available locally. This can be further confirmed if we take a look at the press release by Indonesia’s Food and Drug Monitoring Agency (BPOM) on October 15. The press release clearly says that the four Indian-manufactured products that were found in The Gambia were not registered in Indonesia. It also adds that no products of Maiden Pharmaceutical Ltd, India, had been registered with BPOM. In another press release on October 20, BPOM shared an update on testing 39 batches of 26 drug syrups suspected of containing EG and DEG contamination. The results showed the presence of EG contaminants that exceeded the safe threshold in 5 (five) products. This press release contained the names of three manufacturers that produced the five products. These are PT Konimex, PT Yarindo Farmatama, and Universal Pharmaceutical Industries. The press release does not mention whether these manufacturers are based out of India. Alt News dug further and found that the two companies — PT Konimex and PT Yarindo Farmatama — are based out of Indonesia. According to Bloomberg, PT Konimex’s, “line of business includes the manufacturing, fabricating, or processing of drugs in pharmaceutical preparations for human or veterinary use.” Alt News could not find authentic pieces of information related to Universal Pharmaceutical Industries and hence it reached out to Indonesian journalist Pizaro Gozali Idrus who told us that PT Universal Pharmaceutical Industries, also known as Universal Pharmaceutical Industries was based in Medan, North Sumatra, Indonesia. The address of the company is also available on online registries. The press release by BPOM also says that “the results of the EG contamination test have not been able to support the conclusion that the use of the drug syrup is associated with the incidence of acute kidney failure, because in addition to the use of drugs, there are still several risk factors that cause acute kidney failure.” However, on October 21, the Indonesian news outlet Detik Health reported that the minister of health had confirmed that the cases of Acute Kidney Failure were triggered by EG and DEG contamination. “We tested the children, it turns out that from the children we tested, who were at the RSCM [Government Hospital chain], out of 11, 7 children were positive for the harmful compounds, namely ethylene glycol (EG) and diethylene glycol (DEG), so it was confirmed,” said the minister. Detik Health also added that as a result of the findings, the Indonesian ministry of health had decided to prohibit the sale of drugs that may be contaminated with DEG and EG to avoid the risk of increasing death cases. On October 31, an Indonesian news outlet called Benar News reported that Indonesia has revoked the licenses of pharma companies linked to kidney failures. “Police are investigating the companies, PT Yarindo Farmatama and PT Universal Pharmaceutical Industries, for possible criminal offenses because they may have used industrial-grade chemicals instead of pharmaceutical-grade substances to cut costs during the COVID-19 pandemic,” said the report. In addition to the two names reported by Benar News, another Indonesian news outlet Detik reported that a third pharmaceutical company was also under investigation. The name of the company is Afi Farma, which was established in 1985 in Kediri, East Java, Indonesia To summarize, so far the Indonesian government has not released any details that may suggest that the sharp rise in Acute Kidney Injuries (AKI) among Indonesian children was caused by India-manufactured drugs. Kalim is a journalist with a keen interest in tech, misinformation, culture, etc Rahul and Priyanka Gandhi recently performed aarti at the Narmada Ghat in Madhya Pradesh’s Omkareshwar… In the wake of the alleged murder of Shraddha Walkar by his partner Aftab Amin… The video of a group of people stopping an e-rickshaw with BJP flags attached to… Last week during the G20 summit in Bali, world leaders were informed of a missile… Recently, several prominent BJP leaders claimed that Prime Minister Narendra Modi had intervened to stop…	news-altnews	2024-05-27T18:24:05.489452	2nd November 2022 / 6:30 pm	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/child-deaths-in-indonesia-no-evidence-so-far-of-indian-syrups-causing-fatal-kidney-diseases/", "author": "Kalim Ahmed" }
524	Child kidnapping rumors: Minor girl falsely accused and harassed by mob - Alt News Pooja Chaudhuri 22nd August 2019 / 2:12 pm / Last updated: 22nd August 2019 A video of a young woman being hounded by a group of men has been shared on social media with child-kidnapping rumours. The message claims that two women were caught by locals in Pali’s Housing Board, Rajasthan. They had kidnapped three children but people intervened and handed one of the kidnappers to the police. The other one fled. The message warns this gang is named ‘Mummy Mido’ and they are scattered across Pali. सावधान आज दिनॉक 19/8/2019 पाली के हाउसिंग बोर्ड साई बाब मन्दिर के पास बने वाटर बाक्स मे भोपाल से आयी दो बच्चे चुराने वाली गेग को पकडा लोगो ने ईस दोरान एक को पकड लिया गया लेकिन एक ओरत भागने मे कामयाब हो गई लोगो का कहना है कि वह पाली शहर के हाउसिंग बोर्ड एरिया मे करीब तीन बच्चे चुरा कर लेजा रही थी ईसी दोरान दिनांक 18/8/19 को रात 11:30 पर लोगो ने इसे पकडा यह लडकी महिला पुलिस थान पाली मे है पूछ ताछ के दौरान ईसने कहा की ईसकी गेग का नाम मम्मी मिडो है जो कि पुरी पाली मे फैलि है सावधान Posted by Pappuram Ratohre on Monday, 19 August 2019 A Facebook user Shubham Badgujar shared a photograph of the same girl. Alt News performed a Google search with the keywords “हाउसिंग बोर्ड बच्चा चोर” and found an August 20 report by Dainik Bhaskar which said that the incident took place on August 18 when a minor girl was interrogated by locals in Pali, Rajasthan on false suspicions of being child kidnapper. According to Dainik Jagran, the girl hails from Madhya Pradesh and her father was married to two women. After his death, the girl’s birth mother married another man and left the child with the stepmother. A friend of the stepmother, Deepika, who used to conduct illegal marriages, entrapped the girl and got her married to two different men – one from Jodhpur and the other from Ratlam. Deepika was taking the girl to get her married a third time – to a man from Housing Board, Pali – when they lost their way and were unable to find the man’s house. This was late in the evening and a few men spotted unidentified women roaming in their locality. Suspecting them to be child-kidnappers, the men surrounded them. Deepika and the others accompanying her fled in the middle of the commotion while the minor girl was left behind. Later, the police searched for Deepika and her accomplices in hotels and bus and railway stations but were unable to find them. Housing Board police inspector Govindan and his team rescued the girl and a case of kidnapping and human trafficking has been registered at the direction of the child welfare committee. In a conversation with Alt News, inspector in-charge Govindan said, “She wasn’t a child kidnapper. She was a 17-year-old who was trapped by a middleman who had brought the girl to the area to wed her off. She is from Bhopal, MP. We have informed her mother but she hasn’t come to take her yet. The girl is lodged at a child welfare home in Jodhpur. We are on the lookout for the woman who brought her here. A case has been registered against the woman under JJ Act.” A minor, who was a victim of trafficking, was hounded by a group of men on false suspicions of being a child-lifter. Since last month, multiple such cases have come to light. Alt News has compiled a list of instances when people, falsely believed to be child-kidnappers, were hounded and beaten by mobs. Pooja Chaudhuri is a senior editor at Alt News. Rahul and Priyanka Gandhi recently performed aarti at the Narmada Ghat in Madhya Pradesh’s Omkareshwar… In the wake of the alleged murder of Shraddha Walkar by his partner Aftab Amin… The video of a group of people stopping an e-rickshaw with BJP flags attached to… Last week during the G20 summit in Bali, world leaders were informed of a missile… Recently, several prominent BJP leaders claimed that Prime Minister Narendra Modi had intervened to stop…	news-altnews	2024-05-27T18:24:05.489452	22nd August 2019 / 2:12 pm / Last updated: 22nd August 2019	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/child-kidnapping-rumors-minor-girl-falsely-accused-and-harassed-by-mob/", "author": "Pooja Chaudhuri" }
525	Child organ trade rumour: Photo from Syria shared with provocative audio clip - Alt News Arjun Sidharth 4th September 2019 / 4:24 pm Rumours of child abduction gangs on the prowl have been circulating aggressively on social media and messaging platforms over the past two months. A variant of these rumours claims that these gangs are into the organ trafficking business, removing the internal organs of abducted children. An incendiary audio clip has been doing the rounds, the message delivered in Hindi by a male voice which says, “तमिलनाडू पुलिस को एक कनटेनर से बच्चों की लाश मिली, इन बच्चों के जिस्म के अन्दर का हिस्सा निकाला गया है, जैसे किडनी, लीवर। तमिलनाडू पुलिस ने बताया इन सारे बच्चों को अलग अलग देशों से किडनैप करके लाया गया है ..नोट:-अपने घर के बच्चों को सम्भालो, उनका ख्याल रखो, अपने सारे ग्रुप मे ये मैसेज सेन्ड करो। इस फोटो को इतना फैलाओ ताकि कुत्ता पकड़ा जाना चाहिए। अगर जिसने ये नहीं फैलाया वो अपनी माँ का सपूत नहीं। अपने फोन में चाहे कितने भी ग्रुप हो 1, 2 , 3, 4 या 25, ये सारे ग्रुप मे भेजो, हरामखोर पकड़ा जाना चाहिए।” Translation: “Tamil Nadu police found bodies of children inside a container. Internal organs were removed from their bodies, like kidney and liver. Tamil Nadu police has said these children were abducted from various countries and brought here. Note: Take care of your children. Send this message to every group. Spread this photograph so much that this dog is caught. Who does not circulate this is not his/mother’s child. Send this to as many groups- 1, 2, 3, 4, or 25. This rascal must be caught.” Alt News is not posting the audio clip here owing to its provocative nature and scope for misuse. It has been shared along with a photograph showing bodies of children lying on the ground. Several readers of Alt News have requested verification of this image and the accompanying claim. There are two aspects of the claim- the audio message, and the photograph circulated along with it. Alt News had fact-checked this message earlier, when it was shared with the same photograph with which it has been circulated now. There is no truth to this claim. It is a rumour which has been circulating online for at least the past two years i.e. since early 2017. Insofar as the picture is concerned, Alt News had reverse-searched it on Google and found that it pertained to a chemical attack in Ghouta, Syria in August 2013 during the Syrian civil war, in which suburbs of Damascus were targeted with rockets containing the chemical agent Sarin. Alt News found the same photo in a blog from 2013. The American fact-checking website Snopes had fact-checked this photo in 2016, when it was being shared with the false narrative of organ trafficking in Thailand. In conclusion, a rumour which has been circulating online since 2017, that bodies of children with missing organs were found inside a container by Tamil Nadu police, was clubbed with a photograph depicting the tragic aftermath of a chemical attack in 2013, during the Syrian civil war. Arjun Sidharth is a writer with Alt News. He has previously worked in the television news industry, where he managed news bulletins and breaking news scenarios, apart from scripting numerous prime time television stories. He has also been actively involved with various freelance projects. Sidharth has studied economics, political science, international relations and journalism. He has a keen interest in books, movies, music, sports, politics, foreign policy, history and economics. His hobbies include reading, watching movies and indoor gaming. Rahul and Priyanka Gandhi recently performed aarti at the Narmada Ghat in Madhya Pradesh’s Omkareshwar… In the wake of the alleged murder of Shraddha Walkar by his partner Aftab Amin… The video of a group of people stopping an e-rickshaw with BJP flags attached to… Last week during the G20 summit in Bali, world leaders were informed of a missile… Recently, several prominent BJP leaders claimed that Prime Minister Narendra Modi had intervened to stop…	news-altnews	2024-05-27T18:24:05.489452	4th September 2019 / 4:24 pm	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/child-organ-trade-rumour-photo-from-syria-shared-with-provocative-audio-clip/", "author": "Arjun Sidharth" }
526	Child-theft rumours: A sordid saga unfolds as police look for effective measures - Alt News Kalim Ahmed 17th September 2022 / 5:49 pm / Last updated: 23rd September 2022 [The following story includes graphic photos and videos. Readers’ discretion is advised.] In the first week of September, Alt News started receiving multiple requests daily to verify audio and videos clips related to incidents and/or rumours of child kidnapping. The volume of requests was unusually high and most of them were from one of India’s largest states, Uttar Pradesh. In all of these cases, an individual or a group was assaulted by the general public on the suspicion that they were child kidnappers. Based on this, we started analyzing news reports using keyword searches, and also monitored social media. We observed that the attacks on individuals increased exponentially between August 30 and September 13. On August 30, a mentally challenged woman was assaulted by villagers in DK Shikarpur, West Champaran, Bihar. The same day, in Uttar Pradesh’s Phoolpur, a group of sadhus were detained by police over child kidnapping allegations. In many cases, sadhus and mentally challenged individuals were at the receiving end of mob attacks over child theft rumours. In Prayagraj, even health department officials were not spared when they went to a village to spray larvicide in and around the home of a dengue patient. Villagers assumed them to be child kidnappers and started chasing them. The health workers barely managed to escape. Later, on the outskirts of the village, they met the elders of the village and explained to them that they were health workers. This incident was reported by Amar Ujala on September 13. Dainik Bhaskar reported that eight people on their way to work were attacked by villagers in Bihar on September 9. On the same day, it was reported that four workers of a telecom company were attacked by locals in Kasganj, UP, on suspicion of child abduction, before police rescued them. On September 11, Jagran reported that three youths who had gone to a village in Uttarkhand to buy contraband were assaulted by villagers for similar reasons. Police personnel who who went in to control the situation were not spared, either. Again, on September 12, a couple was attacked by villagers in UP’s Pilbhit while they were travelling with their daughter. According to Jagran, the couple and the three-year-old child were on a bike, during which she started crying. This aroused suspicion in onlookers and they started attacking the man. Between August 30 and September 13, the number of instances in which sadhus were attacked stood at six, while in eight cases, mentally challenged individuals were at the receiving end. The total number of attacks/assaults in the span of 15 days was 27. September 1 to September 13 witnessed 25 attacks. We also found that 17 attacks occurred in Uttar Pradesh, followed by seven in Bihar, and one each in Karnataka, Maharashtra and Uttarakhand. What led to this wave of child kidnapping rumours in such huge volume is difficult to determine. However, the seeds of it were sown over a period of time. Scripted videos showing incidents of child kidnapping have been doing the rounds on social media for months now, each video different from the other. Some were even shared with communal messages, but the basic narrative remained the same. A group or an individual steals children and is either caught, or successfully escapes. Most of which happens in the open. By end of August, two such staged clips were viral on social media. In the first clip, we see three men haggling over money and apparently unconscious children lying around them. In the second clip, we see two masked men being confronted by a group of people, it also shows children lying in the back seat of the car. Below we have embedded the first clip. (Archive link.) वीडियो को देखकर आपकी आंखें खुली की खुली रह जाएंगी पैर के नीचे की जमीन खिसक जाएगी कलेजा एक बार दहल जाएगा वीडियो कहां की है यह तो नहीं पता है वीडियो कहीं की भी हो प्रशासन को हरकत में आना चाहिए pic.twitter.com/EzMkXxmKXv — Sunil Yadav (@SunilYa59918245) July 6, 2022 The second clip is not available in the public domain, however, we have added screengrabs from the viral video. Both the videos were debunked by Alt News and The Quint fact-check. In fact, the second scripted video was debunked by The Quint in the beginning of July. However, both videos continue to be circulated on WhatsApp. During this wave of rumours, even older clips tarted to surface online. One such video is a staged clip of a burkha-clad man stealing a child. The video was shot in Egypt but it viral in the Indian context. Again, the clip had been debunked by Alt News and various other fact-checking organisation in July but it continues to surface online as a genuine clip. July, in particular, saw two more instances of scripted child kidnapping videos going viral. In one video, a woman can be seen stealing a child of a deaf and mute woman. And in another, a burkha-clad man can be seen running with a child. Both clips were subsequently debunked by Alt News. Scripted video as a phenomenon has been documented thoroughly by Alt News. Readers interested in going through the database can do so by clicking on this link. In June this year, Alt News also wrote about scripted ‘CCTV’ videos, how people fall prey to them and the economy behind it. The full story can be read here. In a trend that was not noticed earlier, the present wave of child-heft rumours have seen unrelated audio/video clips getting clubbed and circulated as a single incident. For instance, a video clip of a sadhu getting beaten up was accompanied by an unrelated voice-over that appears to be a public announcement. The audio clip asks people to be vigilant as a ‘baccha chor gang’ (child kidnapping gang) is out there and they kidnap the kids for organ trading or child trafficking. The clip says these gang members are disguised as sadhus (sage), kabdiwala (junk seller), fakir, and pheriwalas (hawkers). The clip also says that if an unknown person stops their car in front of you asking for direction, you should step away. The recording ends with the man saying, “Audio Recording Abrar Chhotu, Sitapur”. Adding legitimacy or authority to these rumors, there was another doctored video that was making the rounds on social media, where a police officer could be seen speaking to the media on child-kidnapping rumours. It had a similar voice-over. The words spoken in the two clips are similar: Don’t open your doors for pheriwalas (hawkers), kabadiwala (junk sellers) sadhus (sages), or even bhikari (beggars). The voice also claims that 500 people, disguised as beggars, have come from Bargadwa. They take hostage whoever they come across on their way and sell their hearts and kidneys. The clip concludes by saying that this was said by SP (city) Dr Kaustab while talking to media outlets in Gorakhpur. This doctored clip was debunked by Alt News in 2019, however, it is still circulating as a genuine video clip even in 2022. Another video that has been viral in the current cycle of rumours about sadhus being involved in child theft is a video from Raisen, Madhya Pradesh. In the beginning of August, villagers in Raisen caught a group of thieves disguised as sadhus who had stolen jewellery from a woman in the name of performing prayers. Villagers later handed them over to the police. This particular video is now being shared as a case of child kidnapping. The clip of “Abrar chhotu” or the doctored video of Sitapur police is clubbed with this to give it an air of legitimacy. Alt News debunked this clip on September 8, 2022. However, the video went viral again within a week as a case of villagers in Maharashtra mistaking sadhus for child kidnappers and thrashing them. This video was shown by various prominent media outlets and was subsequently debunked by Alt News. Another video, where a sadhu begging for alms got into a confrontation and was beaten by villagers is also viral as a case related to child theft. Police clarified that it was not a case of child kidnapping. However, the public should maintain caution and should not pay heed to such rumours. Graphic videos claiming to show incidents of organ trading Scripted videos, unverified audio clips or mob thrashing sages are just the tip of the iceberg. There are videos that are graphic in nature and are viral as incidents of child kidnapping. In one clip, the bodies of three minors can be seen lying on the ground while they are surrounded by villagers who can be heard crying. It is accompanied by a claim that a group was caught red-handed stealing kidneys and killing children. Alt News could not determine when or where this video was shot. However, we did speak to medical practitioners who could confirm that the bodies appear to have been recorded after post-mortem as they have ‘Y’ shaped central incision and even the sutures (surgical threads) are visible. Such incisions are not made during ‘kidney transplants’ as the accompanying claims suggest. There is also a clip where a man can be seen tied to a pole and his gut is being cut open. This clip is being shared with one of the scripted videos without any accompanying caption. The viewer is left to assume that the two clips are related. Alt News could not determine the origin of the video in which the man’s body is cut open. However, it is certain that the video is from South America based on the language that could be heard in the video. A second video from South America is also viral as an organ trading/human trafficking video. The clip recently went viral as a case of ‘love jihad’ in Kerala. ‘Love jihad’ is a conspiracy theory according to which Muslim men are trained to trap Hindu women and marry them to convert them to Islam. The clip was debunked by Alt News back in 2019 when it was viral as an incident from Rajasthan. In 2018, BBC’s analysis of millions of English language reports found that at least 31 people were killed in 23 incidents related to child kidnapping rumours between 2017 and 2018 and dozens more were injured. It also found that 20 of these violent mob attacks occurred between April and July 2018. In July 2019, three local Congress leaders were mistaken as child kidnappers and were thrashed by locals in Madhya Pradesh. Based on a IndiaSpend database, between 2017 and 2019, 48 people have been lynched based on suspicion that they are child kidnappers. Death of Nilotpal Das and Abhijeet Nath In June 2018, Nilotpal Das and Abhijeet Nath were attacked and killed by villagers when they stopped at a village in Assam’s Karbi Anglong to ask for directions. It was widely reported that in the weeks before the lynching, villagers had come across messages on Facebook warning that everyone should be on guard as phankodongs – the Karbi term for child lifters – were on the loose in the area. Speaking to Scroll, a senior district police official said, “There had been a viral social media rumour doing the rounds in the area about child lifters, and these boys had appearances that nobody in the village had probably come across before. In the vehicle, there were two musical instruments: an almost five-foot-long hollow pipe and an ATC-[air traffic control] shaped drum with flashy colours – both of which would have been completely foreign to the villagers. On top of that, they were riding a black Scorpio (SUV) at night. Everything that could go wrong went wrong.” The pattern above is very similar to what we have seen so far in 2022. On September 13, in Maharashtra’s Sangli district, it was reported that a group of sadhus on their way to Solapur had lost their way. They were travelling in an SUV. They stopped at Lavanga village and approached a boy to ask for directions. The boy did not speak any language other than Kannada, apparently got scared looking at their appearance and started shouting. After which the villagers intervened and attacked the sadhus. Similarly, the telecom workers attacked by locals in UP’s Kasganj on September 9 were travelling in an SUV. In some cases, we have seen locals attack mentally challenged individuals because they could not understand their language. The pattern of attacks is also similar to what has been said in unverified audio clips and doctored videos that we mentioned in the beginning of the story. “Child kidnappers are disguised as sadhus (sage), kabadiwala (junk seller), fakir, pheriwalas (hawkers), and bhikari (beggars)”, was said in the audio clip. It also said to stay vigilant of people who stop to ask for directions. In the past, police have typically tried to deal with the menace by making videos requesting people not to pay heed to such rumours. In 2019, UP DGP shared a video on Twitter asking people to be aware and not fall for such forwards. Police in other states, too, took the same approach. They either made public safety awareness posts on social media or requested media organisations to help spread their messages. बच्चा चोरी के सम्बन्ध में भ्रामक सूचना/अफवाह पर विश्वास न करें, जिम्मेदार नागरिक की तरह #UPPolice की सहायता लें। इस संबंध में @dgpup द्वारा जनता के नाम संदेश #UPPAgainstFakeNews pic.twitter.com/iq6Zwyir87 — UP POLICE (@Uppolice) August 28, 2019 In some cases, police went to marketplaces and other crowded areas making announcements asking people not to take law into their own hands or forwards child kidnapping rumours. More such clips can be found here. बच्चा चोरी की अफवाह पर ध्यान न दे ! कोई संदिग्ध व्यक्ति दिखे तो तत्काल @up100 डायल करें या स्थानीय पुलिस को सूचना दे, कानून को अपने हाथ में न लें! SHO लाइन बाजार द्वारा लोगों को बच्चा चोरी की अफवाह के बारे में जागरूक किया गया। @Uppolice @dgpup @adgzonevaranasi @IgRangeVaranasi pic.twitter.com/xg4gRvnYAB — Jaunpur police (@jaunpurpolice) September 4, 2019 The approach of law enforcement in 2022 has been the same i.e., to visit village to village, location to location to inform the public about maintaining caution and not taking the law into their own hands. Police in states like UP (1,2,3,4) have also taken to social media requesting people to exercise restraint. This is the same as what they did in the past. In Uttarakhand, in 2022, it was suggested that people found sharing child kidnapping rumours could be charged under the National Security Act (NSA). The same approach was taken by UP Police in 2019. Back then Uttar Pradesh Director General of Police OP Singh told IANS that NSA would be slapped against people found involved in “rumour-mongering”. Interestingly, the idea of charging people with NSA for sharing child kidnapping rumours was also proposed again in 2022 by the UP Police. While police have considered them culprits, many believe that they are the victims as well, as they have fallen prey to rumours. One might argue that those who view child-theft rumour cases and resultant assaults just as law and order issues miss the larger point that parents become soft targets of these rumours because they fear for the lives and safety of their children. It needs a larger initiative from the government — which may include community awareness programs — to fight the menace. This becomes clear when we look at the rural areas of Varanasi. It has been reported that parents have stopped sending their wards to schools owing to child kidnapping rumours. This is despite repeated calls by Varanasi Police (Rural) saying that there are no child kidnappers in the area and people should not flame such rumours. Limitations with methodology The limitation of the methodology deployed by Alt News in doing this analysis is that we found most cases using keyword searches in Hindi or English and some cases of violence through social media monitoring. Depending on the “phrases used” the output may be higher for some states while it may show none in other cases. Same for monitoring; a state may show higher results of violence over child kidnapping depending upon how the news or rumours were monitored. No separate accounts were used for monitoring. The author used their own personal Twitter account and the Alt News tipline for the monitoring process. Kalim is a journalist with a keen interest in tech, misinformation, culture, etc A minute-long video clip of a woman being physically assaulted is viral on social media…. Trigger Warning: The following story contains graphic imagery. Several users have shared images of the… A 1:34-minute-long CCTV camera clip is being widely circulated on social media in which viewers… Trigger Warning: Violent Content. Viewer discretion is advised. Over the past few months, rumours of… The teaser of a movie titled ‘The Kerala Story’ is being widely shared on social…	news-altnews	2024-05-27T18:24:05.489452	17th September 2022 / 5:49 pm / Last updated: 23rd September 2022	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/child-theft-rumours-a-sordid-saga-unfolds-as-police-look-for-effective-measures/", "author": "Kalim Ahmed" }
527	Chinar Corps-Indian army, media share old video as recent ceasefire violation by Pakistan along LoC - Alt News Pooja Chaudhuri 13th June 2020 / 5:41 pm / Last updated: 13th June 2020 The official handle of the Chinar Corps Indian Army (@ChinarcorpsIA) tweeted a video of firing on June 12. The tweet claimed that the video represents the recent ceasefire violation by Pakistan in Jammu and Kashmir’s Rampur sector. The tweet is now deleted (archive). ANI shared the video with an identical claim. #WATCH J&K: Pakistan had initiated an unprovoked ceasefire violation along the LoC in Rampur Sector of District Baramulla by firing mortars, today morning. (Visuals deferred by unspecified time) pic.twitter.com/PSeFSLEuIB — ANI (@ANI) June 12, 2020 The same video was shared across mainstream media and public broadcasting news organisations. Prasar Bharati shared it as ceasefire violation by Pakistani in Hajipeer sector, LoC, in Uri. Pakistan violates ceasefire in Hajipeer sector of LOC in Uri, district Baramulla. Indian troops responding. No loss reported till now.Heavy shelling going on. pic.twitter.com/CcyPyDf1Q3 — Prasar Bharati News Services (@PBNS_India) June 12, 2020 The tweet by DD News read the same. Pakistan violates ceasefire in Hajipeer sector of LOC in Uri, district Baramulla.Indian troops responding. No loss reported till now.Heavy shelling going on. pic.twitter.com/KCAfnNN5Pd — DD NEWS SRINAGAR (@ddnewsSrinagar) June 12, 2020 Mainstream media outlets Times Now (47 seconds into the broadcast), Republic (1:20 minutes into the broadcast), ABP News and Zee Media’s WION News also played the video as ceasefire violation in Uri. #Breaking \| Pakistan violates ceasefire once again. Heavy shelling by Pak in the Uri sector. India Army is giving a befitting reply.#EXCLUSIVE visuals on TIMES NOW. Details by Mir Fareed. pic.twitter.com/ggkO9UNLuy — TIMES NOW (@TimesNow) June 12, 2020 Pakistan again violates ceasefire in Uri; woman killed, teenager injured in firing https://t.co/uVG9LAfLeM — Republic (@republic) June 12, 2020 A reverse-image search of the video’s keyframes led us to several links where the video was shared with different claims. The earliest that we were able to trace dates back to October 10, 2019. A Twitter wrote, “Latest reports of clashes from Abbaspur area of Azad Kashmir (Pakistan-administered Kashmir).” Clashes between India and Pakistan armies along LoC continue with brief pauses. Latest reports of clashes from Abbaspur area of Azad Kashmir (Pakistan-administered Kashmir). Reports of multiple civilian injuries on Pakistani side. pic.twitter.com/rT5DrKYYLg — FJ (@Natsecjeff) October 10, 2019 That same day the video was shared with the claim that it shows firing in Azad Kashmir area on YouTube as well. Another user had claimed in December 2019 that the video is from Bagsar sector along LoC. لائن آف کنٹرول آج کی صورتحال باگسر سیکٹر سمنی پر ہونے والی جھڑپ پاک فوج کے زبردست کاروائی انڈین آرمی کے پوسٹوں سے دھواں اٹھتا ہوا دیکھا جا سکتا ہے۔ #loC #kashmir #EhdEWafa #pakarmy #Endia #AzadMuslim @OfExposing @peaceforchange pic.twitter.com/FBiDR593jc — Syed Mohammad Umer Qadri (سید محمد عمر قادری) (@syedumershah313) December 23, 2019 A YouTube channel had claimed that the clip shows firing in Hajipir sector in PoK. While Alt News was unable to locate the origins of the video, it certainly does not depict the recent ceasefire violation by Pakistan in either Rampur sector or Uri. Earlier, Alt News had published a fact-check report on a Times Now broadcast where old videos were used for depicting the recent clashes in Ladakh. Pooja Chaudhuri is a senior editor at Alt News. Rahul and Priyanka Gandhi recently performed aarti at the Narmada Ghat in Madhya Pradesh’s Omkareshwar… In the wake of the alleged murder of Shraddha Walkar by his partner Aftab Amin… The video of a group of people stopping an e-rickshaw with BJP flags attached to… Last week during the G20 summit in Bali, world leaders were informed of a missile… Recently, several prominent BJP leaders claimed that Prime Minister Narendra Modi had intervened to stop…	news-altnews	2024-05-27T18:24:05.489452	13th June 2020 / 5:41 pm / Last updated: 13th June 2020	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/chinar-corps-indian-army-media-share-old-video-as-recent-ceasefire-violation-by-pakistan-along-loc/", "author": "Pooja Chaudhuri" }
528	Chinese axe wielding man passed off as a stone pelter by Indian right-wing - Alt News Pratik Sinha 8th June 2017 / 8:32 am Krishanu Mitra, former spokesperson of BJP’s Bengal State Unit, posted a video on his Twitter and Facebook timeline in which he states, “Those criticizing the Indian Army and Maj. Nitin Gogoi should see how other sovereign powers deals with secessionists. The following video is an insight into how the Chinese army deals with stone-peltors“. Following is the video of his Facebook post. The same video has also been uploaded to Youtube multiple times with a similar description. This video of the Chinese Armed Forces shooting a man has been making the rounds of various right-wing Facebook pages ever since the incident in Kashmir where a civilian was tied to the bonnet of a jeep and was paraded around as a human shield across several villages for many hours. Army Major Leetul Gogoi who reportedly took this decision claims that he was forced to do so to escape an angry stone pelting mob. However, the man who was shot down by the Chinese Armed Forces wasn’t a stone pelter. In fact, he was armed with an axe and a knife. This video first surfaced on the Internet around January 13, 2016 and one of the first websites to report this incident was Tomonews. A higher resolution version of the video that was posted on YouTube on Jan 15, 2016, shows how the armed personnel first asked the man to surrender and a warning shot was fired in the air. At this point time, the man initially pretends to surrender by dropping the knife in his left hand (8 seconds into the video). However, seconds later, he tries throwing the axe in his right hand at the armed personnel at which point he’s shot down. In the following screenshots, one can see the axe that the man was holding in his right hand which is later found near the soldier’s feet who narrowly dodged the axe. While debates around how to deal with angry mobs in Kashmir valley will continue for a long time with human rights activists advocating minimum use of lethal force and the Armed forces justifying the need to resort to more aggressive measures, passing-off a dangerously armed man as a stone pelter is highly misleading. In fact, it has been consistently observed that whenever the supporters of the present Union Government find themselves on the backfoot regarding various issues, invariably a fake video is circulated and made viral as means of justification. More often than not, these videos are accompanied by an elaborate piece of text which is designed to anger anyone with a confirmation bias or those treat the information that is passed around on WhatsApp at face value. When Pehlu Khan was murdered by Gau Rakshaks in Alwar, Rajasthan, a Bangladeshi video of killing of one Abu Syed in Coomilla district of Bangladesh was passed off as a Muslim mob killing a Hindu man. The text accompanying the post stated, “If a Muslim is killed in Rajasthan, it is “Hindu terrorism”, if a Hindu is killed in West Bengal, it is not even covered?” When a Delhi University Student Gurmehar Kaur was in controversy recently regarding her appeal for peace between India and Pakistan, a fake video was circulated in which a woman was drinking with her friends in a moving car and it was claimed that the woman was Gurmehar. While, there’s absolutely nothing wrong even if it were Gurmehar herself in the aforesaid video, this misleading video was circulated since large sections of Indian society still look down at women who drink. Recently, during the ongoing conflict between the Left and the RSS in Kerala, a video from Mexico was passed off as a RSS karyakarta being killed in Kerala. To counter this epidemic of fake videos, a larger participation is required from the society at large which includes mass media organisations and political parties. Unfortunately, most of the political parties who are losing out because of this menace of fake videos continue to enjoy their deep slumber. Co-Founder Alt News, I can be reached via E-mail at [email protected] and on Facebook at https://fb.com/freethinker. Follow @free_thinker Following Saudi Arabia’s 2-1 win against Argentina in the ongoing FIFA World Cup, speculation about… Trigger Warning: The following story contains graphic imagery. Several users have shared images of the… The brutal murder of Shraddha Walker has been widely covered across news media over the… A 1:34-minute-long CCTV camera clip is being widely circulated on social media in which viewers… The teaser of a movie titled ‘The Kerala Story’ is being widely shared on social…	news-altnews	2024-05-27T18:24:05.489452	8th June 2017 / 8:32 am	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/chinese-axe-wielding-man-passed-off-stone-pelter-indian-right-wing/", "author": "Pratik Sinha" }
529	Chinese dance video edited and passed off as Indian performance on Hindu devotional song - Alt News Arjun Sidharth 18th September 2019 / 11:41 am “Magical performance to the tune of a bhajan sung by two tiny tots–pupils of the one and only”, is the message posted along with a video by Madhu Kishwar. The video clip is 2:20 minutes long. A Hindu devotional song with chant of Lord Ram plays in the background, with breathtaking choreography and synchronization of hands by young artists who stand behind each other in a perfect column. Magical performance to the tune of a bhajan sung by two tiny tots–pupils of the one and only @kuldeepmpai pic.twitter.com/veDCNJD90P — MadhuPurnima Kishwar (@madhukishwar) September 17, 2019 Another social media influencer who posted the same video is Tarek Fatah, with the words, “The Magic that is Hindustan”. Fatah’s tweet credits Madhu Kishwar for the video. His tweet has been retweeted nearly 7,000 times and the video has been viewed over 1.73 times so far. The Magic that is Hindustan pic.twitter.com/ANpDj189vJ — Tarek Fatah (@TarekFatah) September 17, 2019 Several Twitter users, following Ms Kishwar’s tweet, commented that the video does not pertain to India. Others suggested that the audio has been manipulated. On the basis of these clues, with the use of specific keywords, Alt News found that this particular dance form is called ‘Dance of a thousand hands’, and it originates from China. The dance form has been created by Zhang Jigang, an internationally acclaimed choreographer and an officer in the Chinese national army (PLA). Interestingly, the dance is performed by hearing-impaired artists. We found the exact video as the one shared now, posted by the Chinese news agency Xinhua in November 2018 on Twitter. The dance had been performed at the headquarters of the United Nations in New York. As can be seen in the video, there is no chant of Lord Ram in the background. The video clip shared on social media has, therefore, been edited. Artists of China Disabled People’s Performing Art Troupe presented thousand-hand Bodhisattva dance on Monday at the United Nations headquarters in New York pic.twitter.com/jzlwg45JNq — China Xinhua News (@XHNews) November 5, 2018 Alt News also located several videos of this dance on YouTube. One such video is posted below. https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=2&v=Yk5eCbMzetU The dance form is also known as ‘Thousand hand Guan Yin’. Guan Yin is the Chinese name of the bodhisattva known as Avalokiteshvara. The concept of bodhisattva in Buddhism refers to a person who is on the path to the attainment of the state of Buddha (enlightenment). It was popularised under Mahayana Buddhism which gained prominence from the 2nd century BCE. It may be noted that the video in question, posted by Madhu Kishwar and Tarek Fatah as a performance from India, is actually not so. It is a Chinese dance form. Moreover, the video clip has been edited, with a Hindu devotional chant added to it. Arjun Sidharth is a writer with Alt News. He has previously worked in the television news industry, where he managed news bulletins and breaking news scenarios, apart from scripting numerous prime time television stories. He has also been actively involved with various freelance projects. Sidharth has studied economics, political science, international relations and journalism. He has a keen interest in books, movies, music, sports, politics, foreign policy, history and economics. His hobbies include reading, watching movies and indoor gaming. Rahul and Priyanka Gandhi recently performed aarti at the Narmada Ghat in Madhya Pradesh’s Omkareshwar… In the wake of the alleged murder of Shraddha Walkar by his partner Aftab Amin… The video of a group of people stopping an e-rickshaw with BJP flags attached to… Last week during the G20 summit in Bali, world leaders were informed of a missile… Recently, several prominent BJP leaders claimed that Prime Minister Narendra Modi had intervened to stop…	news-altnews	2024-05-27T18:24:05.489452	18th September 2019 / 11:41 am	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/chinese-dance-video-edited-and-passed-off-as-indian-performance-on-hindu-devotional-song/", "author": "Arjun Sidharth" }
530	Chinese police 'shooting down' coronavirus patients? Manufactured clip viral - Alt News Jignesh Patel & Mohammed Zubair 14th February 2020 / 4:52 pm / Last updated: 15th February 2020 A video clip is massively viral on social media. It shows a group of men who seem to be wielding guns near a police vehicle subsequently moving inside a residential lane. Later in the video, one can sport an unconscious person lying on the road. On February 11, Rangoli Chandel, Bollywood actor Kangana Ranaut’s sister, tweeted the video and claimed, “Meanwhile over 25,000 killed they have started shooting down all the people with the virus in China,” Her tweet has amassed close to 2,100 retweets. Meanwhile over 25,000 killed they have started shooting down all the people with the virus in China… this is so sad 🥺🥺🥺 pic.twitter.com/IfVWMUuSw6 — Rangoli Chandel (@Rangoli_A) February 13, 2020 A closer look at the video reveals that it is a combination of at least four different sequences which have been merged into one video. In the course of this article, we will fact-check the four sequences individually. Authorities in China had appealed to other countries to help with supplies of protective face mask, according to a BBC report published on February 6, 2020. “Medical advice in China is to change face masks regularly, as often as four times a day for medical teams, which would require two million masks each day. This is the procedure being followed in one of the main hospitals in Wuhan, the largest city in Hubei province,” stated the report, adding that there is widespread use of face masks among the ordinary population, whether or not they’ve been instructed to do so by the authorities. Posted below is a video report by The New York Times titled, “How Residents in Wuhan Are Coping With Coronavirus.” It shows multiple shots of almost every resident in Wuhan wearing a mask. Thus, it is unlikely that people in Hubei province’s Wuhan city would be seen without a mask given the mass panic triggered by the outbreak of coronavirus. In the third sequence, one can easily spot people who aren’t wearing masks standing near the person being attended by medical workers. Same with the fourth sequence – multiple people can be spotted without a protective mask. Below, we analyse the sequences individually. In the first and second sequences, three people with identical clothing can be spotted. In the screenshots posted below, one can read ‘police’ and the Chinese police emblem inscribed on the car. The first two sequences only show gun-wielding men moving into a lane surrounded by apartments. The second sequence is also viral with a separate claim that “three unknown people” wielding guns and wearing protective gear were walking somewhere in Wuhan. It has been circulating since February 1, 2020. We found a tweet in Chinese which said that this video was shot after two people were bitten by “crazy dogs”. The men in the clip are apparently hunting for the dogs in a street in Yiwu, Zhejiang Province in 2018. “It can be verified that the language in the video is Yiwu dialect,” reads the tweet posted on February 2, 2020. China Global Television Network (CGTN) tweeted the screenshots of the same video and informed that police in Yiwu, Zhejiang district called-out social media posts falsely alleging that the police was “shooting people sick with #coronavirus that refuse to be evacuated.” According to the police, the armed officers were only dealing with a rabid dog. Police said that the video has been maliciously edited with separate scenes. Police in Yiwu, Zhejiang said online video alleging them “shooting people sick with #coronavirus that refuse to be evacuated” is fake The police said the video was “maliciously” manipulated with separate scenes since the armed officers were only dealing with a rabid dog pic.twitter.com/10NLLX7B1I — CGTN (@CGTNOfficial) February 13, 2020 Yiwu city falls under the Jinhua jurisdiction of Zhejiang province. The license number on the police vehicle is ‘G1796’ where ‘G’ stands for Jinhua. We corroborated this with an image of a different police vehicle available online. In this sequence as well, one can hear sounds in the background which come across as gunshots. However, it is important to note that all that the viewers can spot are men, possibly medical professionals with protective gear, attending those lying on the ground. While there are sounds of gunshots in the background, no visuals of actual firing can be seen. Moreover, passers-by go on about as usual though it is being suggested patients are being shot dead. It is unlikely that gunshots would not arouse panic. There is also no bloodshed in the video. With a Chinese keyword search on Twitter, we found a clearer, extended version of the same video posted on January 26, 2020. The tweet claimed that the visuals depict people in rural areas around Wuhan region unable to visit a hospital and that the noise in the background is of fireworks lighted to celebrate the new year. 武汉周圍很多農村人，被感染后进不了医院，只有醫护上门，也無法確診，最終死在家里！這些死亡病例肯定是不会統計进官方肺炎死亡人数的！背景中是欢庆新年的烟花爆空，而他們死得绝望無辜！歷史也許永遠不会有真相！ pic.twitter.com/bw5co9vuk3 — 财经冷眼 (@charles984681) January 26, 2020 In the replies, a user argued that the dialect is not from Hubei province, let alone Wuhan. We were unable to independently locate the video. France 24 Observers investigated the video and found that the clip has nothing to do with CoV outbreak. It is related to an accident in the small town of Wuzu, located about 200 km east of Wuhan. The media outlet spoke to a local who confirmed that the video pertains to a motorcycle accident that took place in front of the Siyuan school on January 29, 2020. He also sent France 24 Observers a version of the same video. “At the end of a version of this same video sent by Zhang W, we see an additional image for a fraction of seconds. Pausing, we can see on the sidewalk, a few meters from the person on the ground, a two-wheeled vehicle lying on its side. Earlier in the video, at 0’04, we also notice that a piece of concrete ledge surrounding one of the trees visibly received a shock,” reads the report. Moreover, we found a tweet in Chinese calling out misinformation and informing that two minors were involved in an accident. While one died on the spot, the other was hospitalised with serious injuries. 地点：湖北省黄梅县五祖镇思源学校对面事件：两个未成年的骑摩托车太快。撞上路沿石失控。骑摩托车的死了坐摩托车重伤的送医院。完全是驾驶人自己的过失。造谣人称暴力执法将驾驶员打死，望各位理智。 pic.twitter.com/wGcppBTVEz — wenhao.hong (@RyPllPIchQEmrP1) February 1, 2020 The same sound of fireworks heard in the third sequence is audible in the fourth as well. Below is a 21-second video of this sequence posted by a Twitter user on February 4, 2020, where no gunshots can be heard. At Wuzu Town, Huangmei County in #Hubei , a woman was said to have shot dead after she attempted to break the blockade set up to contain #coronavirus . 湖北省黄梅县五祖镇 , 据说这名妇女因强闯 #武汉肺炎封锁线被警察打死。#CoronavirusOutbreak 何不 #全民自救 #全民互救？ pic.twitter.com/HqEvzSknz2 — 曾錚 Jennifer Zeng (@jenniferatntd) February 4, 2020 Therefore, it can be said that the audio of fireworks in the third sequence was also superimposed here. While the message posted along with the video alleges that over 25,000 people affected with CoV have been killed in China, no media reports corroborate the claim. According to the tracker set up by CGTN, 59,882 cases were reported in China at the time of writing this report. The death toll has now passed over 1,300 in the country, including one in Hong Kong. Alt News had earlier debunked a junk news story which falsely claimed that China sought the court’s approval to kill 20,000 coronavirus patients. Here is what we know so far: A dubious video was manufactured by combining multiple visuals. Audio of fireworks was superimposed to claim that 25,000 coronavirus patients were killed in China. Alt News found that one of the clips pertains to an accident that took place in China’s Wuzu town. We were able to verify that the gun-toting police personnel walking in Zhejiang province’s Yiwu city were there to kill a rabid dog. Moreover, the absence of protective masks also suggests that the clips are unrelated to coronavirus. Rahul and Priyanka Gandhi recently performed aarti at the Narmada Ghat in Madhya Pradesh’s Omkareshwar… In the wake of the alleged murder of Shraddha Walkar by his partner Aftab Amin… The video of a group of people stopping an e-rickshaw with BJP flags attached to… Last week during the G20 summit in Bali, world leaders were informed of a missile… Recently, several prominent BJP leaders claimed that Prime Minister Narendra Modi had intervened to stop…	news-altnews	2024-05-27T18:24:05.489452	14th February 2020 / 4:52 pm / Last updated: 15th February 2020	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/chinese-police-shooting-down-coronavirus-patients-manufactured-clip-viral/", "author": "Jignesh Patel & Mohammed Zubair" }
531	Three-year-old video shared as hyperbaric oxygen therapy given to injured Indian soldiers - Alt News Pooja Chaudhuri 20th June 2020 / 10:58 pm / Last updated: 22nd June 2020 At least 20 Indian army soldiers were martyred on the night of June 15 during clashes with the Chinese army in Galwan Valley, Ladakh. On June 17, “the Indian army confirmed that 17 of those who died were critically injured in the line of duty at the stand-off location and exposed to sub-zero temperatures in the high altitude terrain,” reported BBC. The next day, China released 10 Indian soldiers in their custody. A Twitter user Eva Zheng 郑怡斌 عائشة (@evazhengll) claiming to be a Chinese national shared a video of hyperbaric oxygen treatment given to soldiers. The user claimed that the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) suffered zero deaths and five injuries because Chinese soldiers were saved with this treatment. She further stated that 10 Indian troops were assisted with “hyperbaric oxygen therapy chamber in a PLA post”. The user added that 17 Indian soldiers, who were left overnight without oxygen in sub-zero temperature, lost their lives in delayed rescue efforts. The video hyperbaric oxygen therapy given to soldiers was quote-tweeted by journalists Swati Chaturvedi and Michael Safi who suggested that China has issued a casualty toll. Several other users have also shared the video claiming that China has released the death toll suffered after clashes with India. China has issued a casualty breakdown claiming 0 dead & five injured. https://t.co/q0bcamZ87F — Ᾱṟpitấ (@dewdrops28) June 20, 2020 A reverse-image search of the keyframes of the video did not yield relevant results. Alt News saved a screenshot of the video on Google docs to extract the Chinese text. A subsequent search of the text on Google led us to the video uploaded on Chinese video-sharing website bilibili.com on February 14, 2017. The video carries the logo of Chinese state-owned broadcaster CNTV. Shekhar Gupta, ThePrint founder, tweeted about the video saying that a “known psywar handle” posted a false claim about low PLA casualties at Galwan Valley “with a staged Feb video of some soldiers in a hyperbaric oxygen chamber claiming these are Indian captives being tended”. Gupta did not specify that the video is from 2017. Known Chinese psywar handle posts a fake claim of low PLA casualties at Galwan with a staged Feb video of some soldiers in a hyperbaric oxygen chamber claiming these are Indian captives being tended. Sad many fellow Indians are sharing & jubilating. That’s how divided we are… — Shekhar Gupta (@ShekharGupta) June 20, 2020 Michael Safi who had shared the video suggesting that China has issued its casualty toll posted a clarification tweet. “This is not from a Chinese official, but a propaganda account. Figures can’t be trusted. But still first numbers to emerge from Chinese side,” he wrote. Should clarify: this is not from a Chinese official, but a propaganda account. Figures can’t be trusted. But still first numbers to emerge from Chinese side. Look to see if it’s repeated — michael safi (@safimichael) June 20, 2020 Swati Chaturvedi quote-tweeted Safi and wrote that she echoes his statement. I have also tweeted this & second Michael https://t.co/iqws86n2jh — Swati Chaturvedi (@bainjal) June 20, 2020 As of this writing, there has been no response from the Chinese government on the question of either the death toll or injuries suffered by PLA officers. China has a history of not disclosing casualty figures publicly at the time of conflict. Quoting “sources” ANI had claimed that the Chinese have suffered 43 casualties, injured and dead. Another figure of 35 casualties was floating on social media and the media after a website called usnews.com quoted “US intelligence sources”. Pooja Chaudhuri is a senior editor at Alt News. Rahul and Priyanka Gandhi recently performed aarti at the Narmada Ghat in Madhya Pradesh’s Omkareshwar… In the wake of the alleged murder of Shraddha Walkar by his partner Aftab Amin… The video of a group of people stopping an e-rickshaw with BJP flags attached to… Last week during the G20 summit in Bali, world leaders were informed of a missile… Recently, several prominent BJP leaders claimed that Prime Minister Narendra Modi had intervened to stop…	news-altnews	2024-05-27T18:24:05.489452	20th June 2020 / 10:58 pm / Last updated: 22nd June 2020	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/chinese-propaganda-2017-video-shared-as-hyperbaric-oxygen-therapy-given-to-injured-indian-soldiers/", "author": "Pooja Chaudhuri" }
532	Chyawanprash lacks research against COVID-19, Dabur puts out misleading ad - Alt News Ronak Borana & Dr. Sumaiya Shaikh 4th April 2021 / 5:00 pm / Last updated: 4th April 2021 The COVID-19 pandemic has given a big boost to the Ayurvedic and other alternative therapeutics industry. Despite limited evidence, several ayurvedic products are being endorsed by many including the health minister and the Prime Minister of india. Chyawanprash is one such ayurvedic formulation made of super-concentrated blend of herbs and sugar. It is a popular household product sold by most Ayuvedic firms like Patanjali, Dabur, Emami and others. In the pandemic, as per a report, products like Chaywanprash have seen an 85% increase in demand. Dabur -one of the biggest Ayurvedic companies in India also sells Chaywanprash. They recently published an advertisement in several newspapers to claim that Chyawanprash could protect against COVID-19. Dabur made this statement with a claim that it had conducted a clinical trial research study of the formula that supported the statement. Similarly, on their website, Dabur claims that consumption of their Chyawanprash reduced the risk of COVID-19 by up to 12 times in their study. No research of the said clinical study was shared on the website. This drew flak from several people including the Advertising Standards Council of India which suo moto registered a complaint against the advertisement. We looked at Dabur’s claim and the general efficacy of Chyawanprash in preventing COVID-19 and found no scientific evidence in the form of published peer reviewed articles. In a previous story, Alt News Science earlier found no scientific basis for using Ashwagandha in treating COVID-19 as prescribed by the AYUSH Ministry. Alerting ⁦@ascionline⁩ ! How reliable and valid is the study ⁦@DaburIndia⁩ is quoting? Please find out and pass your verdict. ⁦@rameshnarayan⁩ ⁦@skswamy⁩ ⁦@beastoftraal⁩ ⁦@calamur⁩ ⁦@bhatnaturally⁩ Two spoons vs Two shots of vaccine? pic.twitter.com/UgKAc2MZxn — Ambi Parameswaran (@ambimgp) March 26, 2021 False In India, any clinical or human trials have to be registered with the ICMR’s Clinical Trials Registry – India (CTRI) before the trial begins, including AYUSH trials. Despite some shortcomings, CTRI entries help in ensuring better transparency, accountability and accessibility of trial-related data. We did a keyword search for ‘Chyawanprash’ and ‘Chyavanprash’ and found 10 clinical studies registered with CTRI. All these studies are trying to test if Chyawanprash consumption can prevent COVID-19. Out of these 10 studies, two were from Dabur India (last searched 3rd of April 2021). As per their CTRI entry, one of them had 696 participants and was conducted across 5 different centres. These details match with the study which was cited by Dabur in its advertisement and website. We did a keyword search for ‘Dabur Chyawanprash Clinical study on Covid-19’ on Google Scholar and PubMed database of scientific publications and found no results. Similarly, there were no preprints of the study on both BioRxiv and MedRxiv preprint servers. This means that there is no research paper published by Dabur to back their claim. The results listed on their website are suspicious. The website claims that out of 351 participants who consumed Chyawanprash, 2.38% tested positive for COVID-19. 2.38% of 351 is 8.3538. The number of participants cannot be decimal, It has to be a whole number. Similarly in the control group, 28.57% of 345 tested positive for COVID-19. This comes out to be 98.5665 which is again a fraction and not a whole number. If we round up the decimal, 99 participants tested positive for COVID-19 in the control group as compared to just eight in the Chyawanprash group. This result is unbelievably high. One way to look at this result is that if a vaccine had these numbers, it would be 92% efficacious! Higher than both the Covaxin (81%) and CovidShield (76%) vaccines used in India right now. Extraordinary claims require extraordinary evidence. In Dabur’s case, there is no evidence at all. Dabur has not published any papers on either of the clinical trials they did on Chyawanprash. Hence the claim on their website and newspaper advertisement is misleading. News portals like NavBharat Times and News Track covered Dabur’s claims even when there was no peer-reviewed paper to support them. An inconclusive preprint study with Chyawanprash Of all the 10 clinical studies listed above, only one of them has been published. That too was published as a preprint and not as a peer-reviewed research paper. This study was funded by the Central Council of Research in Ayurveda Sciences (CCRAS), Ministry of AYUSH. They tried to test if Dabur Chyawanprash could prevent COVID-19 in a sample of just 193 participants. The conclusion as per their preprint is “Chyawanprash was well tolerated by all the participants in the intervention group but to prove its adaptogenic effect and efficacy as an add-on to the standard care in preventing the occurrence of COVID-19, clinical trial for longer duration with larger sample size is needed.” Further, the results of this preprint also suggested that those who consumed Chyawanprash had a significantly higher level of IgG -a long term inflammatory marker, usually due to longer lasting but subtle food sensitivities, than those without Chyawanprash. This result also means that the immune response due to Chyawanprash may be unfavourable for the body. Analysis of other Chyawanprash clinical studies paints a bleak picture. Consider this study funded by CCRAS where 49 participants were given Chyawanprash for 30 days and there was no control group. After the end of a month, two of the 49 participants ended up testing positive for COVID-19 yet the CTRI entry concludes, “The outcome of this pilot study is encouraging in context to a possible safe prophylactic remedy for COVID-19’’. This study has no scientific publication of the results either as a paper or a preprint yet. Similarly, other Chyawanprash trials are poorly designed too. While most of them have a control group, none of them is blinded. To ensure that the trial is not affected by bias, blinding is carried out where participants and clinicians are not informed whether they are getting the drug or the control. When blinding is not carried out, the researcher and the study participant may under-report their symptoms with a favourable view of Chyawanprash. There are some registered trials with larger sample sizes such as NIIMH-CCRAS, a Ministry of AYUSH funded study which has 5000 participants. This trial can give acceptable results if it is conducted properly. NIIMH-CCRAS is also funding a study of Chyawanprash as a COVID-19 preventive agent in 1500 police personnel in Telangana. But as per their CTRI data, both the trials should have ended by now but there is no public record of their results. As per their CTRI entries, several of the 10 trials should have completed their recruitment long back and yet there are no publications from most of those trials. One reason to explain this could be the file-drawer effect or publication bias. This happens when researchers register their trial, complete the trial but don’t publish their results because it is negative or inconclusive. Not publishing negative results is not just the breach of the trust of the study participants but also of citizens who funded many of these trials via the AYUSH ministry. CTRI registration was made mandatory to track such trials that don’t end up sharing their results. There is just a single published preprint, with substandard methods and inconclusive results that was found to use Chyawanprash to prevent COVID-19. That study was inconclusive and could not establish Chyawanprash’s efficacy. The other nine trials registered in CTRI are yet to be published. AYUSH ministry’s claim that Chyawanrprash can help in post-COVID-19 recovery is sans any evidence. Dabur has released no research paper to support their claim and the summary on their website is highly dubious. Therefore any claim of Chyawanprash’s success in preventing Covid-19 is misleading and unreliable. In a 2-minute video, a man recommends a “technique” to prevent infection from Omicron, the… A video of a set of iron nails that appear to melt after being placed… Several social media users have shared an image that shows two columns — ‘Cepa/variante’ (Spanish… A 90-second video of a man dissecting a banana has been shared on the internet…. The Taliban has formed an all-male government after taking over control in Afghanistan. On September…	news-altnews	2024-05-27T18:24:05.489452	4th April 2021 / 5:00 pm / Last updated: 4th April 2021	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/chyawanprash-lacks-research-against-covid-19-dabur-puts-out-misleading-ad/", "author": "Ronak Borana & Dr. Sumaiya Shaikh" }

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