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1,240	No, Russia did not instruct Indians to mark homes with Indian flag for safe evacuation - Alt News Kinjal 28th February 2022 / 6:57 pm A graphic featuring Russian Defence Minister Sergey Shoigu attributes the following quote to him, “Russian soldiers will not harm those Indians who have marked their homes or cars with the Indian tricolour. In fact, the search squad of the army will themselves evacuate such people to a safer location.” The graphic also says, “Our chaiwala is quite mighty after all.” This is a reference to Prime Minister Modi. Twitter user ‘Sunil Bairagi 𝙎𝙆 (Digital Warrior)’ tweeted the graphic and wrote, “This is the power of our chaiwala.” (Archive link) The graphic is generating a lot of traction on Twitter and Facebook. We also received a few requests for its verification on the Alt News mobile app. The graphic has also made its way to WhatsApp. The claims being circulated via this graphic are completely false. Russia did not advise Indians in Ukraine to mark their homes or cars with the Indian flag. Neither did the Russian authorities state that the search squad of their army would evacuate Indians upon seeing the tricolour. Had the Russian army actually made such an announcement, it would have undoubtedly garnered a flurry of media attention. However, we could not find any news reports to corroborate the ‘news’. However, it is worth noting that Indian authorities have advised Indians in Ukraine to wear the Indian flag or a tricolour sticker for identification while evacuating to safer locations or travelling to the border. ABP Live reported, “An alternative route is being used to bring back Indians from war-torn Ukraine. Meanwhile, sources said that all Indians in Ukraine have been asked to put the Indian flag on their vehicles and write ‘India’ on them during evacuation operations for authorities to easily identify their nationality. These instructions have been provided especially for conflict zones.” The Times of India also reported that Indian authorities have advised Indians stranded in Ukraine to display the national flag for identification during evacuation. The claim that Russia advised Indians in Ukraine to mark their homes and cars with the tricolour for safe evacuation by Russian troops is false. It is worth noting that this is not merely a rumour, but the misinformation can prove to be dangerous for Indian stranded 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	28th February 2022 / 6:57 pm	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/false-claim-of-general-of-the-army-of-defence-russian-federation-said-to-indian-to-hoist-indian-flag-in-their-home/", "author": "Kinjal" }
1,241	Kishan Bharwad's murder sparks false claim of Muslims being forced out of Gujarat village - Alt News Kinjal 17th February 2022 / 1:07 pm A man named Kishan Bharwad was shot and killed in Dhandhuka, Gujarat for allegedly posting an “objectionable” religious Facebook post. Since then, several claims related to the murder have been floating on social media. A few arrests have been made in connection with the incident. Against this backdrop, a video is being circulated widely that shows people arguing with the police. It has been claimed that Hindu residents from the village where Bharwad was murdered were forcefully evacuating the Muslim families. Twitter user Harish Rajguru shared the footage with this message. (Archive link) देखो जब हिन्दू जागता है तो क्या होता है, यह वीडियो देखकर आप को बहुत सकून मिलने वाला है, हिन्दुओ ने पूरा गांव ही खाली करा डाला वहा किशन भरवाड़ का मडर हुआ था आज पूरे गांव को 🐷🐷🐷🐷सुअरो से मुक्त करा डाला 🙏 pic.twitter.com/XDlF7I3XVl — हरीश राजगुरु (@harishrajguru19) January 31, 2022 Another video of people sloganeering at a rally is also being circulated with the same claim. Twitter handle ‘@maheshspatel74’ posted the clip with the same claim. (Archive link) देखो जब हिन्दू जागता है तो क्या होता है, यह वीडियो देखकर आप को बहुत सकून मिलने वाला है, हिन्दुओ ने पूरा गांव ही खाली करा डाला ,वहा किशन भरवाड़ का मर्डर हुआ था ,आज पूरे गांव को मुक्त करा डाला । pic.twitter.com/LOpTe1vxC6 — हिन्दू🕉️🔱भगवा🚩योद्धा🏹योद्धा #प्रशासक 74 (@maheshspatel74) February 2, 2022 Both the videos are widespread on Facebook and Twitter. (Tweet 1, Tweet 2) Alt News found that neither of the two videos was linked to the murder of Kishan Bharwad. First video We performed a reverse image search which led us to a TV9 Gujarati report dated January 30, 2022. It says that locals were protesting the administration’s decision to erect a wall outside the Imamshah Dargah in Ahmedabad’s Pirana area. Police and representatives from the city’s municipal corporation also reached the scene to reason with the angered crowd. [youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C6o2HhzNFa0] Local media outlet GSTV News also covered the incident. [youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9asIvjm2K1c] Second video This video also depicts the aforementioned incident that occurred in Pirana. Several videos of this protest were posted on Facebook, including by a page called ‘Hazrat Pir Saiyed Imamuddin’. It is evident that the video is from Pirana as there are several bystanders who can be seen in both sets of visuals. For instance, the man highlighted below. Similarly, we have pointed out the same female protestors in both the videos using different coloured arrows. Alt News reached out to the administrator of the Facebook page. He explained that the video was taken during the demonstration at Pirana. He also identified the white building that appears in the background as Gurukul Vidhyavihar English School. The Imamshah Bawa Dargah is located 950 m away from the school. Furthermore, he sent Alt News some additional photos and videos of the location where the viral video was taken. These confirm that the second video was indeed taken at Pirana. [vimeo 676268221 w=640 h=288] As shown below, we can confirm that the location shown in the viral visuals is, in fact, Pirana. The images below contain similar kinds of trees and foliage. They also feature the same advertisements printed on the wall. On January 31, 2022, The Indian Express published a report covering the Pirana demonstration. It mentioned that residents of Pirana village in Daskroi taluka of Ahmedabad district took to the streets on Sunday to protest the construction of a wall on the premises of the Imamshah Bawa Sanstha Trust. 133 protesters, including 64 women, were also detained by the police. The outlet also quoted a senior officer at Aslali police station who explained that intermittent protests had been going on in the village for the past three to four months. The protestors said that they would go to the collector’s office to lodge a complaint. Some protestors were recording videos and uploading live updates. The police took a few of them in custody to “maintain peace”. We could not find any reports to corroborate the claim about Muslim residents being ostracised from the village. On February 2, BBC Gujarati reported that the situation in Dhandhuka was tense. However, a local resident who was quoted stated that several Muslim families lived in the village but there have been no conflicts recently. Alt News also spoke to Dhandhuka police about the incident. They rubbished the claims viral on social media and clarified that there was no truth to the news of Muslim villagers being forced to evacuate. To sum it up, videos of a protest over a wall outside the Imamshah Dargah in Ahmedabad’s Pirana area were falsely linked to the Kishan Bharwad murder case. 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. 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	17th February 2022 / 1:07 pm	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/false-claim-of-hindus-evacuating-muslims-after-kishan-bharwads-murder-in-gujarat-viral/", "author": "Kinjal" }
1,242	Fact-Check: Did UP electricity dept issue notice only to mosqes & madrasas for stealing power? - Alt News Abhishek Kumar 3rd October 2022 / 5:57 pm / Last updated: 3rd October 2022 A few days ago, media outlets reported that 400 mosques and madrasas in Uttar Pradesh’s Rampur were operating on stolen electricity. According to these reports, the electricity department issued notices to those running the mosques and madrasas asking them to install electricity connections within a week. If they failed to comply, action would be taken after an inspection campaign. On September 25, Live Hindustan reported that more than 400 mosques and madrasas were running on stolen electricity. The report included a statement by executive engineer Bhishma Singh Tomar who stated, “About 400 mosques and madrasas in the city do not have electricity connections. A list of these establishments have been sought from the police. There is an appeal to all of them to install an electricity connection within a week. If they fail to do so, their electricity connection would be cut and charges would be filed under electricity theft. (Archived link) Another report by Live Hindustan dated September 26 mentioned the use of stolen electricity by more than 400 mosques and madrasas. (Archived link) Navbharat Times also published a report with a similar claim on September 26. (Archived link) RSS mouthpiece ‘Panchjanya’ also claimed that mosques and madrassas in Rampur were issued notices over electricity theft. (Archived link) Alt News performed a keyword search to get to the bottom of this claim. This led us to an article by The Times of India dated September 25. According to this article, 59 temples and 115 mosques in Uttar Pradesh’s Rampur were asked to get electricity connections. This article has been written by journalist Arvind Chauhan. We saw that Chauhan had called the claim made by Live Hindustan ‘misleading’ in a September 26 tweet. He also shared the list of 59 temples and 115 mosques in this tweet. 🧵 Story looks misleading. The discom has sent advisory to 59 temples & 115 mosques to get power connection within a week, as they were engaged in alleged power theft यूपी के 400 मदरसों और मस्जिदों में हो रहा था यह काम, बिजली विभाग ने जारी किया नोटिस https://t.co/4oCUSDLQ5W — Arvind Chauhan (@Arv_Ind_Chauhan) September 25, 2022 https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js Alt News reached out to Vishal Malik, the zonal secretary of Rampur PVVNL (Paschim Vidyut Vitran Nigam Limited) to gather more information on the matter. He stated that the department had urged all religious places running without power connections to submit applications for electricity connections within a week. This includes both temples and mosques.. Malik also informed Alt News that executive engineer Bhishma Singh Tomar had shared an advisory on this in a WhatsApp group consisting of local journalists. Along with this, he also shared the list containing details of the 59 temples and 115 mosques, along with their location and operators. Vikas forwarded both these messages to us. It is worth noting that the text used in the advisory is misleading since it mentions masjids, madrasas, maulvis and the caretakers of the masjid. However, there is no mention of temples or priests anywhere. The readers can download this pdf file by clicking here. Below is a list of the temples and mosques in the gallery that was sent to the WhatsApp group of journalists. As per a Live Hindustan report, executive engineer Bhishma Singh Tomar had called for a report from the police. On this basis, he claimed that 400 mosques were using electricity without power connections. Alt News got in touch with Tomar to gather information on this. He said that the advisory had been issued to both temples and mosques, and not to any one religious community. He added that it was for all religious places which used electricity without a power connection. When we asked Bhishma Singh Tomar about the list based on which he made the misleading claim about 400 mosques and madrasas using electricity without connection, he replied that he had only one police station list which he had sent to the WhatsApp group of journalists. It includes 59 temples and 115 mosques. He said that by taking a total of four police stations, he estimated that more than 400 mosques and madrasas were using stolen electricity. When we asked him whether any notice had been issued to the operators of the temple and mosques, he said that no one was issued any notice. Rather, it was an advisory that had been circulated. Overall, executive engineer Bhishma Singh Tomar issued a misleading advisory and made a misleading statement in the media. On the basis of incomplete information, media outlets claimed that only mosques and madrasas in Uttar Pradesh’s Rampur were running on electricity without power connections leading the electricity department to issue a related advisory. 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). Inter-faith relationships between Hindu women and Muslim men have been a sore point for the… Right after Elon Musk took over the reins of microblogging site Twitter, the organization carried… A six-second-long clip of a civilian slapping French President Emmanuel Macron while he is interacting… Former Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan was allegedly shot at during a rally in Wazirabad… In a now-deleted article titled “दीप प्रज्ज्वलन के वैज्ञानिक और आध्यात्मिक पक्ष, जानें ये है…	news-altnews	2024-05-27T18:24:05.489452	3rd October 2022 / 5:57 pm / Last updated: 3rd October 2022	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/false-claim-of-hindustan-nbt-that-400-mosque-madrasa-operating-without-electricity-connections/", "author": "Abhishek Kumar" }
1,243	False claim of India 'capturing' Chinese side of Pangong Lake published by dubious website - Alt News Archit 18th June 2020 / 11:25 pm On June 17, a UK-based news platform Epistle News published a report that claimed India has captured the Chinese side of Pangong Lake for the first time since 1962. The article is no longer accessible on the website. However, the tweet (archive link) posted by Epistle News Twitter account shows such an article was indeed published. Prashant Patel Umrao similarly tweeted, “According to a report, Bharat has captured the Chinese side of Pangong Lake- a region that was taken under china’s control post the 1962 war.” His tweet has been retweeted over 5,000 times (archive link). Umrao has often been found sharing misinformation on social media. Ashish Pandey, member of Uttar Pradesh chief minister social media hub tweeted an identical tweet as Umrao’s (archive link). Vibhor Anand posted a similar tweet. He wrote, “Big and Confirmed: #IndiaChinaFaceOff Indian Forces have captured the Chinese side of Pangong Lake codenamed Finger 8.” Anand’s tweet gained over 1,000 retweets (archive link). The article is no longer available on Epistle News website, however, there is a screenshot of the same. As per the screenshot, the opening paragraph read, “In a fresh twist to ongoing India-China skirmishes, unconfirmed sources have asserted that India has now captured the Chinese side of Pangong Lake – a region that was taken under China’s control post the 1962 Indo-China war.” The article also included an image that showed Indian soldiers waving a flag with their fists raised in the air. Since then several people on Facebook and Twitter have shared the article. A Facebook user even copy-pasted the entire article while sharing a post by BJP Rajya Sabha member Subramanian Swamy (archive link). The first paragraph is identical to the one in the screenshot attached above. In the course of this article, Alt New will investigate the following: 1) Epistle News website 2) Twitter account of Epistle News Alt News performed a keyword search and found that no other website has made the claim that India has captured the Chinese side of Pangong Lake. Moreover, neither the Government of India nor the Indian army has made any such announcement. In fact, both India and China have agreed to de-escalate, meaning that it is improbable that New Delhi will engage in an offensive of this scale. Yet several social media users have shared the claim promoted by a sketchy website called Epistle News which has .co.uk domain and as per it’s Twitter bio it is based out of London. Alt News analysed the website and Twitter account of Epistle News and found several traits that indicate that it’s not a news website but a set up to push pro-government propaganda. We visited the website and noticed that along with the article in question, it had also published another piece which claimed that the Indian army killed 43 Chinese troopers. On June 17, Alt News published a report on how a section of the media and journalists misrepresented ANI’s tweet on alleged casualties on the Chinese side as “43 Chinese soldiers killed”. We also noticed that not a single article on the website is responsive. All of them lead to ‘404 Not Found’ error page. Epistle News claimed that there were DDoS attacks against the website. However, the website’s homepage is accessible but not individual articles. Typically, in the case of DDoS attacks, the entire website goes down. Our website is facing multiple DDoS attacks after posting this article. We’ve taken our whole website down for a while and will update you as soon as the issue is resolved. We thank you for your patience and support. — Epistle News (@EpistleNews) June 17, 2020 As per Amazon’s web analytics service Alexa, the website has a world rank of 2,865,605. Alexa has anakysed its internet traffic and engagement over the past 90 days. Alt News performed a reverse image search of the photo shown in the Epistle News tweet and found that it was published by several media outlets, including The Print which had used it as a representative image in an article from March and credited it to ANI. While the image does not seem to be on the public domain, another reverse image search led to a similar image published by India Today on January 26, 2020. As per the article, the image shows soldiers celebrating the 2020 Republic Day at the LoC. The differences between the two images are — A) Soldiers’ fists aren’t raised and B) Images are not shot at the exact time. Apart from that, both images are identical — A) They show the same nine Indian army soldiers; B) In both the images the fifth trooper is holding the flag and C) The location is the same. On January 25, an India Today broadcast showed the soldiers in the viral image singing a patriotic song. The relevant section begins from 2:44 seconds in the video. As per the website, the Twitter handle of Epistle News is @EpistleNews. As per its Twitter bio, the account was created in 2016. A low follower count, after a period of four years, indicates that it is not a genuine news organisation. As of this writing, the account has posted only 88 tweets since its inception which is atypical and suspicious of a news website. Using a tool called accountanalysis.app, we found that the top three hashtags promoted by the handle were India, Trump and Indore. It is highly uncharacteristic of a ‘UK-based’ website to not publish top stories related to the UK. The screenshot below shows tweets from Indore posted by ‘UK-based’ Epistle News. Furthermore, the first tweet of the account was posted on October 8, 2018. The tweet reveals that Epistle News was initially hosted on blogpost.in which suggests that a person of Indian-origin is behind the portal. https://t.co/tQZPcINXYM — Epistle News (@EpistleNews) October 8, 2016 Prashant Patel Umrao and several other social media users shared the false claim that India has captured the Chinese side of Pangong Lake for the first time since 1962 based on an unreliable website Epistle News. The article is no longer accessible on the website. 🙏 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… 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	18th June 2020 / 11:25 pm	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/false-claim-of-india-capturing-chinese-side-of-pangong-lake-published-by-dubious-website/", "author": "Archit" }
1,244	Rumour of journalist Pragya Mishra's murder is false - Alt News Anuradha Prasad 19th April 2021 / 3:57 pm / Last updated: 19th April 2021 A WhatsApp forward claims that Uttar Pradesh journalist Pragya Mishra was murdered in broad daylight for her critical reportage on Kumbh Mela amid a growing pandemic. Photographs of a woman lying dead on the road have been shared to promote the claim. A few people have also shared CCTV footage of a man stabbing a woman. The claim is also circulating without the pictures with Malayalam caption on Facebook. The post below has 4,600 shares. Another Malayalam user’s post drew 2,100 shares. The viral message reads, “പ്രാഗ്യ മിശ്ര എന്ന പത്ര പ്രവർത്തക കൊല്ലപ്പെട്ടു. കുംഭ മേളയിൽ Covid മാനദണ്ഡങ്ങൾ പാലിക്കാത്തത് വിമർശിച്ചു കൊണ്ട് വാർത്ത ചെയ്തത് കാരണം.” Pragya Mishra took to Twitter to debunk the rumours of her murder. “I am at home following COVID protocol. I am alive and safe. The rumours of my murder are false,” she wrote. दोस्तों कोविड प्रोटोकॉल्स की वजह से घर में हूँ एकदम जीवित और सुरक्षित हूँ..मेरे मर्डर की खबर अफवाह है..https://t.co/5man4uDZSb pic.twitter.com/bsH3WsTU2x — Pragya Mishra (@PragyaLive) April 18, 2021 The photographs being shared pertain to an incident from Delhi. On April 10, India Today reported that a man named Harish Mehta attacked and killed his wife using a knife in Delhi’s Rohini area. He suspected his wife of having an ‘illegitimate relationship’. The deceased Neelu Mehta used to work at Safdarjung Hospital in Delhi. Harish stabbed his wife in front of a number of bystanders, many of whom were recording footage instead of saving her. Dozens of media outlets including The Indian Express, The Hindu, and NDTV covered the incident. The Indian Express reported, “Neelu was rushed to Sanjay Gandhi Hospital but doctors declared her dead on arrival. The accused, who works at a marriage bureau, told police he recently got married to Neelu and wasn’t happy with her job at Safdarjung Hospital.” The outlet quoted DCP Tayal saying, “He suspected her of having an extramarital affair and was angry that she wasn’t leaving her job. The woman was living with her parents in Budhh Vihar. On Saturday around 2 pm, she was returning home from work when Mehta approached her and stabbed her multiple times on the road.” Photographs of a woman murdered by his husband in Delhi have been falsely shared as journalist Pragya Mishra murdered in UP for her critical coverage of Kumbh Mela. The same images were earlier shared with the false claim that the murder was communally motivated. 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	19th April 2021 / 3:57 pm / Last updated: 19th April 2021	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/false-claim-of-journalist-pragya-mishra-murder-in-broad-day-light-shared-with-videos/", "author": "Anuradha Prasad" }
1,245	Mirror image used to portray Mamata Banerjee faked her leg injury - Alt News Archit 17th March 2021 / 1:28 pm West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee suffered injuries to her left leg while campaigning in Nandigram on March 10. She was released two days later with a plaster on her leg. On March 16, several people shared two images of CM Banerjee and claimed that she faked her injury. A picture of the CM in the hospital shows that her injury is on the left leg while another photograph of her exiting the hospital in a wheelchair shows the plaster on her right leg. Twitter user @Vasudev00411816 posted these images and wrote, “In Two days Bandage dressing changed from left to right leg! Oscar for Bengal NAUTANKI ?” Facebook users have also shared these images. (1, 2) Alt News received several requests on our WhatsApp helpline number (+917600011160) and on our official mobile application to authenticate the claim. Image 1: CM Banerjee in hospital This image was published by multiple media outlets including The Indian Express on March 11. The image is credited to the Press Trust of India. It shows that the plaster is on the West Bengal CM’s left leg. Image 2: CM Banerjee on a wheelchair This image was tweeted by The Economics Times journalist Aman Sharma and shows the injury on the same leg. #MamataBannerjee is out of hospital pic.twitter.com/1u8NtPGyX2 — Aman Sharma (@AmanKayamHai_ET) March 12, 2021 However, the original photograph has been reversed to claim that the plaster was on CM Banerjee’s right leg when she left the hospital. Sharma has uploaded multiple images of CM Banerjee since March 12. All of them show that her left leg is injured. (1, 2, 3) The CM campaigning today pic.twitter.com/VFL3rqqE38 — Aman Sharma (@AmanKayamHai_ET) March 16, 2021 CM Banerjee’s injury shown in the images published by The Print and Zee5 is consistent with the photographs uploaded by Sharma. Video footage in the below NDTV bulletin from March 14 also confirms the same. Thus, an image of West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee in a wheelchair was flipped horizontally (mirrored) to falsely claim that the dressing on her leg changed from left to right in a matter of two days. A mirror image was also used to falsely portray that JNUSU President Aishe Ghosh had faked her injury after the JNU violence. 🙏 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	17th March 2021 / 1:28 pm	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/false-claim-of-mamta-banarjee-leg-injury-shifted-from-left-to-right/", "author": "Archit" }
1,246	Photo of 19-year-old married in Bihar shared with false child marriage claims - Alt News Abhishek Kumar 31st May 2021 / 5:28 pm / Last updated: 31st May 2021 A photograph of a girl in bridal attire is widely circulating on social media with users claiming that she is an 8-year-old who was married off to a 28-year-old man in Bihar’s Nawada district. BJP influencer Ashoke Pandit tweeted the image and tagged Chief Minister and Janata Dal leader Nitish Kumar. Former journalist Sunchika Pandey and Zee Hindustan journalist Tushar Srivastava also promoted the child marriage claim. Maharashtra Rajya Sabha MP and Shiv Sena leader Priyanka Chaturvedi quote-tweeted Srivastava’s tweet and questioned if CM Nitish Kumar will take appropriate action. Navbharat Times journalist Narendra Nath Mishra claimed that the minor was married due to poverty. Taking cognizance of the matter, Priyank Kanoongo, Chairperson of the National Commission for Protection of Child Rights, issued a notice. नवादा बिहार में बाल विवाह किए जाने के सोशल मीडिया से प्राप्त शिकायत का संज्ञान लेते हुए,@NCPCR_ ने नोटिस जारी किया है। दोषियों को हर हाल में सज़ा दिलवाने के लिए आयोग प्रतिबद्ध है। कृपया बच्चे का फ़ोटो अपलोड व शेयर कर के क़ानून का उल्लंघन न करें। pic.twitter.com/pdWrfn3h2R — प्रियंक कानूनगो Priyank Kanoongo (@KanoongoPriyank) May 28, 2021 News portal Khabri Bhaiya also published an article based on the picture. It quoted sources as saying, “The family the girl has been married into is not even in a position to take care of her properly.” The photograph is massively viral on Twitter and Facebook. Alt News reached out to SP Dhurat Sayali Savalaram from Nawada who said that the incident took place in Jamui but she was unable to provide details as the case does not fall under her jurisdiction. Nawada DM Yashpal Meena was able to provide further information. Addressing the media, Meena informed that a high-level team was sent to the Manjore Panchayat of Warisaliganj for investigation, where locals said that the girl’s natal home fell under the jurisdiction of Sikandra police station in Jamui district. She was raised at her grandmother’s house and has also been living there. Jamui police administration was briefed on the incident. [youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rVq9j_6bcJ0] We subsequently spoke to Jamui SP Pramod Kumar Mandal who informed us that the girl was married in Ashok Dham and is actually 19 years old. He also sent us a photograph of her Aadhaar card that says her date of birth is January 1, 2002. Santhosh Singh, editor of Kashish News, shared the young woman’s video statement with us. She said that she was born on January 1, 2002. The man beside her in the video is her husband. The couple were married after their families’ consent. Nawada administration issued a press release debunking the viral child marriage claim. The release also mentions her date of birth as per her Aadhaar card. Mooknayak founder Meena Kotwal also contacted the couple – Tanu and her husband Shashikant – and they clarified on the viral claims. बिहार की जिस लड़की को 8 साल का बताकर तस्वीर वायरल की जा रही है वो 19 साल की तनु हैं. तस्वीर में शादी के जोड़े में बैठी तनु को 8 साल का बताकर इसे सोशल मीडिया पर वायरल किया जा रहा है और कहा जा रहा है कि मजबूरी में 8 साल की बच्ची की शादी की गई है. तनु ने बताया कि उनकी जन्मतिथि 1/1 pic.twitter.com/j0qKxFGK6g — Meena Kotwal (@KotwalMeena) May 28, 2021 A young, adult woman’s marriage in Bihar was given a false child marriage spin on social media. Local administration and the woman herself have clarified that she is 19 years of age. 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… 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	31st May 2021 / 5:28 pm / Last updated: 31st May 2021	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/false-claim-of-minor-girl-from-navada-bihar-marriage-viral-on-social-media/", "author": "Abhishek Kumar" }
1,247	Scripted video of youth dying due to 'birthday bumps' believed to be true - Alt News Priyanka Jha 2nd December 2021 / 6:52 pm A CCTV clip of a group of young men participating in a birthday celebration is viral on social media. The video shows the youth giving the birthday boy ‘birthday bumps’ by repeatedly hitting and kicking him, to the point where he falls unconscious. Sharing the video, users are claiming that the birthday boy in the video died as a result of his friends’ actions and warn against following such tradition. Modern Birthday celebration turned in tragedy… unknowingly friends killed on birthday.. madness Dont try this type of anyone birthday celebration விளையாட்டு வினையானது 😕 #Valimai #awareness tweet #அன்பைவிதைப்போம் pic.twitter.com/9y09Jp4LHv — Madurai Kannan B+ (@Maduraikannank_) November 29, 2021 Several users are also blaming Western culture while amplifying the visuals. Alt News received multiple requests to verify them on our WhatsApp helpline number (+91 76000 11160). At the end of the 3:13 video being circulated on Facebook, a screen appears which states that the video was made for educational purposes only. In addition, it is also mentioned that the scenes were made as part of a scripted drama. We noticed that a Facebook page called Hamsa Nandini posted this video on November 28. The caption was identical to the text that appeared at the bottom of the aforementioned end screen. The page has previously shared several such CCTV videos, mentioning that they were created for educational purposes only. This confirms that the scenes in the viral video are fictional and have no basis in reality. Alt News has earlier debunked many such scripted videos which were mistakenly shared as real. A few of these are given below: 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. 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	2nd December 2021 / 6:52 pm	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/false-claim-of-modern-birthday-celebration-turned-in-tragedy-viral-video-is-scripted-drama/", "author": "Priyanka Jha" }
1,248	Video of violence in family dispute shared with false communal spin - Alt News Priyanka Jha 13th August 2021 / 6:53 pm A video of a young woman mercilessly beaten has been circulating on social media. It has been claimed that a Muslim girl was beaten by her father after he saw her with a Hindu boy. The video also shows another woman trying to intervene and save the girl amid a crowd of mute spectators. 2 मुस्लिम लड़की हिंदू लड़कों के साथ देखी जाने के बाद क्या हाल किया मुल्लों ने 2 लड़कों का देखो ये विडियो दिल्ली शाहीन बाग का है, केजरुद्दीन के एरिया का है, देखो मुल्लों का अत्याचार@1kattar_hindu फालो करें रिट्वीट करें फालोबैक पाये तुरन्त pic.twitter.com/5Ak99AbzPT — हिन्दू सनातनी🙏 (@1kattar_hindu) August 12, 2021 Several other users have made the same claim while sharing the video. This clip is widespread on Facebook. Alt News also received requests to verify the video on its WhatsApp number (+91 7600011160) and mobile app. We noticed that the clip was shared by a user who tagged UP police and wrote that the incident is from Shamli. In response, Shamli police shared a statement issued by the Superintendent of Police. He explained, “After examining this video, we received information that an individual named Ahsan got married in Kairawa village under the jurisdiction of the Kairana police station area of Shamli district. The woman seen in the viral clip is his wife. One of her former lovers arrived at her in-laws’ home with his friend. When the in-laws came to know about the woman’s relationship before marriage, they informed the woman’s natal family as well. Together with people from her natal home, the in-laws thrashed the woman and the two men. No complaint of any kind was filed in the case in the police station.” थाना कैराना क्षेत्रान्तर्गत युवक द्वारा युवती से मारपीट करते हुए सोशल मीडिया पर वारयल वीडियो के संबंध में पुलिस अधीक्षक शामली की बाईट ।👇 pic.twitter.com/i8IQ1YuwkC — Shamli police (@PoliceShamli) August 4, 2021 Dainik Bhaskar correspondent Sachin Gupta had shared two videos of the same incident on August 5. He shared another video in which two youths were being beaten up. The accompanying caption stated, “Two youths who came to meet one of their married ex-girlfriends in Shamli got a Taliban style punishment.” And sharing the video which shows the woman beaten up, Sachin wrote, “Mohammed Ahsan’s wife was having an affair with an old lover in Shamli, Uttar Pradesh. Look at what Ahsan did to her in response.” पार्ट-1 उप्र के शामली में शादीशुदा प्रेमिका से मिलने आए दो युवकों को तालिबानी सजा मिली। उन्हें चारपाई पर उल्टा लेटाकर पीटा गया। पुलिस ने पिटाई करने वाले दो युवक अरेस्ट किए हैं। #Shamli https://t.co/6nPnT5iV0h pic.twitter.com/r6FUM7nVfj — Sachin Gupta \| सचिन गुप्ता (@sachingupta787) August 5, 2021 Alt News reached out to the Kairana police station and spoke to Premveer Rana. “This is false. Ever since the advent of social media, it is being used to circulate vitriol. The real matter is that both the parties belonged to the Muslim community. A woman named Shahzadi married a month ago. Her ex-boyfriend Aftab lived in the same village and visited her with one of his companions, so naturally, Shahzadi’s in-laws objected. They informed her father that his daughter had invited her boyfriend. After that, the woman’s brother, father and mother, and four or five others came to the spot and beat her mercilessly. This happened on July 28. Three people identified as Amjad, Mubarik and Naushad have been arrested and sent to jail in this case. Out of these, two are the brothers-in-law of the woman and the third is a neighbour,” he said. Therefore, the video in question was falsely given a communal angle and circulated on social media. According to local police, the actual context surrounds a woman and her ex-lover who were beaten up by her family members. The police took action and arrested a few people in the matter. 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. 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	13th August 2021 / 6:53 pm	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/false-claim-of-muslim-girl-is-beaten-up-after-seeing-with-hindu-man-video-viral-with-communal-angle/", "author": "Priyanka Jha" }
1,249	No, there aren't any Muslims in this video 'mocking' Hindu culture - Alt News Kinjal 27th August 2021 / 3:41 pm A video of a group of people dancing to the beats of a drum around a bonfire has been shared on social media. It has been claimed that people from the Muslim community are mocking Hindus by imitating their culture. A Facebook user named Deepak Sajwan shared the video calling the dance a ‘huge conspiracy’.(Archive link) ☝🏻☝🏻 ये गांव वाले इतने महामूर्ख हैं, ये हमारे कुलदेवी देवताओं का मजाक नही तो क्या है, ये एक बहुत बड़ा षड्यंत्र है, ये मुस्लिम समाज के जो कहते हैं नाचना ,गाना, और मूर्ति पूजा हराम है वो हमारे यहां पर धूनी लगाकर नाच रहे हैं जैसे हमारे देवता इन पर ही प्रकट हुए हो, जो गौमांस भक्षण करते हैं उन पर देवी-देवता कैसे प्रकट हो सकते हैं,हे मूर्ख पहाड़ियों कब समझोगे इनकी चाल को जब ये सबकुछ तुम्हारा लूट ले जाएंगे, कश्मीरी पंडितों की तरह तुम्हारा हाल करेंगे, पता लगाओ ये कहां की विडियो है, प्रत्येक व्यक्ति की जिम्मेदारी है ये पता लगाना और उस गांव के प्रधान का फोन नम्बर भी मालूम करना, प्रत्येक व्यक्ति अपने अपने स्रोतों से पता लगाएं, ये धीरे धीरे इतना फैल जाएंगे जिसकी हम कल्पना भी नही कर सकते हैं, और उत्तराखंड दूसरा कश्मीर बन जाएगा,।#जागो_पहाड़ियोंजागो Posted by Deepak Sajwan on Wednesday, August 4, 2021 The tweet below has over 1,200 views. (Archive link) ये हमारी संस्कृति का मजाक उड़ाया जा रहा है😡😡 आज तक कभी ऐसा हुआ नहीं है और कभी सोचा नहीं था कि ऐसा भी होगा और कैसे ये गांव के लोग है जो ऐसे देबी देबता का अपमान करवा रहे हैं धिक्कार है इस गांव पर😡😡 कोई बताएगा कौनसा गांव है ये?? pic.twitter.com/XM1qE06YXE — पहाड़ों से हैं 🙏 (@pahado_say_hain) August 5, 2021 The video is widespread on Facebook. The words ‘Pahari Blogger’ appear on the lower right corner of the visuals. This hinted that a YouTube channel of the same name may have posted the video. ‘Pahari Blogger’ is indeed a YouTube channel that had uploaded the video on August 5, 2021. The channel is run by Himanshu Kaluda. He clarified that the people seen in the video are not Muslims. Kaluda also said that he had uploaded the video to his ‘Pahari Blogger’ channel a few months ago, but was forced to take it down due to the spate of communal comments it generated. He then posted another video on August 5 discussing the actual origins of the footage. [youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J0Q_IeGjSXM] “First of all, this video was shot in Bharpur village. In 2017 or 2018, there were Thola, Mandar, or Jagari speaking somewhere so I made this video. This is a four-year-old video that was published on my channel four or five months ago…Is this village full of Muslims? I would like to inform you that this is an all Hindu village. No Muslims live here, no one is adopting Islamic culture here, and no one is adopting the Islamic religion…there are no Islam converts in this clip. All of these people are Hindus,” he stated. “The four or five people who are seen dancing claim that Muslim deities like Sahdavta, Pathan Devta, and Pir Baba enter their bodies. Sahdevta is highly revered in our village. For example, if someone is a big devotee of Nanda Devi, they say that they have come from Nanda Devi. Since Sahdevta’s tomb is in Meerut, his devotees say that they have come from Meerut. That’s what they mean to say. No Muslims have come here from Meerut. No Muslims have come here from Roorkee. Neither do any Muslims live here and nor is our village adopting Islam. And we don’t promote Islamic culture,” he further added. Kaluda told Alt News. “The claim that these people were mocking Hindu culture is false. Everyone in this village is a Hindu. And as far as I know, there are no Muslims even in the surrounding villages. The people seen here are worshipping a Muslim deity. Because of this, they have worn the skullcap which is associated with the Muslim community. The video was shared with the wrong context on social media,” he explained. Tehri-Garhwal police posted a video of Kaluda dated August 5, 2021 on its official Facebook page to debunk the viral claims. Tehri-Garhwal SP Tripti Bhatt informed Alt News, “The claim accompanying this clip on social media is completely false. All the people seen in the video are Hindus. There are also some people who are from Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes. This is a four-year-old video, recorded by a person named Himanshu Kaluda. They are devotees of Syed Pir Baba. No Muslims live in this village,” she clarified. We also spoke with Omprakash Singh, a resident of Bharpur village who said that the religious celebration seen in the video is held every three years. “No person belonging to the Muslim community has come to our village. The people here believe in Pir Baba. This gathering was held in his honour and to worship him,” he said. The video was therefore, presented with the false context that members of the Muslim community were mocking Hindu culture. The people dancing in the video are Hindus. 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. 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	27th August 2021 / 3:41 pm	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/false-claim-of-muslims-mocking-hindu-religion-by-dancing-around-the-fire/", "author": "Kinjal" }
1,250	False claim of Yati Narsinghanand's arrest shared online - Alt News Abhishek Kumar 1st May 2021 / 7:51 pm BJP supporter Sanjay Dixit (@Sanjay_Dixit) recently tweeted, “Yeti Narasimhananda Saraswati has been arrested by police” while Maulana Saad roams free. The tweet garnered 1,900 retweets and more than 4,000 likes at the time of writing. (Archive link) He also shared a YouTube video while retweeting his own post. The accompanying text read, “Narsinghanad Saraswati arrested? Hear him yourself. Will the Uttar Pradesh police have the courage to arrest those who gathered in large numbers and shouted slogans about beheading him? The goons at the Delhi border cannot be touched. Shame on you! ” Although the tweet has now been deleted, you can find its archived version here. In the video, Yati Narsinghanand Saraswati is sitting in a car and saying, “The police have arrested me today from Shahjahanpur. These are all police vehicles you see behind me and in front of me. These people cannot arrest Maulana Saad. They cannot arrest any Muslim. They will only display their power in front of me because I am weak. Hindus need to be aware, they won’t get time tomorrow. I am here today, gone tomorrow. It is not a big deal whether I live or not. But these Muslims will eat your children.” Sharing the clip, a user named @IamNotSecular claimed that Saraswati was recently arrested for “quoting the Quran”. It is noteworthy that Delhi police had recently filed an FIR against Saraswati for allegedly making inflammatory remarks against Islam and Prophet Muhammed at the press club of India. Several other Twitter users (1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6) also shared the news of Saraswati’s arrest. Several YouTube channels also reported about the arrest. These videos together amassed more than 95,000 views. (1, 2, 3) The news of Yati Narsinghanad Sarwasti’s arrest is old. Replying to Sanjay Dixit’s tweet, he himself wrote, “Hail Mahadev Mr Sanjay, I am absolutely fine. There has been no arrest.” It is noteworthy that Saraswati’s account was suspended by Twitter at the time of writing. Shahjahanpur police also replied to Sanjay Dixit’s tweet with a clarification that read, “Shahjahanpur police has not taken any such action/ made such an arrest. The allegations made in the viral video are not related to Shahjahanpur police. These are completely misleading, the Shahjahanpur police condemns them.” On July 30, 2020, Dainik Jagran reported that Shahjahanpur police stopped Narsinghanand Saraswati while he was travelling to Ayodhya. Along with his supporters, Saraswati was on his way to Ayodhya to protest against the National Muslim Forum’s Chhattisgarh native Faiz participating in the Bhoomi Poojan ceremony of the Ram Temple. He was detained in Shahjahanpur and sent back to Ghaziabad. The video in circulation is related to this incident. Sanjay Dixit later posted a tweet acknowledging that he shared an old video. pic.twitter.com/QCI2nFRcgx — Sanjay Dixit ಸಂಜಯ್ ದೀಕ್ಷಿತ್ संजय दीक्षित (@Sanjay_Dixit) April 28, 2021 Yati Narsinghanand Saraswati has therefore not been arrested. The viral video pertains to an old incident when he wasn’t arrested but stopped by the police. 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). 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 May 2021 / 7:51 pm	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/false-claim-of-narsimhanand-saraswati-arrested-viral-with-old-video/", "author": "Abhishek Kumar" }
1,251	BJP leaders falsely claim 'pro-Pakistan' chant raised in SP rally ahead of UP polls - Alt News Aqib Pathan & Priyanka Jha 5th February 2022 / 2:43 pm / Last updated: 5th February 2022 A 14-second video clip was shared by several Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leaders with the claim that ‘Pakistan Zindabad’ slogan was raised during an election campaign rally of a candidate of the Samajwadi Party (SP). The alleged slogan roughly translates to – “Press the button of cycle, make (UP) Pakistan”. BJP’s national spokesperson Sambit Patra posted this video and later took it down. But an archived version can be accessed here. BJP MLA Abhijit Singh Sanga from UP’s Bithoor also tweeted this video and claimed the same. #जैसी_नियत_वैसी_बरक्कत। ग्राम टिकरा में आज समाजवादी पार्टी द्वारालगे नारे पाकिस्तान बनाना है साईकिल का बटन दबाना है राजनीति का यह तरीका मुनीन्द्र शुक्ला का बेहद शर्मनाक है इन सब पर देश-द्रोह का मुकदमा लगना चाहिए#आएंगे_फिर_योगी_ही pic.twitter.com/ueXdp23HB0 — MLA Abhijeet Singh Sanga (@BJP4Abhijeet) February 4, 2022 The video was amplified by several other BJP members including Prashant Patel Umrao, Suresh Nakhua, Krishnandan Paswan and Y. Satya Kumar. Navbharat Times journalist Shivam Bhatt has also shared this video and wrote, “Pakistan’s entry in UP elections”. UP चुनाव में फिर हुई ‘पाकिस्तान’ की एंट्री.! कानपुर के बिठूर से सपा प्रत्याशी मुनींद्र शुक्ला के समर्थकों पर पाकिस्तान के समर्थन में नारे लगाने का आरोप। वीडियो में सुनाई दे रहा…पाकिस्तान बनाना है, साइकिल का बटन दबाना है। वीडियो वायरल। pic.twitter.com/zUa4OLdEAw — Shivam Bhatt 🇮🇳 (@_ShivamBhatt) February 4, 2022 Navbharat Times, Aaj Tak, Asianet, Prabhat Khabar, Times of India were among the media outlets that carried reports claiming “pro-Pakistan” slogans were chanted in an election rally taken out by SP. Pro-BJP propaganda outlet OpIndia also published a similar report. Alt News found a video statement uploaded by SP candidate from Bithoor, Munindra Shukla, where he refuted the viral claim. भ्रामक वीडियो से बचे। जो जीतने की स्थिति में नही होता है वो भ्रामक प्रचार करके कुचक्र रचता है लेकिन हम सभी को सारे कुचक्र तोड़कर सत्य का साथ देना है कृपया भ्रमित न हो… भारत माता की जय वंदे मातरम जय हिंद Posted by मुनींद्र शुक्ला द्वितीय on Friday, February 4, 2022 In a telephonic conversation with Alt News, Shukla said, “The contentious slogan – “Pakistan Banana Hai” – was not raised. The chant that was actually raised was – “Maati Chor Bhagana Hai” (Get rid of the sand thief).” Shukla explained, “The phrase ‘sand thief’ has been used for BJP MLA Abhijit Singh Sanga because he has indulged in illegal sand mining. It’s this phrase that BJP members are claiming was a pro-Pakistan chant. Why would we raise such slogans? Even the police have investigated this video. This is BJP’s tactic to communalise an incident to give it a Hindu-Muslim angle prior to elections.” Shukla also shared a longer version of the viral video. This is 43 seconds long and the viral segment begins from the 20-second mark. In the video, we can hear “Mohar maro taan ke cycle ke nishan pe” (Press the cycle button) and “Maati chor bhagana hai, cycle ka button dabana hai” (Get rid of the sand thief, press the cycle button). [vimeo 673654631 w=640 h=352] In a video statement, Assistant Returning Officer (ARO) from Bithoor said that the video was examined and the word ‘Pakistan’ was not found. This clip was also aired by News24. कानपुर प्रशासन ने अपनी जांच में पाया – ‘बिठूर विधानसभा के सपा प्रत्याशी मुनींद्र शुक्ला की रैली के दौरान ‘पाकिस्तान जिंदाबाद’ के नारे नहीं लगाए गए #UPElections2022 #Kanpur pic.twitter.com/uujv6GwkaW — News24 (@news24tvchannel) February 4, 2022 In March last year, UP-based journalist Divas Pandey had tagged BJP MLA Abhijit Singh Sanga and UP government officials and reported that Sanga’s relatives were involved in illicit sand mining. He alleged that the activity was being carried out in the police’s presence. #वायरल वीडियो के अनुसार जरकला #प्रधान के ट्रैक्टर से हो रहा #मिट्टी का अवैध खनन @DMKanpur @dgpup भाजपा के विधायक @BJP4Abhijeet के रिश्तेदार बने मिट्टी के ठेकेदार @myogiadityanath रेलवे की आड़ में निकली मिट्टी गौरिया स्थित प्लांट में डाली जा रही संरक्षण में खड़ी @Uppolice की जीप https://t.co/07M87eULle — Divas pandey (@divaspandeynews) March 13, 2021 In conclusion, several BJP leaders and members shared a video of an election rally taken out by supporters of SP leader Munindra Shukla and falsely claimed that the slogan “Pakistan Banana Hai” was raised in the rally. This is false. The slogan that was raised was – “Maati chor Bhagana hai”. 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 February 2022 / 2:43 pm / Last updated: 5th February 2022	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/false-claim-of-pakistan-banana-hai-slogans-raised-in-sp-candidate-in-kanpur-bithur/", "author": "Aqib Pathan & Priyanka Jha" }
1,252	No, 'Pakistan Zindabad' slogan was not raised in SP-RLD candidate rally - Alt News Priyanka Jha 5th February 2022 / 5:34 pm BJP Delhi spokesperson Ajay Sherawat recently shared a video claiming that ‘Pakistan Zindabad’ slogans were raised during a campaign rally of SP-RLD alliance candidate Neeraj Chaudhary. Zee News journalist Sonu Sharma quote-tweeted Sherawat’s post, expressing his concern at the incident if it indeed occurred. BJP spokesperson Navin Kumar Jindal also shared the video with the same claim. SP-RLD गठबंधन के प्रत्याशी नीरज चौधरी के प्रचार मे पाकिस्तान जिंदाबाद के नारों से गालिया गूंज रही हैं। बड़ी इज्जत कमा रहे हैं #RLD वाले। pic.twitter.com/sVHswVznSD — Ajay Sehrawat (@IamAjaySehrawat) February 3, 2022 समाजवादी पार्टी और आरएलडी के गठबंधन के प्रत्याशी नीरज चौधरी की जनसंपर्क यात्रा में पाकिस्तान जिंदाबाद के नारे लग रहे हैं। बस इन्हीं गद्दारों का खात्मा करना है उत्तर प्रदेश की जनता को। pic.twitter.com/2J6uKp2IQO — Naveen Kumar Jindal 🇮🇳 (@naveenjindalbjp) February 3, 2022 Sudarshan News wrote, “SP-RLD alliance on anti-national path after opposition by Hindus. Pro-pakistan sloganeering by supporters in Bijnor.” (archived link) हिंदू विरोध के बाद देशविरोध की राह पर सपा RLD गठबंधन ! बिजनौर में प्रत्याशी के जनसंपर्क में गूंजा पाकिस्तान जिंदाबाद@yadavakhilesh@jayantrld https://t.co/XIUswr6Rua — Sudarshan News (@SudarshanNewsTV) February 3, 2022 Many prominent media organisations also reported the alleged news and claimed that 25 unidentified supporters were booked by the police. The title of a report by Asianet News also claimed that ‘Pakistan Zindabad’ was chanted although the same report also carries a statement by Neeraj Chaudhary where he has clarified that the slogan which was chanted was ‘Aaqif Bhai Zindabad’. Bijnor police registered an FIR in the case and claimed that “objectionable” slogans were raised in the presence of SP-RLD alliance candidate Neeraj Chaudhary. .@bijnorpolice गठबन्धन प्रत्याशी डाॅ0 नीरज चौधरी व उसके समर्थको की सोशल मीडिया पर वायरल वीडियो पर की गई कार्यवाही के सम्बन्ध में अपर पुलिस अधीक्षक नगर बिजनौर की बाईट। pic.twitter.com/hlxm7axbqA — Bijnor Police (@bijnorpolice) February 3, 2022 RLD candidate Neeraj Chaudhary issued a statement saying this was a conspiracy to defame him. He told the media to listen to the viral clip carefully to confirm that his supporters were chanting ‘Aqif Bhai Zindabad’. In fact, Aqif bhai can also be seen in this video. Chaudhary stated, “Aqif (mispronounced ‘Aqib’) Ansari is a member of Mohalla Julahan. The organisation held a rally where supporters gathered in large numbers. Upon seeing us, the people started chanting, ‘Neeraj Chaudhary Zindabad’, ‘Jayant Chaudhary Zindabad’, and ‘Aqif Bhai Zindabad’. The slogan of ‘Aqif Bhai Zindabad’ has gone viral with this claim that the chant was ‘Pakistan Zindabad’. Even more surprising is that an FIR has also been registered against us based purely on the clip.” #बिजनौर RLD प्रत्याशी नीरज चौधरी ने विपक्ष पर लगाए गंभीर आरोप, कहा- बदनाम करने के लिए फेक वीडियो किया वायरल pic.twitter.com/WMQXiGIIzq — Newstrack Uttar Pradesh (@NewstrackUP) February 3, 2022 Local news portal Bijnor Express also reported the same. Alt News can also confirm after listening to the claim that ‘Aqif Bhai Zindabad’ was chanted at the rally. Alt News spoke to Aqif Ansari who said, “I came to know that this video was circulated and made viral by the opposition. There was an RLD election rally in which a huge crowd had gathered. The slogans raised were ‘Jayant Chaudhary Zindabad’ and ‘Neeraj Chaudhary Zindabad’. People also raised slogans in my name, ‘Aqif Bhai Zindabad’. The same video was shared by the IT cell with a false claim about pro-Pakistan sloganeering. All this was done to influence the election.” RLD chief Jayant Chaudhary tweeted on the matter, saying that ‘Aqif Bhai Zindabad’ was being misinterpreted as ‘Pakistan Zindabad’. हमारे बिजनोर के प्रत्याशी, चौधरी नीरज एक डॉक्टर हैं, नेक इंसान हैं। उन्हें ये मूर्ख, video डॉक्टर कर के देश द्रोही साबित करने में लग रहे हैं! — Jayant Singh (@jayantrld) February 3, 2022 Alt News has observed that supporters of the BJP often portray members of opposition as pro-Pakistan. We have debunked several such claims where names of leaders have been misrepresented as ‘Pakistan Zindabad’. 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	5th February 2022 / 5:34 pm	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/false-claim-of-pakistan-zindabad-slogans-raised-in-sp-rld-candidate-election-rally-in-bijnor-up/", "author": "Priyanka Jha" }
1,253	False claim of Pakistani flag waved at Congress rally resurfaces on social media - Alt News Arjun Sidharth 26th March 2019 / 2:43 pm / Last updated: 19th February 2021 A photo has been shared on social media with the claim that the Pakistani flag was waved at a rally of the Congress party. A green-coloured flag with a crescent and star can be seen in the picture that carries the text, “Forget about Rs 80/ litre petrol. I will happily fill up my car tank with Rs 90/ litre petrol but never vote for a party that raises ‘Hindistan Murdabad’ slogans and hoists the flag of Pakistan in its rallies. (₹80 का पेट्रोल छोड़िये मै ₹90 का पेट्रोल अपनी गाड़ी में खुशी-खुशी भरवा लूंगा पर कभी ऐसी पार्टी को वोट नहीं दूंगा जिसकी रैली में “हिंदुस्तान मुर्दाबाद” के नारे लगते हो और “पाकिस्तानी झंडा” फैराया जाता हो.)” सुन लो चमचो कान कान खोल कर । Posted by Deepak Tyagi Garh on Monday, 15 February 2021 The claim is widespread on Facebook. A video of the rally depicted in the picture was circulating with identical claim two years ago. It was alleged that the Congress rally where Pakistani flag was raised was held in Tumkur, Karnataka. This is the Congress Party rally in Tumkur, Karnataka where Pakistan’s flag were seen with party flag. Think and Vote in the lokshabha 2019pic.twitter.com/AZvB9ScH1e#WhyCongHatesHindus — सशक्त भारत (@bpjIndia) March 25, 2019 The video was shared on Facebook mostly by individual users in both English and Kannada captions. This claim was shared earlier in 2018, ahead of the Karnataka assembly election. It has already been debunked by Alt News. The green-coloured flag seen in the video is not the Pakistani flag. It is in fact the banner of the Indian Union Muslim League (IUML), a political party based in Kerala. There are clear and visible differences between the IUML banner and the Pakistani national flag. The two have been juxtaposed below for comparison. The ‘Pakistan flag’ bogey is raised every time elections are on the anvil. Earlier in May 2018, ahead of the Karnataka assembly election, the same video had been circulated with the same narrative. It was also falsely claimed that the Pakistani flag was waved at a victory rally of the Congress party in Rajasthan. 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	26th March 2019 / 2:43 pm / Last updated: 19th February 2021	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/false-claim-of-pakistani-flag-waved-at-congress-rally-in-karnataka-resurfaces-on-social-media/", "author": "Arjun Sidharth" }
1,254	False message claiming Rs 4,000 to be granted under 'PM Ramban Yojana' viral - Alt News Priyanka Jha 25th October 2021 / 7:12 pm A message about the government purportedly introducing a new scheme called the ‘Pradhan Mantri Ramban Suraksha Yojana’ is viral. As per the claim, beneficiaries will receive a sum of Rs 4000 upon registration as financial assistance for “free treatment” during COVID-19. The text claims that the sender of the message had received the amount. It carries a registration link. Alt News has received several requests to verify the message. The message makes false claims. The accompanying link redirects to a blog post, whereas all government website URLs end with ‘gov.in’ or ‘nic.in’. We performed a keyword search and did not find any official notification on the scheme either. When a user clicks on the link, the post below comes up. It has over 4 lakh likes. Several users have also commented that they received Rs 4,000 using the registration link. When a user clicks on the link, they are prompted for their phone number. Apart from this, there is no other link or any other information about the scheme. The link seems to redirect to a website meant to harvest phone numbers. PIB Fact Check had clarified on August 18 that the viral message is fake. दावा: प्रधानमंत्री रामबाण सुरक्षा योजना के अंतर्गत #कोरोनावायरस के निःशुल्क ईलाज के लिए सभी युवाओं को ₹4000 की मदद राशि मिलेगी। #PIBFactCheck ▶️यह दावा #फर्जी है। ▶️केंद्र सरकार द्वारा ऐसी कोई योजना नहीं चलाई जा रही है। ▶️ऐसी फर्जी वेबसाइट पर अपनी निजी जानकारी साझा न करें। pic.twitter.com/m12henTAHj — PIB Fact Check (@PIBFactCheck) August 18, 2021 Similar messages have been shared in the past. Recently, a false claim about the ‘Pradhan Mantri Unemployment Allowance Scheme 2021’ went viral. It stated that as part of the scheme, all unemployed youth would be granted Rs 3,500 every month. You can read our fact-check debunking the claim here. 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. 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	25th October 2021 / 7:12 pm	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/false-claim-of-pradhan-mantri-ramban-suraksha-yojana-4-thousand-rupee-whatsapp-message/", "author": "Priyanka Jha" }
1,255	No, viral video doesn't show Rahul and Cong leaders inebriated during Bharat Jodo Yatra - Alt News Abhishek Kumar 1st October 2022 / 7:30 pm A video of Rahul Gandhi and some other Congress leaders coming out of a restaurant is making the rounds on social media. It has been claimed that the politicians were inebriated as they were coming out of a bar during the Bharat Jodo Yatra. BJP supporter Prabha Upadhyay tweeted the visuals and wrote, “Rahul Gandhi and senior Congress leaders coming out fully drunk from a local bar in Kerala during Bar Jodo Yatra.” (Archived link) BarJodoYatra Rahul Gandhi and senior Congress leaders coming out fully drunk from a local bar in kerala during Bar jodo yathra. https://t.co/frCYGlLP86 pic.twitter.com/2m6rCaoMZ0 — Prabha Upadhyay@BJP (@PrabhaUpadhya21) September 21, 2022 Rishi Bagree, another BJP supporter, also amplified the footage and wrote that the leaders were all intoxicated and inebriated. (Archived link) Fellow BJP supporter and right wing handle @BefittingFacts also shared the video, adding, “Are they coming drunk at Bharat Jodo Yatra?” (Archived link) Similarly, numerous social media users posted the video and claimed that Rahul Gandhi and other Congress leaders were seen coming out of a bar and were intoxicated while on the road for the Bharat Jodo Yatra. We spoke to other Congress leaders who were present when the photo was being taken. They informed Alt News that they were recorded while walking out of an eatery named ‘Malabar Restaurant’ in Kerala’s Kollam district, where they had gone to have dinner. Based on this information, we reached out to the manager of the aforementioned restaurant. He revealed that Rahul Gandhi and other Congress leaders had come to dine at the restaurant. The manager clarified that the establishment was not a bar and did not serve liquor. Along with this, he also sent us the CCTV footage from the same night. The clip clearly shows that Rahul Gandhi and other Congress leaders were simply having food while seated at the table. [vimeo 753245199 w=640 h=352] Congress leader Pawan Khera posted a tweet warning Rishi Bagree, who had shared the video out of context, of legal action. To sum it up, a number of social media users, including several BJP supporters, falsely claimed that Rahul Gandhi and other Congress leaders were seen leaving a bar in an inebriated state during the ‘Bharat Jodo Yatra’. In reality, Rahul Gandhi and the Congress leaders seen with him were coming out of Malabar restaurant in Kerala after having dinner. 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). 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 October 2022 / 7:30 pm	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/false-claim-of-rahul-gandhi-and-senior-leaders-coming-out-drunk-in-kerala-bar-during-bharat-jodo-yatra/", "author": "Abhishek Kumar" }
1,256	No, Russia has not banned marriage between Muslims and non-Muslims - Alt News Priyanka Jha 28th November 2020 / 9:06 pm / Last updated: 28th November 2020 Social media has been rife with claims that Russia’s President Vladimir Putin recently issued a law prohibiting Muslims in the country from marrying non-Muslims. A musl!m man cannot marry non-musl!m woman in Russia. Ordered by President Vladimir Putin Posted by The Innocent Politician on Wednesday, November 18, 2020 This claim is viral on Twitter, garnering thousands of likes. @ThePushpendraK, @_Pb_swain_, @dixit_purva are some of the prominent names among the users circulating the claim. A website named ‘Humlog’ also made this claim in an article dated November 20. (Archive link) Alt News did not find any reports about an announcement by the Russian government that Muslims could no longer marry non-Muslims. However, a report published in Moscow Times on November 12 stated that a group of Russian Muslim scholars decided to ban non-Muslims from marrying Muslims in a ruling that sparked a lot of criticism across the country. According to the report, “The ruling by the Spiritual Administration of Muslims of Russia (DUM)’s advisory council of scholars says that interfaith marriages between Muslim men and non-Muslim women are allowed ‘in isolated cases’ that only local muftis can approve.” “The DUM scholars later clarified that non-Muslim women could marry Muslim men as long as they ‘respect Islamic canon and don’t prevent husbands from raising children in Islamic traditions,’” stated the Moscow Times article. This information was also published on the DUM website. Since the move was heavily criticized, the first deputy chairman of DUM, Damir Mukhetdinov, clarified that Russia is a secular country and the Council’s decision did not reflect the Russian Federation’s policies in any way. This information was also released on the DUM website on November 10. Media website RFE/RL covered the controversy surrounding the clerics’ ruling to ban interfaith marriages and how it had no bearing given Russia’s secular status. Therefore, the Russian government has not made any policy or announcement banning Muslims from marrying people of other religions. However, an Islamic religious institution had issued such a ruling some time ago, generating a lot of backlash. 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. 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 November 2020 / 9:06 pm / Last updated: 28th November 2020	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/false-claim-of-russia-ban-muslims-from-marrying-in-other-religion-viral-on-social-media/", "author": "Priyanka Jha" }
1,257	False claim of Sachin Pilot blackening poster of PM Narendra Modi shared on social media - Alt News Arjun Sidharth 14th December 2018 / 5:59 pm / Last updated: 15th March 2019 ये वही सचिन पायलेट हे जो राजस्थान मे मुखियमत्री बनने का हे इसने मोदी जी के पोस्टर पर उनके चेहरे पर काला कर रहा है इसको इतना फलाओ कि कल तक हर न्युज चेनल पर आ जाए (This is the same Sachin Pilot who is going to be the Chief Minister of Rajasthan. He has blackened Modi ji’s poster. Spread this so much that every news channel covers it by tomorrow- translation). A photograph showing a young man dressed in a white kurta pyjama blackening the face of PM Narendra Modi on a poster has gone viral on social media with the aforementioned message. ये वही सचिन पायलेट हे जो राजस्थान मे मुखियमत्री बनने का हे इसने मोदी जी के पोस्टर पर उनके चेहरे पर काला कर रहा है इसको इतना फलाओ कि कल तक हर न्युज चेनल पर आ जाए Posted by Namo Narendra Modi ji on Thursday, December 13, 2018 The above post is from the Facebook page Namo Narendra Modi ji. The page has over 200,000 followers. Numerous individual users have shared this message and the photographs on both Facebook and Twitter. The person seen blackening the poster is not Rajasthan Congress leader Sachin Pilot, and the photograph is unrelated to the recent assembly elections. Loksatta, a popular Marathi daily had carried this photograph along with a report on October 11, 2018. Satyajeet Tambe, the president of the Maharashtra Youth Congress had blackened a poster of PM Modi during protests over rising fuel prices. The protest had taken place in Mumbai and was organised by the Maharashtra Youth Congress. Alt News has observed that of late, misinformation is not restricted to the run-up to elections but continues after conclusion of polling and declaration of verdict. This was observed earlier with respect to the Karnataka election. However, this time, misinformation post elections has been disseminated with greater frequency and intensity than before. 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 December 2018 / 5:59 pm / Last updated: 15th March 2019	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/false-claim-of-sachin-pilot-blackening-poster-of-pm-narendra-modi-shared-on-social-media/", "author": "Arjun Sidharth" }
1,258	Hindu shops razed but 'Zakir' left untouched? Times Now Navbharat's communal reportage - Alt News Kinjal 2nd May 2022 / 7:14 pm Communal clashes broke out during a Hanuman Jayanti procession on April 16 in New Delhi’s Jahangirpuri area. Following the violence, on April 20, North Delhi Municipal Corporation (NDMC) bulldozed several houses and shops in Jahangirpuri alleging encroachment. A gate of a mosque was also razed in the demolition drive. Prior to this, three temples were among the structures razed in an “encroachment drive” in Rajasthan’s Alwar, where the Congress party is in power. News18, Republic Bharat and Aaj Tak published false reports claiming that the Alwar demolition was carried out to “avenge” the removal of the masjid’s gate. Alt News’s fact-check on the false reportage can be read here. In a show titled ‘News Ki Pathshala’, Times Now Navbharat similarly claimed that “Jahangirpuri’s bulldozing was avenged in Rajasthan”. It is worth noting that the Alwar district administration carried out the demolition of “encroachments” on April 17 and 18, whereas the bulldozing was carried out in Jahangirpuri on April 20. Anchor Sushant Sinha claimed that Bhanwari Devi’s home was razed down in Alwar, Rajasthan. However, no action was taken against the shop situated right next to it called ‘Zakir Khan Mattress’. Sinha accused the administration of discrimination along communal lines. [youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DrWLxGBIOk8] A clip of Times Now Navbharat’s broadcast is widespread on social media. The viral clip starts after the 8:49 mark in the broadcast. The channel has claimed that all the Hindu-owned shops surrounding ‘Zakir Khan Mattress’ were torn down. Bhanwar Pushpendra was reporting live from Alwar. Retweeting Times Now Navbharat, BJP IT cell head Amit Malviya alleged “communal profiling and targeted action” by the Ashok Gehlot government. (Archive link) If this isn’t communal profiling and targeted action by the Ashok Gehlot government, then what is? pic.twitter.com/6JGgfSmoOB — Amit Malviya (@amitmalviya) April 26, 2022 Alwar BJP MP Yogi Balaknath also tweeted the clip accusing the Congress-led government of unfairly siding with Muslims as it carried out the “anti-encroachment” demolition drive. (Archive link) अलवर, राजस्थान में सौ सौ फुट दोनों तरफ हिंदुओं के मकान दुकान तोड़ दिए गए पर बीच में बीस फुट की ज़ाकिर खान की दुकान की कील तक नहीं चटकाई, इसको कहते हैं कांग्रेसी सेक्युलेरिज्म वाली इस्लामी सरकार … pic.twitter.com/O2fA0dOUJ3 — Yogi Balaknath (@MahantBalaknath) April 26, 2022 BJP National General Secretary Kailash Vijayvargiya also amplified the video and accompanying claim on his Facebook page. (Archive link) अलवर (राजस्थान) में दोनों तरफ कई फुट तक हिंदुओं के मकान और दुकान तोड़ दिए गए परन्तु बीच में बीस फुट की ज़ाकिर खान की दुकान को छोड़ दिया गया। हिंदुओ पर सितम, मुस्लिमों पर रहम Ashok Gehlot जी यह तुष्टिकरण की पराकाष्ठा नहीं तो और क्या है? जनता Indian National Congress को इसका ज़वाब अवश्य देगी। Posted by Kailash Vijayvargiya on Monday, April 25, 2022 The video is circulating widely with the same claim on Facebook and Twitter. ‘Zakir Khan Mattress’ board can be seen in Times Now Navbharat’s report. It contains three phone numbers. Alt News dialled the numbers and managed to get in touch with Zakir Khan. He explained that he is not the owner of the shop but merely a tenant. “The owner affixed a notice from 2007 outside the shop that states the District Collector’s orders as per which the shop is not an illegal construction. And this is why it was not razed down,” he said while expressing that false news on mainstream media outlets has immensely disturbed his mental state. The owner of the shop ‘Zakir Khan Mattress’ is a man named Manish Dixit who is a lawyer by profession. He said, “This is my ancestral property. In 2005, the authorities carried out a demolition drive to remove encroachments. Even at that time, the administration had bulldozed many shops. We had bought this land from the custodian department. I filed a suit in Rajgarh court and the court ruled that my shop would not be considered an encroachment. The court had ordered that no one could evict us from the property or demolish it. This decision is still in effect today.” Dixit also sent a copy of the 2007 court order to Alt News. It clearly states that the shop is not an “encroachment”. This order was issued on December 1, 2007. He further said that the municipal corporation had issued him a notice in 2017 and demanded the property documents. He produced the papers and the matter was resolved. But this is a repeated occurrence. Dixit was again asked to produce the papers in 2018 and then on April 6 this year. He responded to the recent notice on April 11 with the court’s order. The “anti-encroachment” exercise was carried out on April 17, when he had already stuck a copy of the court’s order outside his shop. He shared photos of the same. Dixit added that Zakir Khan’s family is the sole Muslim family in Rajgarh. They have been renting his shop for nearly 20 years. He also shared a copy of the rental agreement. It clearly states that the shop belongs to Manish Dixit and Zakir Khan’s father Pappu Khan has leased it. Dixit also told us that he spoke to Times Now Navbharat reporter Bhanwar Pushpendra after the channel aired the report. He said he informed Pushpendra that he is the owner of the shop and hails from the Hindu community. Dixit further said that Pushpendra told him that the report will be updated. At the time of writing this article, Times Now Navbharat has neither taken down nor updated its report. In fact, in a subsequent broadcast, anchor Sushant Sinha said, “It doesn’t matter who owns the shop since it is currently in Zakir Khan’s possession.” After Kailash Vijayvargiya shared the false report on Facebook, Dixit commented on his post that he is the owner of the shop and Zakir Khan is his tenant. Dixit’s name on Facebook is ‘Sonu Dixit’. To sum it up, the “anti-encroachment” demolition drive in Alwar, Rajasthan was given a false communal spin by Times Now Navbharat without any prior verification. The channel claimed that the administration demolished shops owned by Hindus and left Muslim-owned properties untouched. The report was based on the fact that a shop named ‘Zakir Khan Mattress’ wasn’t bulldozed. However, this shop is owned by a Hindu man and Khan is merely a tenant. The shop wasn’t razed since the owner was able to produce a court order deeming it legal. 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	2nd May 2022 / 7:14 pm	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/false-claim-of-times-now-navbharat-and-bjp-spokespersons-targetting-ashok-gehlot-communal-profiling/", "author": "Kinjal" }
1,259	Is Siddhivinayak Temple trustee Muslim & president of Tirupati Balaji Christian? False claim viral - Alt News Kinjal 6th April 2021 / 1:42 pm Recently, a claim has been making the rounds on social media that the trustee of Mumbai’s famous Siddhivinayak Temple is a man named Salim, while the president of the Tirupati Balaji Mandir Samiti is Chandrashekhar Reddy, a Christian. Those circulating the claim are questioning why the trustees of Hindu places of worship are not Hindus. Twitter user ‘Pawan Pandey (Nationalist)’ tweeted the same. (Archive link) तिरुपति बाला तिरुपति बालाजी मंदिर समिति का अध्यक्ष चद्रशेखर रेड्डी ईसाई है। सिद्धि विनायक मन्दिर का ट्रस्टी सलीम मुस्लिम है। आख़िर क्यू और कब तक? — पवन पाण्डेय( राष्ट्रवादी ) (@Pandey_1991VS) March 23, 2021 Twitter user Suresh Sharma also posted the claim. A page titled ‘Virat Hindu Samagam VHS‘ shared the message on Facebook. It is being circulated widely across Facebook and Twitter, and was shared on a Facebook group called ‘We support Arnab Goswami sir‘. Siddhivinayak Temple Aadesh Bhandekar is the Chairman of the Siddhivinayak Temple. There is no individual named Salim in the Board of Trustees, according to the temple’s website. Bhandekar is also associated with the Shiv Sena. He contested the Maharashtra Assembly elections in 2009 from the Mahim constituency in Mumbai. Apart from this, he has worked as a Marathi actor. Bhandekar told The Lallantop, “No person named Salim is a trustee of the Board of the Siddhivinayak Temple. There is no Muslim member on our Board. This claim is completely fake. There never was a Muslim member on the Board of Trustees.” Tirupati Balaji Temple There is nobody named ‘Chandrasekhar Reddy’ in the list of trustees found on the website. YV Subba Reddy is the Chairman of the Tirupati Balaji Temple Board. We discovered that the claim about Subba Reddy being a Christian was also circulated when he was made the Chairman of Tirupati Balaji Temple Board. On March 6, 2020, News18 reported, “When YV Subba Reddy was made Chairman of the Tirupati Temple by Chief Minister YS Jaganmohan Reddy, there were allegations that Subba Reddy was a Christian, and therefore could not be given this post. However, Subba Reddy denied this and later clarified that he was not a Christian.” The speculation around his religious identity began when he went to the prayer meeting of a church in Tangutur. Madhu Kishwar, who is known to spread misinformation on social media, also shared the claim about Subba Reddy’s alleged Christian identity in June 2019. Following this, he shared a screenshot of an article titled, “I have been a Hindu right from my birth: Subba Reddy”. Alt News had earlier published a fact-check report on the false claim by Kishwar. pic.twitter.com/js6GyfRwCg — Y V Subba Reddy (@yvsubbareddymp) June 12, 2019 The claim that a trustee of Siddhi Vinayak Temple is Muslim and the president of Tirupati Balaji Temple is Christian is completely false. 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. 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	6th April 2021 / 1:42 pm	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/false-claim-of-tirupati-balaji-temple-chairman-is-christian-and-a-trustee-of-siddhi-vinayak-is-muslim-viral-on-social-media/", "author": "Kinjal" }
1,260	Fact-check: Did Yogi Adityanath decide to sponsor orphaned child during Kashi pilgrimage? - Alt News Kinjal 12th July 2021 / 2:17 pm A photo of Yogi Adityanath interacting with a child has been shared by several social media users. They’re claiming Uttar Pradesh’s chief minister came across the toddler during the Kashi pilgrimage and after learning he had no one to support him after the death of his parents and maternal uncle, Yogi Adityanath reportedly announced he would sponsor the orphaned child’s upbringing through the CM fund. This photo was shared on the Facebook group ‘Sonu Thakur Yogi Bhakt (team Yogi Adityanath)‘. ‘RSS Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh‘ Facebook page also posted this picture with the same message. Several other users are sharing the image on Twitter and Facebook. With a simple reverse image search, we found the photo in a Live Hindustan story stated October 27, 2019. According to the report, CM Yogi had traveled to Gorakhpur on the occasion of Diwali. He had celebrated Diwali with the people of Tinkonia, a settlement comprising residents from the Vantangia community. During the celebrations, Yogi Adityanath distributed sweets among the children. Dainik Bhaskar reported that Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath had visited members of the Vantangia community for the sixteenth time during Diwali 2019. He also inaugurated some development projects there. Punjab Kesari carried several photos of this visit, including the image in question. It was also shared on Twitter on October 27, 2019, as scenes from the CM’s tour of Gorakhpur. Yogi Adityanath visited Gorakhpur to take stock of developmental work ahead of Narendra Modi’s Varanasi tour in July. But during this visit, there was no news about him offering financial support to a child. To sum it up, a picture of Yogi Adityanath talking to a young resident of the Vantangiya Basti in Diwali 2019 was shared with a false claim about him offering financial support to an orphaned child. 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	12th July 2021 / 2:17 pm	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/false-claim-of-up-cm-yogi-adityanath-took-care-of-responsibility-of-a-orphan-during-kashi-visit/", "author": "Kinjal" }
1,261	Fact-check: Did Uttaranchal University mandate saffron scarf at convocation ceremony? - Alt News Priyanka Jha 25th March 2021 / 6:57 pm Social media users have been sharing a photo purportedly of Uttaranchal University students at their convocation. They claim that the students were asked to wear saffron at the ceremony instead of the usual black gowns and caps. Mukesh Chauhan, who identifies himself as the vice president of BJP Greater Noida, first made the claim on Twitter on March 17. उतंराचल यूनिवर्सिटी उत्तराखन्ड मे अंग्रेजों के जमाने से चली आ रही परम्परा को यूनिवर्सिटी ने खत्म करते हुये दीक्षांत समारोह मे इस वर्ष काले कोट और काले टोप की जगह सभी स्टुडेन्ट को भगवा पहनाकर डिग्रियां दी।#जय_सनातन_धर्म 🚩#एक_नये_भारत_का_उदय @dr_maheshsharma pic.twitter.com/441FMd9IQB — Mukesh Chauhan BJP (@iMukeshBJP) March 17, 2021 On March 19, ETV Uttarakhand similarly reported, “This was the first time that the Uttaranchal University students sported light yellow plain kurtas and saffron scarves at their convocation, replacing black gowns and caps. This initiative by the university is garnering appreciation all over the country as well as in the state.” (Archive link) According to the Uttaranchal University website, the institute’s first convocation took place in February 2020. Several photos from the occasion can also be found on the site that show the students sporting scarves of multiple colours. The university’s Twitter handle also posted similar photos on February 29, 2020. Grand Celebration of First Convocation Ceremony at Uttaranchal University 59 Gold Medals, 16 Doctorate (Ph.D.) and 2668 received Degrees.https://t.co/oHOnvUeLHR#UttaranchalUniversity #GrandCelebration #FirstConvocationCeremony #GoldMedals #Doctorate #Degrees pic.twitter.com/Vo29kN9ac7 — Uttaranchal University Dehradun Official (@UUDehradun) February 29, 2020 Coming to the viral photo, we found that this is indeed a picture of the students of Uttaranchal University. We came across another picture of the female student seen in the viral photo on the institute’s website. Apart from this, the convocation images on the website indicate that Uttaranchal University has not mandated a single colour as part of the dress code. In addition to saffron, blue and maroon scarves were also worn by the students. We reached out to Uttaranchal University and were informed that the convocation ceremony does not mandate students to wear a single colour. Different colours are assigned to students from different departments. One of the pictures from the ceremony where students can be spotted in saffron was picked up and shared with a false claim. Was Indian wear the dress code for the first time? In July 2015, UGC Secretary Dr. Jaspal S. Sandhu wrote a letter to all universities and asked them to consider handloom garments as formal wear on occasions like convocation ceremony. The letter states that not only are handloom textiles an integral part of the country’s rich culture and heritage, but they also provide livelihoods to lakhs of rural Indians. In October 2018, HRD Minister Prakash Javadekar had appealed to all universities to ask students to wear Indian wear instead of British-inspired garments at their convocation ceremonies. Universities in India have taken such decisions even before the BJP government came to power. In 2013, IIT-BHU students adopted Indian traditional wear for their graduation, ditching the old custom of wearing black gowns. Since 2012, traditional ethnic wear has been part of the convocation dress code at IIIT Hyderabad. It also mentions the names of some Khadi ashrams and handloom houses where these can be purchased. The claim about Uttaranchal University making saffron attire a part of their convocation dress code is false. Furthermore, this wasn’t the first time that a university made traditional wear the dress code for its convocation ceremony. ETV Uttarakhand promoted the false claim in a misreport. Alt News had debunked a similar claim in 2019 when viral messages alleged that students of IIT Varanasi wore traditional attire instead of black gowns at their convocation. The claim gathered traction after Mukesh Chauhan’s tweet, with many suggesting that Uttaranchal University ended the colonial-era tradition of black gowns and caps by mandating saffron attire at this year’s function. The picture is viral on Twitter. One Rakesh Thiyya posted the photo on March 18, drawing 10,000 likes as of this writing. (Archive link) Uttaranchal University in Uttarakhand ends the British era practice of wearing black gowns and caps on graduation day. Instead students wore kurta and saffron scarf. pic.twitter.com/8SGki0bI9u — Rakesh Thiyya (@ByRakeshSimha) March 18, 2021 It also made its way to Facebook. The post below received more than 6,000 likes. The viral photo and claims are being circulated on Twitter, Facebook and WhatsApp. We also received a request to fact-check it on the Alt News WhatsApp number. 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	25th March 2021 / 6:57 pm	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/false-claim-of-uttranchal-university-convocation-dress-code-saffron-color-scarf/", "author": "Priyanka Jha" }
1,262	No, this isn't Russian Pres Putin personally meeting Indian students being evacuated - Alt News Kinjal 4th March 2022 / 9:46 pm Against the backdrop of the Russian invasion of Ukraine, a video of a man entering a plane is making the rounds on social media. Seated inside are several other male and female passengers. Though the footage does not show the face of this individual, it has been claimed that this is Vladimir Putin. Users suggest that he personally went to meet Indian students who were being evacuated aboard an Air India aircraft. Social media users see this is a mark of respect for India, and are praising Prime Minister Modi. The two-minute-long clip was posted on Facebook with this claim. (Archive link) Russian President Putin himself directly went on aircraft of (AI) AIR INDIA to convince Indians. 🇮🇳🇮🇳What a Respect for India. 🇮🇳🇮🇳Be proud of to be an Indian. 👏👌🙏🇮🇳👍 #PMModiji Great Ji 🚩🚩🙏🙏 Posted by Durai Raj K on Tuesday, March 1, 2022 Several other Facebook users also shared the visuals and accompanying claim. (Archive link) Rushian President Putin himself went on aircraft of Air India to convince Indians. What a Respect for India. Be proud of to be an Indian. 👏👏👌🙏🇮🇳👍 Posted by Srinivasan Krishnamoorthy on Tuesday, March 1, 2022 Alt News also received numerous requests to verify the footage on our WhatsApp helpline number (+91 76000 11160). Taking a closer look at the video, we can confirm that the man is not President Vladimir Putin. At the 0:33 mark, the man identifies himself as Rahul Shrivastava, the Indian ambassador to Romania. In a February 26 tweet carrying the video, ANI quoted Shrivastava who said that the Indian government was working day and night to evacuate Indians from Ukraine. He also appears in the video speaking to the students via intercom. He says, “I know you have gone through a very long and arduous journey. Now that you’re on the last leg of your journey back home, your relatives, family and friends would be waiting with open arms to welcome you. When you’re back in our motherland, you should also remember that you have friends who are still here. When you talk to your friends waiting to be evacuated, you should assure them that the government of India team is working night and day to evacuate everyone.” Wishing the students a safe passage, he also asked them to remember this day, February 26, when faced with any difficult situations in the future. #WATCH \| “…Entire GoI is working day & night to evacuate everyone and our mission is not complete till we have evacuated the last person. Remember this day 26th Feb in your life…,” Rahul Shrivastava, Indian Ambassador in Romania to the evacuated Indians from #Ukraine pic.twitter.com/Ro4pBGrB76 — ANI (@ANI) February 26, 2022 The Information & Broadcasting Ministry tweeted another video of the diplomat on February 26, where he is seen sitting next to students and talking to them. His face can be clearly seen at the 0:17 mark, which confirms that he cannot be Putin. [youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VPX00uHHhjk] Poulomi Saha of India Today also tweeted these videos on February 26. Here’s @AmbShrivastava interacting with the students too before they set off finally for home 🙂 pic.twitter.com/sGosmbDMct — Poulomi Saha (@PoulomiMSaha) February 26, 2022 It is worth noting that India’s Operation Ganga to evacuate Indians stranded in Ukraine is currently underway. Ambassador Rahul Shrivastava interacted with students who were being flown to safety aboard an evacuation flight. A video of this interaction was falsely circulated as visuals of Russian president Vladimir Putin meeting with Indian students. 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	4th March 2022 / 9:46 pm	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/false-claim-of-vladimir-putin-went-to-meet-indian-students-in-air-india-flight-shared-with-a-video/", "author": "Kinjal" }
1,263	False claim: Pakistani flags waved at Rahul Gandhi's victory procession in Wayanad - Alt News Jignesh Patel 28th May 2019 / 7:36 pm “Wayanad People Celebrating Rahul Gandhi’s Victory with Pakistani Flags”, posted a user named Laishram Somorendro, with a video where people can be seen waving green flags and heard shouting ‘Rahul Gandhi Zindabad’. The user claimed that Pakistani flags were waved at Rahul Gandhi’s victory procession in Wayanad. Many other individual users on Facebook and Twitter have posted the video with an implicit message, “Wayanad after election result. Every hindu must watch.” Wayanad after election result. Every hindu must watch. pic.twitter.com/T2tZcEsTYK — Abhishek Gupta (@f4e9324f85684fc) May 26, 2019 “No this is not in Pakistan this is Celebrations in wayanad after @RahulGandhi winning the seat. Congress has to DIE!”, posted BJP IT cell member Vikas Pandey along with the video. No this is not in Pakistan this is Celebrations in wayanad after @RahulGandhi winning the seat. Congress has to DIE! pic.twitter.com/9SSxIfRSnK — Vikas Pandey (@MODIfiedVikas) May 25, 2019 Alt News had earlier debunked a video where it was claimed by netizens that Pakistani flags were waved at Rahul Gandhi’s pre-nomination rally in Wayanad, Kerala. In the video, the green flags waved by the crowd are Indian Union Muslim League (IUML) flags and NOT Pakistani flags. IUML is one of the six parties in the United Democratic Front (UDF) alliance, which includes the Congress party. The distinction between the Pakistani’s national flag and IUML flag can be seen in the comparison posted below. As far as the video in question is concerned, Alt News reverse searched the key-frames extracted from the video via Invid, a digital image and video verification tool, and found that it is NOT from Wayanad but Malappuram, Kerala. This video was uploaded on April 23, 2019, which clearly suggests that it is not representative of Rahul Gandhi’s victory procession in Wayanad. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4kftCVDEbcU Moreover, in the video, the people can be heard chanting, “Let this time, CPI(M) sit at home, smoke a beedi and read desabhimani (the party paper), let Satheesh Chandran(LDF candidate) sit at home…let Unnithan(UDF candidate) win and go to parliament..let Modi rule be destroyed..let fascism be destroyed. (translation)”. Reading the translation, it is evident that the crowd was chanting slogans in support of the United Democratic Front candidate Rajmohan Unnithan in a campaign rally and not in a celebratory procession. Rajmohan Unnithan, a Congress candidate under the UDF alliance, had won the elections from Kasargod Lok Sabha constituency. It was earlier fact-checked by The Quint. An old video of a IUML campaign rally was shared on social media with the false claim that Pakistani flags were waved by supporters of Rahul Gandhi after his electoral victory in Wayanad, Kerala. As it turned out, these were IUML flags and not Pakistani flags. 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	28th May 2019 / 7:36 pm	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/false-claim-pakistani-flags-waved-at-rahul-gandhis-victory-procession-in-wayanad/", "author": "Jignesh Patel" }
1,264	False claim: Prabhat Pheri taken out for the first time in 40 years in Srinagar, Kashmir - Alt News Pooja Chaudhuri 28th June 2019 / 7:44 pm A social media claim suggests that Prabhat Pheri – the custom of chanting and singing bhajans during early morning walks – took place for the first time in 40 years in Srinagar, Kashmir Valley. A video shared to support the claim shows a group of people singing ‘Hare Rama Hare Krishna’ on the road while the police are providing protection to the devotees. A Twitter user Puneet Sharma, who is followed by top BJP leaders, including the Prime Minister, shared the video on June 27, with the caption – “श्रीनगर कश्मीर में 40 वर्षों में पहली बार प्रभात फेरी का आयोजन हुआ। सोचो ये कैसे मुमकिन हुआ…? मोदी है….. तो मुमकिन है। जय श्री राम (For the first time in 40 years, Prabhat Pheri was organised in Srinagar, Kashmir. Did you wonder how this was made possible? Modi hai toh mumkin hai.)” श्रीनगर कश्मीर में 40 वर्षों में पहली बार प्रभात फेरी का आयोजन हुआ। सोचो ये कैसे मुमकिन हुआ…? मोदी है….. तो मुमकिन है। जय श्री राम@narendramodi @AmitShah pic.twitter.com/DGH8A3jSqA — Puneet Sharma (@iPuneetSharma) June 27, 2019 The video has been widely circulated on Facebook. It has also been shared on WhatsApp with a Gujarati text that says – “શ્રીનગર નીગલીઓ માં 40 વર્ષ બાદ પહેલી વાર પ્રભાત ફેરી નીકળી છે.આ..જ બદલતા ભારત ની તસ્વીર છે. (Srinagar citizens take out Prabhat Pheri for the first time in 40 years. This is the face of a changing India.)” Alt News contacted ISKCON, Srinagar to inquire about the video. The priest on the jhaki (a platform where idols are kept for worshipping), who can be seen sprinkling holy water on devotees, is a monk named Moti Lal Raina. In a conversation with Alt News, Raina stated, “The video does not depict Prabhat Pheri, which is a custom where people walk in the morning while singing bhajans. It was shot during Ram Navami this year. We took out the jhaki across Srinagar”. He further continued, “We try to organise celebrations every year during Ram Navami and Janmashtami. It only happens sometimes that we don’t get permission. But it’s not true that such celebrations have not happened in 40 years. Celebrations have been happening since 2008.” Ram Navami fell in the month of April this year. Alt News found news reports of Ram Navami celebrations that took place in the Kashmir Valley even before Prime Minister Narendra Modi formed government. While the viral video depicts Ram Navami celebrations and has nothing to do with Prabhat Pheri, the latter isn’t new to Srinagar and has been celebrated earlier. This was corroborated by Raina who said that Prabhat Pheri is infrequent in Srinagar for security reasons, but they try to organise it whenever possible. Contrastingly, Prabhat Pheri is taken out every day by the ISKCON temple in Udhampur, which is one of the largest cities in the Jammu region. A video of Ram Navami celebrations in Srinagar this year is being shared on social media with two false claims – first that it depicts Prabhat Pheri, and second, the tradition hasn’t been followed in Srinagar in the last 40 years. Alt News’s fact-check found both the assertions to be untrue. 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	28th June 2019 / 7:44 pm	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/false-claim-prabhat-pheri-taken-out-for-the-first-time-in-40-years-in-srinagar-kashmir/", "author": "Pooja Chaudhuri" }
1,265	False claim: Rain cloud generating machine developed by NASA - Alt News Arjun Sidharth 27th June 2019 / 9:18 pm Has the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) developed a ‘rain cloud generating machine’, which will create artificial clouds that lead to precipitation? A message which has been circulated on social media claims so. Rain clouds generator engine developed by Nasa. See where the world is moving…#Amazing…! @ShashiTharoor pic.twitter.com/7jFXpnq3vd — JayasreeVijayan (@JayasreeVijayan) June 26, 2019 The above tweet has been retweeted over 3500 times since it was posted on June 26. Among those who have quote-tweeted it includes actor Amitabh Bachchan, with the words, “can we get one in India .. I mean right now .. RIGHT NOW .. PLEASE”. … can we get one in India .. I mean right now .. RIGHT NOW .. PLEASE !!🇮🇳🇮🇳🙏🙏 https://t.co/pTRI8r4VsK — Amitabh Bachchan (@SrBachchan) June 26, 2019 Bachchan’s tweet has been ‘liked’ over 22,000 times. The video accompanying the message shows white fumes in large quantity, emanating from a machine. The video has also been posted on Facebook with the identical claim- that it shows a cloud generating machine. Artificial Cloud for Rain Artificial Cloud for Rain Posted by Civil Work on Sunday, April 1, 2018 The above post is not recent- it was posted on April 1, 2018 and has been viewed a staggering 43 million times since then, with a share count of over 930,000! Alt News found that this claim goes back to 2016, when a video making the same claim was uploaded on YouTube. The claim that NASA has developed a ‘cloud generating machine’ is outrightly false. Moreover, the video shared along with this false assertion represents the testing of a rocket by the space agency. It is an extract from a video report by BBC on its programme Top Gear, in 2010. The video is posted below. The footage can be viewed from 1:46 minutes. NASA had uploaded a video on YouTube which showed the testing of RS-25 rocket engine, in 2017. An article written by a former research meteorologist at NASA, and published by Forbes in April 2018, has given a detailed scientific explanation of the vapour formed by the testing of the rocket. It states, “The exhaust from the RS-25 is primarily water vapor because the engine burns liquid hydrogen and liquid oxygen. Oh…..guess what happens when they combine: You get H2O (also known as water). Therefore, the “clouds” that you see in the pictures or videos are a by-product of a very simple scientific process (see below). If the water vapor condenses, it actually may form drops large enough to fall as liquid or what appears as “rain.” Insofar as creation of artificial clouds by NASA is concerned, it may be noted that the agency had conducted an experiment in 2017 to create these clouds by launching a short-range rocket. Information about artificial clouds can be accessed here. It may be reiterated that the claim circulating on social media is false. The machine seen in the video is not a cloud generating machine, but a space rocket engine. 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	27th June 2019 / 9:18 pm	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/false-claim-rain-cloud-generating-machine-developed-by-nasa/", "author": "Arjun Sidharth" }
1,266	False claim: Ravish Kumar set up a man to wear BJP cap before garlanding Kanhaiya Kumar - Alt News Jignesh Patel 13th April 2019 / 9:07 pm A Twitter user, Ritesh Kumar, posted a collage of pictures featuring journalist Ravish Kumar and CPI’s Begusarai candidate Kanhaiya Kumar at a roadshow. The message posted with the photo-montage is trying to make a claim according to which a man was set up to garland Kanhaiya in presence of Ravish Kumar. The tweet below has three pictures which claims to represent a sequence of events in which a worker [volunteer] was hiding a BJP cap that was later given to a man standing in front of Kumar. It further claimed that the man donned the BJP cap just before garlanding Kanhaiya Kumar. The post attempted to tarnish the credibility of the journalist by calling the entire episode “propaganda”. रविश बाबू बेगुसराय की धरती पर भी अपने टीम के साथ मिल कर प्रोपगंडा फैलाना नहीं छोड़े। Pic 1 BJP के टोपी को छुपा कर पहले से रखते हुए एक कार्यकर्ता Pic 2 फिर उस टोपी को कन्हैया के साथी पहनते हूए Pic 3 बीजेपी की टोपी पहन कर कन्हैया को माला पहनाते हुए और रविश बाबू रिपोर्टिंग करते हुए pic.twitter.com/KIdZ8WQLa3 — Ritesh kumar (@Minkkeybihari) April 12, 2019 The sequence of images posted above was also converted into a meme and several individuals on Twitter and Facebook have shared this. #RavishKumarMC साहेब आप जन्मजात बेशर्म हैं या बड़ा होने के बाद कोई कोर्स किया है ?#BloodyPrestituteTraitor pic.twitter.com/ep8yWRICzX — Bhaiyya ji [ Chowkidar ] (@shrialokmishra) April 12, 2019 A Facebook user, Gandhar Agarwal, was among those who posted the meme with an identical narrative. It has been shared more than 2000 times so far. An archived version of the post can be accessed here. Alt News found that the narrative circulating on social media is false. The series of events, depicted in the photomontage, are actually in reverse order. Ravish Kumar recently visited Begusarai, Bihar to cover Kanhaiya Kumar’s campaign trail. Alt News contacted the journalist to inquire about the incident. We have accessed the recording of the said event where a man donning a BJP cap and scarf approaches Kanhaiya Kumar and garlands him. In the video posted below, it is evident that man was already sporting the cap when he met the Begusarai candidate and removed it after Kanhaiya Kumar’s supporters urged him to. Thus, the allegation that the entire incident was a set-up is false. The sequence of events were reversed in order to make the false claim. In the past as well, Ravish Kumar has often found himself in the crosshairs of purveyors of misinformation attempting to malign his credibility. Kanhaiya has also been incessantly targeted on social media with misinformation. 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	13th April 2019 / 9:07 pm	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/false-claim-ravish-kumar-set-up-a-man-to-wear-bjp-cap-before-garlanding-kanhaiya-kumar/", "author": "Jignesh Patel" }
1,268	Fact-check: Muslim company manufactures offering given at Sabarimala Temple? - Alt News Archit 23rd November 2021 / 4:48 pm / Last updated: 18th December 2021 Tamil Nadu-based right-wing party Indu Makkal Katchi shared a photo of Aravana Payasam packaged in a jar that reads ‘Al Zahaa Sweets’. Aravana Payasam is the traditional offering given out to devotees at the Sabarimala Temple. It is being claimed that the offering is being manufactured by a Muslim company that has rebranded it with an Arabic name and termed it halal. (Archive link) Aravanapayasam the main prasadan of Sabrimala, is not only now Islamic but halal too, with an Arabic name. Cute… pic.twitter.com/IWoBJBAjCz — Indu Makkal Katchi (Offl) 🇮🇳 (@Indumakalktchi) November 12, 2021 Ratan Sharda, author of ‘RSS: Evolution from an Organization to a Movement’, also tweeted the image. (Archive link) .@seshadrichari shared this highly disturbing information. No words! 😱 Aravana payasam the main prasadan of Sabrimala, is not only now Islamic but halal too, with an Arabic name. pic.twitter.com/pJbfYxshbi — Ratan Sharda 🇮🇳 रतन शारदा (@RatanSharda55) November 12, 2021 A screenshot of a Facebook post by one Ramaiyer Srinivasan promoting the same claim is also being circulated online. It is worth noting that the user’s account is private. Several Facebook users promoted the image and accompanying claim. Aravana is listed on the Kerala government’s website as the traditional offering distributed at Sabarimala. The website states that the prasad can also be delivered through India Post. In the image below, the canned package of Aravana Payasam can be seen in the top left. A picture of the Aravana Payasam can is also given on the India Post website. In addition, the Religion World website features another version of the can with a slightly different label. In both the images below, the label reads ‘Travancore Devaswom Board’, not ‘Al Zahaa Sweets’, with ‘Aravana Prasad’ written below. Alt News found a link to Russian map service 2GIS while searching for Al Zahaa Sweets, through which we discovered that this is a sweet shop located in Dubai along with the company’s WhatsApp number. We reached out to them and were informed that the company has never shipped its products to Sabarimala. Rashid, Business Development Manager of Al Zahaa Sweets LLC, told The Quint that their popular product ‘Aravana Payasam’ has nothing to do with any religion, caste, or creed. Neither is it linked in any way to the deity Ayyappa or the Sabarimala Temple. He also clarified that the company does not have any tender or contract with any company or board in India or Kerala. The Quint report quoted Travancore Devaswom Board (TDB) commissioner BS Prakash as saying that the viral claim is false. He explained that the offering is prepared only by the temple officials, and this work has not been outsourced to any company or organisation. Alt News reached out to TDB SI via email. The officer also wrote that Dubai-based Al Zahaa doesn’t provide Aravana payasam at Sabrimala and confirmed that the offering is exclusively made by TDB. The email also said that a complaint has been registered by the local police. To sum it up, social media users circulated a false claim suggesting that the Sabarimala Temple’s traditional offering is being manufactured by a Muslim company. 🙏 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 November 2021 / 4:48 pm / Last updated: 18th December 2021	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/false-claim-sabarimala-temple-aravana-prasadam-is-made-by-uaes-al-zahaa/", "author": "Archit" }
1,269	False claim: Sadhvi Pragya has been acquitted of terror charges - Alt News Arjun Sidharth 18th April 2019 / 10:27 pm Sadhvi Pragya, accused in the 2008 Malegaon blasts case, will be contesting the ongoing Lok Sabha election on a BJP ticket. News of Pragya’s nomination from Bhopal, MP had sparked a furore. On social media, several netizens hit out at the BJP for nominating a terror accused. One of them was actor Swara Bhaskar, who lashed out at the ruling party, referring to Pragya as ‘Malegaon terror accused’ and ‘potential terrorist’. Quote-tweeting her, journalist and executive editor with Network 18, Amish Devgan tweeted that Pragya has been acquitted by the court. She is acquitted from court which was false narrative of Hindu terrorism now you don’t trust judiciary also ? हिंदू कभी अक्रांता नहीं रहे इतिहास गवाह है ।टाइम पास के लिए कुछ भी न लिखे । फिर आप पड़ोसी देश में superStar बन जातें हैं । https://t.co/RhG0xogkH3 — Amish Devgan (@AMISHDEVGAN) April 17, 2019 Devgan’s tweet has been retweeted over 5000 times and ‘liked’ over 13000 times since he posted it on April 17. Apart from Devgan, several prominent pro-BJP handles have tweeted saying Sadhvi Pragya has been acquitted in the Malegaon blasts case. Kanhaiya is ‘innocent’ until proven guilty but Sadhvi Pragya, who has been acquitted in the Malegaon blast case, is still an ‘accused’. Is vibrator battery down?? pic.twitter.com/LvpzO5dCvk — Chowkidar Saffronista (@MsKaushik_) April 17, 2019 The above tweet has been retweeted over 900 times so far. Other prominent handles which made the same assertion include RituRathaur and desimojito. Liberals who signed petititons for terrorists Yakub Menon & Kasab r having severe meltdown ovr BJP giving ticket to Sadhvi pragya Fact that she was kept in jail for 8yrs without evn a chargesheet,was given 4th degree torture,that she is acquitted by court means nothing to them! — Ritu (सत्यसाधक)🇮🇳 (@RituRathaur) April 17, 2019 An acquittal means a judgement which absolves an individual accused of a crime. The person in question is declared not guilty via a judgement. While the same could be challenged in a higher court (if the verdict has been delivered by a lower court), an acquittal is essentially an affirmation of non-guilt. In the case of Sadhvi Pragya, it may be noted there has been no acquittal. Sadhvi Pragya is currently out on bail. She was granted bail on health grounds. According to the bail order given by a Bombay High Court bench headed by Justices Shalini Phansalkar Joshi and Ranjit More, Sadhavi Pragya was given bail because she was “suffering from breast cancer” and was “cannot even walk without support”. The trial of Sadhvi Pragya and others, accused in the 2008 Malegaon blasts case, is still underway. Pragya has been charged under various sections of the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act. In December 2017, a special NIA court had ruled that Sadhvi Pragya, Lt. Col Prashant Purohit and six others be charged under the UAPA. The Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, is “An Act to provide for the more effective prevention of certain unlawful activities of individuals and associations [and for dealing with terrorist activities] and for matters connected therewith.” It was promulgated in 1967 and has been amended many times since then. The court had however dropped the draconian Maharashtra Control of Organised Crime Act (MCOCA) against the accused. It may be noted that dropping of the MCOCA charges cannot be confused with an acquittal in any case as it specifically means that the person is absolved of the charges. Pragya’s role came under the scanner after the motorcycle used in the blast was reportedly registered in her name. According to the charge sheet filed by Maharastra’s Anti Terrorist Squad (ATS), Pragya was part of most meetings of the radical activists from 2006, who had planned to attacks Muslim-majority areas. She also allegedly took charge of finding men to execute the attacks. The fact of the matter is that Sadhvi Pragya has NOT been acquitted by the court over her alleged role in the 2008 Malegaon blasts case. The assertions made in this regard by pro-BJP social media users and some prominent figures are patently false. 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. 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	18th April 2019 / 10:27 pm	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/false-claim-sadhvi-pragya-has-been-acquitted-of-terror-charges/", "author": "Arjun Sidharth" }
1,270	False claim: Saudi Arabian Govt releases Arabic version of the Bhagavad Gita - Alt News Arjun Sidharth 27th June 2019 / 5:06 pm / Last updated: 27th June 2019 “सऊदी अरब सरकार ने अरबी में “भगवद्गीता” रिलीज की। यहाँ तो “भारत माता की जय” बोलने से इस्लाम खतरे में आ जाता हैं।” (Saudi Arabian govt released ‘Bhagvad Gita’ in Arabic. Here, even saying ‘Bharat Mata Ki Jai’ puts Islam in danger- translation). The above message is being circulated widely on social media, claiming that the Government of Saudi Arabia has released an Arabic translation of the Bhagavad Gita. It has been shared on both Twitter and Facebook. Accompanying the message is a picture of a book cover showing Krishna and Arjuna on a chariot, along with what appears to be Arabic text. सऊदी अरब सरकार ने अरबी में “भगवद्गीता” रिलीज की। यहाँ तो “भारत माता की जय” बोलने से इस्लाम खतरे में आ जाता हैं। pic.twitter.com/psj9d6VgEB — Pushpendra Kulshrestha (@Nationalist_Om) June 24, 2019 The above tweet has been retweeted close to 1000 times since June 24 when it was posted. Another tweet has been ‘liked’ over 600 times. सऊदी अरब सरकार ने अरबी में “भगवद्गीता” रिलीज की। यहाँ तो “भारत माता की जय” बोलने से इस्लाम खतरे में आ जाता हैं। 🤔😡 यहाँ जो इस्लाम के नाम से वंदे मातरम कहने से मना करते है, सऊदी अरब वाले उन्हें मुसलमान ही नहीं मानते! 😜😝 जय श्री कृष्णा..🙏🚩🚩🙏 @narendramodi pic.twitter.com/2Wlp2vCDJD — Atul Kushwaha (@UP_Silk) June 25, 2019 On Facebook, a page named Hindutva Meri Shaan posted this message on June 24. It has been shared over 1600 times since then. It has also been posted by several individual users on their timelines. सऊदी अरब सरकार ने अरबी में “भगवद्गीता” रिलीज की, यहाँ तो “भारत माता की जय” बोलने से इस्लाम खतरे में आ जाता हैं.. Posted by हिन्दुत्व मेरी शान on Sunday, June 23, 2019 The claim that an Arabic translation of the Bhagavad Gita has been released by the Saudi Arabian government, is utterly false. A simple Google search with the keywords ‘Saudi Arabia Bhagavad Gita Arabic translation’ throws up not a single news report. An event of this kind would be covered extensively by mainstream media organisations. This itself suggests that the claim is a figment of imagination. Further, Alt News reverse searched the accompanying image of the book, and found a website dedicated to a ISKCON devotee. Ravanari Prabhu was a ISKCON devotee who was born in Palestine and joined the Krishna cult in Germany in 1973. According to several sources online, Prabhu had translated the Bhagavad Gita into Arabic. We also found a Facebook post of 2015, reiterating the same. Ravanari Prabhu also has a website, www.ravanari.com wherein the Arabic translation of the Bhagavad Gita is available. That is not all. Translation of the Bhagavad Gita into Arabic was also undertaken by Osmania University, Hyderabad which has been publishing it for several years now. According to a 2017 report by Times of India, “It was Dairatul Ma’arifil Osmania (Centre for Research and Editing of Manuscripts) that had translated and published the Holy Gita in Arabic in 1918.” The university had celebrated 100 years of the Arabic translation of the Bhagavad Gita. The translation of the Bhagavad Gita into Arabic is not simply a modern day project. It was undertaken as early as the 11th century CE by Al Biruni, a scholar and traveler who was born in 973 C.E in Khwarizm, a region spread over modern day Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan. Al Biruni accompanied Mahmud of Ghazni to India at the turn of the 11th century CE and wrote extensively on his travels in the sub-continent. Al Biruni wrote in Arabic. Carl W. Ernst in his book ‘Refractions of Islam in India: Situating Sufism and Yoga’ writes, “Al Biruni translated a number of Sanskrit works into Arabic (including selections from Patanjali’s Yogasturas and the Bhagavad Gita) in connection with his encyclopedic treatise on India”. Arvind Sharma’s ‘Studies in Alberuni’s India’ has an entire chapter titled, ‘Al Biruni and the Bhagavad Gita’, which talks at length about Al Biruni’s citation of the Holy book. In conclusion, the claim that the Government of Saudi Arabia has commissioned an Arabic version of the Bhagavad Gita, is false. Moreover, translation of the Gita in Arabic has been available for several years, and is not recent. 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	27th June 2019 / 5:06 pm / Last updated: 27th June 2019	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/false-claim-saudi-arabian-govt-releases-arabic-version-of-the-bhagavad-gita/", "author": "Arjun Sidharth" }
1,271	False claim: Speech by Vladimir Putin asking Muslims to integrate or leave - Alt News Arjun Sidharth 22nd July 2019 / 9:03 pm / Last updated: 27th July 2019 The text of a speech supposedly given by Vladimir Putin, President of Russia, is being circulated on social media platforms. According to this speech apparently given at the Duma (Russian parliament), Mr Putin had firmly stated that Muslims in Russia must learn Russian and respect the laws of the land, adding that there is no place for Sharia law in the Russian society and that it is the minorities which need Russia and not the other way round. The write-up quotes Putin saying that the country’s laws should be made keeping Russian national interest in mind and Muslim minorities are not Russians. “Muslims will not take over Russia,” said Putin per the speech. It ends by stating that the President received a standing ovation in the Duma for this speech. The complete text is posted below. 👌👌👌 Vladimir Putin’s speech – SHORTEST SPEECH EVER. 😟😟😟😟 you also must read & think Vladimir Putin, the Russian president, addressed the Duma, (Russian Parliament), and gave a speech about the tensions with minorities in Russia: ”In Russia, live like Russians. Any minority, from anywhere, if it wants to live in Russia, to work and eat in Russia, it should speak Russian, and should respect the Russian laws. If they prefer Sharia Law, and live the life of Muslim’s then we advise them to go to those places where that’s the state law. ”Russia does not need Muslim minorities. Minorities need Russia, and we will not grant them special privileges, or try to change our laws to fit their desires, no matter how loud they yell ‘discrimination’. We will not tolerate disrespect of our Russian culture. We better learn from the suicides of America, England, Holland, and France, if we are to survive as a nation. The Muslims are taking over those countries and they will not take over Russia. The Russian customs and traditions are not compatible with the lack of culture or the primitive ways of Sharia Law and Muslims. ”When this honorable legislative body thinks of creating new laws, it should have in mind the Russian national interest first, observing that the Muslims Minorities Are Not Russians.” The politicians in the Duma gave Putin a five minute standing ovation. If you keep this to yourself, you are part of the problem!😡😡 👍👍Forwarding as by received. Please do not keep this to yourself. Keep on forwarding this to as many like mindeds as you can👍👍👍 The text has been shared by several individual Facebook users on their timelines. People of several nationalities have posted this viral message. It has also been shared on numerous pages and groups. Moreover, Alt News found that this message has been in the social media space since 2013. According to another variant of the message, Putin had delivered this speech on August 4, 2013. The message has been shared vociferously on Twitter as well, over the past few years. Vladimir Putin’s speech – SHORTEST SPEECH EVER.😟😟 😟 you also must read & think Vladimir Putin, the Russian president, addressed the Duma, (Russian Parliament), and gave a speech about the tensions with minorities in Russia: — 🌷 Gagan 🌷@topcon Gs. (@TopconGs) July 14, 2019 Janie Johnson, an American author had recently tweeted a quote on Sharia law, ascribed to Putin. Vladimir Putin: “If immigrants prefer Sharia Law, then we advise them to go to those places where that’s the state law.” — Janie Johnson (@jjauthor) May 4, 2019 Alt News searched the transcripts and speeches section of the website of the Government of Russia for the period of August 2013 (as claimed in the viral message), but could not find a single speech to this effect having been made by Vladimir Putin. Alt News could not find such a speech for other time periods as well. Moreover, there is not a single news report related to this supposed ‘speech’, and it would be inconceivable for global media to miss such a controversial address if at all it were made. The Russian President’s view on immigration is no secret. At the recently concluded G-20 summit held at Osaka in Japan on June 2019, Putin had criticised ‘Western liberalism’, stating that policies like immigration are hurting national interest. In 2013, Vladimir Putin had appeared on Russia Today for a discussion with journalists, where he spoke at length about the need for Russian immigration policy to lay greater stress on the integration of immigrants of varied ethnicities into Russian culture and ethos, along with the need to respect Russian traditions and laws. Putin had said, “EU and the US are dealing with people who come from completely different countries…They [immigrants] don’t begin learning the new language for many years and for that reason cannot assimilate into the labour market…We [Russia] have a similar problem going on – but it is not as harshly felt and it isn’t as dangerous as it is in Europe or the US. When we talk about immigration, we are talking about primarily those from the former Soviet republics. Even though younger generations may not necessarily speak Russian well but somebody in the family does…We also have a common historical memory..it’s easier for various ethnic groups to integrate [in Russia].” He goes on to add, “…but even so, we must instil in our new citizens, or those who would like to come to Russia, a sense of responsibility, we must instil in them an understanding that they have now come to another country, and they must respect our traditions and our laws, they must respect our culture and our history.” The video of the same is posted below. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CgNChZrWNmI According to the American fact-checking website Snopes, Vladimir Putin in January 2012, in his introductory remarks at a meeting of the Board of Federal Migration Service, had alluded to similar sentiments. Here, same as in the viral message, he talked about the need for immigrants to learn Russian and respect Russian culture. “We must create the conditions for immigrants to normally integrate into our society, learn Russian and, of course, respect our culture and traditions and abide by Russian law. In this regard, I believe that the decision to make learning the Russian language compulsory and administer exams is well-grounded,” read the transcript of the speech. The entire text may be accessed here. Despite a few portions reading similar to the viral message, the President does not allude the need to keep Muslims out of the country. In this address and in his interview with RT, Putin maintains the stand of integrating immigrants and ethnic minorities into Russian society. He does not make anti-Muslim or anti-Islamic remarks. A similar message was circulated on social media and messaging platforms, wherein it was claimed that former Australian PM Julia Gillard had asked Muslims to leave the country if they refused to adapt to local customs and traditions. Alt News’ fact-check on this false claim surrounding Julia Gillard may be read here. Vladimir Putin has a strong and clear view on Russian immigration policy, which he has publicly expressed in the past, and recently as well. However, it may be reiterated that there is no record of the Russian President having made such a speech on Russia and its Muslim minorities, as stated in the viral message. Moreover, this message has circulated online for several years now and was fact-checked earlier by Snopes and Politifact. 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	22nd July 2019 / 9:03 pm / Last updated: 27th July 2019	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/false-claim-speech-by-vladimir-putin-asking-muslims-to-integrate-or-leave/", "author": "Arjun Sidharth" }
1,272	False claim suggests Bandra mass gathering accused Vinay Dubey's father is Muslim - Alt News Jignesh Patel 18th April 2020 / 5:53 pm A photograph of Navi Mumbai-based self-proclaimed labour leader and activist Vinay Dubey, along with a man and a woman, was posted by one Shiv Yadav on Twitter. Yadav claimed that Dubey’s mother had married a Muslim man (his father) named Mahmood. Dubey was arrested along with 10 others including ABP Majha reporter Rahul Kulkarni by the Mumbai police for their alleged role in “rumour-mongering” that led to a mass gathering of migrant workers at Bandra station. He had reportedly made a video which went viral where he asked migrants to assemble at Kurla railway terminus on April 18. While Kulkarni was granted bail by a court in Mumbai, Dubey has been remanded to police custody till April 21. “Vinay Dubey’s mother married a Muslim, Vinay Dubey father’s name is Mahmood. He was deliberately named Vinay Dubey so that many Hindu brothers and sisters could be misled to think of him as a Hindu Brahmin. The is an important tactic of Jihadis to damage Hindutva and country,” tweeted Yadav on April 16. While Yadav later clarified that the information shared by him was incorrect, his original tweet was retweeted more than 1,100 times. Facebook user Vinubhai Patel posted the photograph with the same narrative. His post has garnered over 19,000 shares so far. Many other people on Twitter and Facebook shared the same message with the photo. Alt News found that the claim made along with the image is false. With a Google search, we found the personal details submitted by Dubey when he had filed a nomination for the Kalyan Lok Sabha seat in the 2019 general elections. As per MyNeta’s database, Vinay Dubey’s father’s name is Jatashankar Dubey and not Mahmood as claimed on social media. Moreover, fact-checking outlet SMHoaxslayer found that the photo which is now viral was posted from Dubey’s Facebook profile in February 2020. The photo is from a CAA protest in Patna, Bihar. It is very likely that the man and the woman are protesters. On April 15, Times Now had identified Vinay Dubey as an NCP leader, however, NCP’s national spokesperson Nawab Malik refuted the claim and said that Dubey is not a member of the party. This is to make it clear that the man Vinay Dube arrested by @Navimumpolice and later by @MumbaiPolice is not a member of the NCP. Some sections of News Media are calling him an NCP leader, which is false and appears to be a malicious campaign to malign the image of our party. — Nawab Malik نواب ملک नवाब मलिक (@nawabmalikncp) April 15, 2020 It is worthwhile to note here that Vinay Dubey’s father Jatashankar Dubey who is an auto-driver had donated Rs 25,000 to Maharastra’s Chief Minister Relief Fund to help tackle the COVID-19 outbreak in the state. Vinay Dubey had quote-tweeted a tweet by Maharastra’s Home Minister Anil Deshmukh on April 10. 💪मुझे गर्व है मेरे पिताजी पर💪 मेरे पिताजी ने महाराष्ट्रा सरकार को कोरोना से लडने के लिए अपने जिवन की सेविंग मे से कुछ राशी अनुदान किया !! गृहमंत्री @AnilDeshmukhNCP जी ने खुद मिलकर यह अनुदान स्विकारा !! धन्यवाद @OfficeofUT सहयोग के लिए आभार @MantralayaRoom टिम🙏@AUThackeray https://t.co/RuJctTnNGA — Vinay Dubey Mumbai (@The_vinaydubey) April 10, 2020 In conclusion, an old photograph of Vinay Dubey was shared with the false claim that his father was a Muslim and that he concealed his identity to mislead the Hindu community. 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. 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	18th April 2020 / 5:53 pm	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/false-claim-suggests-bandra-mass-gathering-accused-vinay-dubeys-father-is-muslim/", "author": "Jignesh Patel" }
1,273	False claim suggests Kurnool MLA Hafeez Khan forced nurse to wash Imam's feet - Alt News Archit 24th April 2020 / 6:19 pm / Last updated: 24th April 2020 Several Twitter users have posted an image where a nurse appears to be washing the feet of a man wearing a skull cap. As per social media claims the man is a local Imam. Everyone in the photograph is wearing a mask except the ‘Imam’. The claims also suggest that the person in the middle is the MLA from Kurnool district in Andhra Pradesh who ordered the nurse to wash the Imam’s feet. The incumbent MLA of Kurnool is Abdul Hafeez Khan of YSR Congress. @narendramodi @AmitShah @drharshvardhan is this how healthcare workers to be treated in India? Person in center of this photo is Kurnool MLA Abdul Hafeez Khan of YSR Congress. Will you take action against this gross illtreatment of Health workers in India? pic.twitter.com/vfbn656NwX — Chowkidar Shubha (@ShubhaSrinath) April 22, 2020 Facebook-page ‘We Are With You Swamiji’ also shared viral image along with Telugu text making the same claim (archive link). The complete message reads, “అసలు ఈ ఆంధ్ర రాష్ట్రంలో కర్నూలు జిల్లాలో ఏం జరుగుతుంది నోట్ల కోసం వ్యాపారస్తులను ఓట్ల కోసం మత మౌడ్యాలను సంతృప్తి పరుస్తున్న ఆంధ్ర రాజకీయాలు మధ్యలో అన్యమతస్తుల నుంచి రోగాలను అంటించుకుని అధిక ధరలతో సరుకులు కొని సతమతమవుతున్న మధ్యతరగతి శ్రామిక వర్గం ప్రజలు.కర్నూలు ఎమ్మెల్యే దగ్గరుండి నర్సుతో ఒక మతపెద్ద కాళ్ళు ఎందుకు పట్టించాల్సి వచ్చింది? ఆ నర్సు అంత పెద్ద తప్పు ఏం చేసింది? ఒకవేళ తప్పుచేసినా శిక్షించడానికి ఆయనెవరు? కేంద్రం కొత్తగా తీసుకొచ్చిన ఆర్డినెన్స్ ప్రకారం ఈయనపై చట్టపరమైన చర్యలు ఎందుకు తీసుకోకూడదు? అసలు కర్నూలులో ఏం జరుగుతోంది? రాజకీయాలతో సంబంధం లేకుండా ప్రభుత్వ యంత్రాంగం ఉన్నదా లేదా అనే అనుమానం కర్నూలు జిల్లా వాసులకు కర్నూలు జిల్లా గ్రామ అది మండలాల తాలూకాల ప్రజలకు అనుమానం వస్తుంది….” Alt News performed a reverse image search but to no avail so we visited Khan’s official Facebook page. There we found an April 23 post which called the social media claims associated with the viral image as ‘fake news’. Fake news alert Posted by Hafeez Khan on Wednesday, April 22, 2020 Alt News spoke with Khan (highlighted in green) who said that he is unaware of the identity of the man whose feet were washed by the nurse. “This image was clicked in the last week of March. We are at the quarantine centre in Rayalaseema University. The man had injured his feet and the nurse was attending to him. The situation was critical because the person was diabetic,” said Khan, adding that he had filed an FIR about the misinformation on April 5 at One Town Police Station in Kurnool. As per the FIR, the rumours began circulating before April 5. Kurnool police also posted about the misinformation on Facebook. According to the police, “He [the man in a skull cap] accidentally put a gate on his leg that was there in that building and lot of BLOOD started coming out and as he is diabetic the nurse started to put cotton and a bandage later as the blood was not stopping as he was injured badly they shifted to GGH KNL in Ambulance as the wound was severe and for diabetic patients with out care it might create a big problem to him. Nurse was doing her job and treating the patient to stop the blood.” ఇదీ నిజం కర్నూలు -23-4-2020 – రాయలసీమ యూనివర్సిటీ క్వారంటైన్ సెంటర్లో మార్చి నెల ఆఖరి వారంలో ఒక సీనియర్ సిటిజెన్… Posted by Kurnool Police on Thursday, April 23, 2020 Khan shared the contact details of the nurse in the viral image, M Saraswathi, who works at a primary health centre in Laddagiri. Speaking with Alt News, the nurse said, “This image was shot at the quarantine centre in Rayalaseema University’s boy’s hostel.” Saraswathi shared that she made a video clarifying the matter which was also uploaded on Khan’s Facebook on April 23. ఈ ఫోటోలో ఉన్నటువంటి పెద్దాయనకు షుగర్ (డయాబెటిక్) వలన కంటిచూపు తక్కువగా ఉంది. అతను పొరపాటున ఆ బిల్డింగ్ లో ఉన్న గేట్ కాలిమీద వేసుకున్నాడు. ఎక్కువ రక్తంకారటం వలన అక్కడ ఉన్న సరస్వతి అనే నర్స్ గారు వెంటనే గాయం కడిగి దూది పెట్టి కట్టు కట్టటం జరిగింది. కానీ ఆయన డయాబెటిక్ పేషెంట్ అవ్వటం వలన రక్తం కారటం ఆగలేదు. పైగా మాములు పేషెంట్స్ కంటే కూడా డయాబెటిక్ పేషెంట్స్ కి ఇటువంటి గాయాలు ఎంతో ప్రమాదం. కాబట్టి అంబులెన్స్ కి కాల్ చేసి పిలిపించి మంచి ట్రీట్మెంట్ కోసం హాస్పిటల్ కి పంపించడం జరిగింది. అక్కడ నర్స్ సరస్వతి* గారు తన జాబ్ ఎంతో జాగ్రత్తగా చేస్తూ ఆ పేషెంట్ యొక్క గాయం తుడిచి, కట్టు కడుతూ, అంబులెన్స్ వస్తూ ఉంది కాబట్టి భయపడవద్దని పేషెంట్ కి ధైర్యం చెప్పడం జరిగింది. కానీ కొంతమంది ఇక్కడ హఫీజ్ ఖాన్ గారు అక్కడ ఉన్న నర్స్ తో ఒక మత పెద్ద కాళ్ళు పట్టించారు అని స్థానిక ఎమ్మెల్యే హఫీజ్ ఖాన్ పై సోషల్ మీడియా లో లేని పోనీ దృష్ప్రచారం చేశారు. #HafeezKhan #HK #KurnoolMLA #YSR #YSRCP #YSJagan #APCM #Kurnool #CoronaVirus #KMC #BreaktheChain #LockDown #StayAtHome #WashHands #WearMask #SocialDistance Posted by Hafeez Khan on Thursday, April 23, 2020 Thus the social media claims associated with the viral image are false and misleading. 🙏 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	24th April 2020 / 6:19 pm / Last updated: 24th April 2020	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/false-claim-suggests-kurnool-mla-hafeez-khan-forced-nurse-to-wash-imams-feet/", "author": "Archit" }
1,274	False claim suggests Sunni Central Waqf Board to build 'Babri Hospital', appoint Dr Kafeel Khan - Alt News Archit 8th August 2020 / 6:59 pm / Last updated: 8th August 2020 On August 6, media outlets published a syndicated news report by Press Trust of India (PTI). The report stated that the Indo-Islamic Cultural Foundation (IICF), a trust constituted by the Uttar Pradesh State Sunni Central Waqf Board to construct a mosque on five acres of land in Ayodhya, is in the process of setting up an office in the state capital. The report also added that IICF will oversee the construction of a mosque, Indo-Islamic research centre, library, and hospital in the allotted land. In the backdrop of this, several Facebook and Twitter users have posted an image of a building with a board on the top floor that reads ‘Babri Hospital’. #मास्टरस्ट्रोक सुप्रीम कोर्ट ने जो पांच एकड़ जमीन दी थी, सुन्नी वक्फ़ बोर्ड ने लिया फैसला उस पर बनेगा बाबरी हास्पिटल जो AIIMS के बराबर मुफ्त सुविधा देगा इस अस्पताल में एक पूरा फ्लोर बच्चों के लिए आरक्षित होगा, जिसमें चमकी बुखार(Viral Megningits) सहित कई बिमारियों का ईलाज होगा। pic.twitter.com/sTx0Eygjds — ADEEL KHAN (@ADEEL_KHAN_AZMI) August 7, 2020 Facebook page ‘We Support Ravish Kumar’ promoted the same claim with the text, “#Masterstroke Sunni Waqf Board has decided to build Babri Hospital on the five acres of land which was allocated by the Supreme Court. It will offer free treatment comparable to AIIMS. The are chances that well-known doctor #KafilKhan might be made administrator of this hospital. An entire floor will be reserved for children where they will be offered treatment for elephantiasis (viral meningitis) and other diseases.” (Translated from #मास्टरस्ट्रोक सुप्रीम कोर्ट ने जो पांच एकड़ जमीन दी थी, सुन्नी वक्फ़ बोर्ड ने लिया फैसला उस पर बनेगा बाबरी हास्पिटल जो AIIMS के बराबर मुफ्त सुविधा देगा.. जाने माने डाक्टर #KafilKhan को इस अस्पताल का प्रशासक बनाया जा सकता है, इस अस्पताल में एक पूरा फ्लोर बच्चों के लिए आरक्षित होगा, जिसमें चमकी बुखार(Viral Megningits) सहित कई बिमारियों का ईलाज होगा) #मास्टरस्ट्रोक सुप्रीम कोर्ट ने जो पांच एकड़ जमीन दी थी, सुन्नी वक्फ़ बोर्ड ने लिया फैसला उस पर बनेगा बाबरी हास्पिटल जो… Posted by We Support Ravish Kumar on Friday, 7 August 2020 Other Facebook users (1, 2) also shared the claim. Alt News spoke with Athar Hussain, an IICF spokesperson. He clarified, “The plan to build community infrastructure like the community dining hall, a museum, and library along with the mosque on the five-acre land granted by the Honorable Supreme Court was shared long back. The IICF is working towards it. However, no details have been made public because it’s a work in progress. Recently, a misleading Facebook post had gone viral that claimed Babri Hospital will be established just likes AIIMS. It also mentioned that Dr Kafeel Khan is expected to be appointed at Babri Hospital. I categorically refute both claims. I have informed Lucknow commissioner of police as well.” Journalist Mahtab Alam posted the press release by Uttar Pradesh Sunni Wakf Board that also refutes the viral message. #FakeNews about #babrihospital : Uttar Pradesh Sunni Central Waqf Board's Press Release dated August 7, 2020. #Ayodhya pic.twitter.com/NdBHHWvF5g — Mahtab महताब مہتاب (@MahtabNama) August 7, 2020 On August 8, The Times of India (TOI) reported that Lucknow police commissioner Sujeet Pandey confirmed to the media outlet that he had received a complaint from Hussain. Pandey told TOI, “We are looking into the issue.” Next, Alt News performed a reverse image search of the viral image and found it on the official website of the University of Virginia (UVA). As per the website, its the UVA Medical Center. Additionally, readers should note that the viral text misspells Khan’s first name as “Kafil”. Dr Khan was the former head of the encephalitis ward at Gorakhpur-based Baba Raghav Das (BRD) Medical College in Uttar Pradesh. He was arrested in connection with the death of over 60 children in BRD Medical College in 2017 due to lack of oxygen cylinders. In 2019, TOI reported that the medical college department report stated, “The allegations against the accused are insufficient… Therefore it is submitted that the accused officer is not guilty.” Earlier this year on February 13, Dr Khan was arrested under the National Security Act (NSA) on charges of making inflammatory speeches at the Aligarh Muslim University during protests against the Citizenship Law, reported National Herald. Khan is still incarcerated. On August 7, TOI reported, “The Allahabad high court has directed the Central as well as the Uttar Pradesh government to file their respective replies (counter-affidavits) in response to a petition challenging the detention of Dr Kafeel Khan under the National Security Act (NSA).” Thus, social media claims that the Sunni Waqf Board has decided to build “Babri Hospital” and appoint Dr Kafeel Khan at the children’s ward is false. Indo-Islamic Cultural Foundation (IICF) is responsible for building the mosque. Alt News spoke with IICF spokesperson Athar Hussain who categorically refuted both claims. Lucknow police commissioner Sujeet Pandey informed The Times of India that they trying to trace the source of misinformation. 🙏 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… 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… The video of a group of people stopping an e-rickshaw with BJP flags attached to…	news-altnews	2024-05-27T18:24:05.489452	8th August 2020 / 6:59 pm / Last updated: 8th August 2020	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/false-claim-suggests-sunni-central-waqf-board-to-build-babri-hospital-appoint-dr-kafeel-khan/", "author": "Archit" }
1,275	False claim: Tanmay Bakshi, 13-year old Indian boy, appointed by Google with Rs.66 lakh salary - Alt News Arjun Sidharth 31st July 2019 / 4:56 pm A video of a young Indian boy speaking on a talk show has been shared widely by Facebook users with the claim that he has been appointed by tech giant Google at an impressive salary of Rs.66 lakh per month. The narrative accompanying the video says, “Mr.Tanmai Bakshi, an Indian aged 13 Years (Entering into class 9) Has Been Appointed By GOOGLE USA At a Salary of Rs.66 Lakhs per Month.Please Watch His Interview With Co.Officials..What A Confidence…He Replies With Such A Poise…Authority…Simply Superb…That’s Why They Say..God’s Creations are Amazing At Times…Super Sharp..Brain He Has.. Really Wonder Boy”. Mr.Tanmai Bakshi, an Indian aged 13 Years (Entering into class 9) Has Been Appointed By GOOGLE USA At a Salary of Rs.66 Lakhs per Month.Please Watch His Interview With Co.Officials..What A Confidence…He Replies With Such A Poise…Authority…Simply Superb…That’s Why They Say..God’s Creations are Amazing At Times…Super Sharp..Brain He Has.. Really Wonder Boy : 👆🌷🌿 Posted by Kailash Chandra on Tuesday, July 23, 2019 The above video was posted on July 23 by an individual user and has been viewed over 24,000 times so far. Several individual users have posted the video on their Facebook timelines with identical text. On YouTube too, several videos have been posted with the claim that Google has hired Tanmay Bakshi for a whopping sum. The video posted below, for instance, claims that Tanmay’s package is Rs. 1.40 crore per month! The video was posted in April 2019 and has already been viewed over 1.7 million times. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lNayE1QgCac The young boy seen in the video is indeed Tanmay Bakshi. 15 year old Tanmay is a Canadian national and a child prodigy. Tanmay began coding at the age of 5 and developed his first app for the Apple (iOS) store at the age of 9. He currently works in collaboration with IBM. His Twitter bio describes him as a software developer and an author. Tanmay is also a popular YouTuber with a significant following of over 300,000. He mostly posts tutorials on coding and web development. The social media claim, that Tanmay Bakshi has been hired by tech giant Google for a whopping salary of Rs.66 lakh per annum, is false. This was confirmed by Tanmay himself via a tweet in 2017, suggesting that this rumour has been active since then. For those who think I’m working with @Google or @facebook, I’m not – although I’d love to 🙂 — Tanmay Bakshi (@TajyMany) September 2, 2017 The claim accompanying the video, that it represents an interview conducted by Google, too is false. Tanmay Bakshi had appeared on a talk show called The AM Show on a channel in New Zealand in August 2017 where he had spoken at length about Artificial Intelligence (AI) and programming. The video was posted by Tanmay on Twitter. Loved being @TheAMShowNZ https://t.co/fGUEN33rzn@IBMWatson‘s GrandChallenge – @Jeopardy#AskTanmay‘s(Watson+BiDAF @allenai_org) – @KBCsony? pic.twitter.com/gzbaYqxlVh — Tanmay Bakshi (@TajyMany) August 23, 2017 It may be reiterated that the aforementioned claim about Tanmay Bakshi and Google is false. 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	31st July 2019 / 4:56 pm	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/false-claim-tanmay-bakshi-13-year-old-indian-boy-appointed-by-google-with-rs-66-lakh-salary/", "author": "Arjun Sidharth" }
1,276	False claim: Temples rediscovered upon demolition of Muslim houses for Kashi corridor - Alt News Pooja Chaudhuri 16th April 2019 / 9:45 pm / Last updated: 23rd June 2021 The Kashi Vishwanath Corridor Project is an ambitious initiative of the prime minister Narendra Modi-led BJP government, which aims to provide direct access to pilgrims between the Kashi Vishwanath Temple and the ghats of river Ganga. Hundreds of houses are being demolished for the purpose, for which the government is reportedly providing compensation. Against the backdrop of at least 40 ancient temples rediscovered in the clearance, a video floating across social media channels is being shared with the claim that it depicts the demolition of 80 Muslim houses for the construction of the corridor. “45 old temples were discovered inside these houses,” asserts the narrative. Several Tamil speakers had shared the video earlier in February. பிரேக்கிங் நியூஸ் காஷி விஸ்வநாத் கோயிலில் இருந்து கங்கை நதி வரை சாலையின் அகலத்தை அதிகரிக்கும் பொருட்டு, சாலையில் வரும் 80 முஸ்லிம்களின் வீடுகளை மோடி வாங்கத் தொடங்கினார். இந்த வீடுகள் இடிக்கப்பட்டபோது, அதில் 45 பழைய கோயில்கள் காணப்பட்டன. அவுரங்கசீப் அசல் காஷி விஸ்வநாத் கோயிலை கியான்வாபி மசூதியாக மாற்றியபோது, அவர் தனது வீரர்களில் சிலருக்கு மசூதியைச் சுற்றி வாழ ஒரு இடத்தைக் கொடுத்து, அருகிலுள்ள சிறிய கோயில்களை ஆக்கிரமித்து இந்த கோவில்களில் தங்கள் வீடுகளைக் கட்டினார். இப்போதே பிரதமர் மோடி இந்த முகலாய இராணுவத்தின் அனைத்து ஆக்கிரமிப்பாளர்களின் வீடுகளையும் அகற்றிவிட்டு உலகிற்கு என்ன கிடைத்துள்ளது என்று பாருங்கள் ……. பண்டைய கோயில்களின் 45 பொக்கிஷங்கள்…. வீடியோவைப் பாருங்கள்.* Posted by Guruji Bairava Baba on Tuesday, 16 February 2021 The claim was also circulating in January but in Hindi – “काशी विश्वनाथ मंदिर से गंगा नदी तक सड़क की चौड़ाई बढ़ाने के लिए मोदी जी ने सड़क में आने वाले 80 मुसलमानों के घरों को खरीदना शुरू कर दिया।जब इन मकानों को ध्वस्त किया गया, तो इसमें 45 पुराने मंदिर पाए गए।असल में जब औरंगजेब ने मूल काशी विश्वनाथ मंदिर को ज्ञानवापी मस्जिद में बदल.” The identical claim has been floating on social media since 2019. The Kashi Vishwanath Corridor Project is under the supervision of the Kashi Vishwanath Special Area Development Board. The corresponding website of the Board contains a list of the properties purchased for the purpose of demolition. All the people named are Hindus. The list includes 165 names. However, Vishal Singh, CEO, Kashi Vishwanath Special Area Development Board, told Alt News that till now 250 houses have been demolished for the project. When asked if any of the razed homes belonged to members of the Muslim community, Singh said, “Not even a single house demolished was occupied by Muslims as the area is predominately Hindu.” The Board’s website contains another list – an index of all the shopkeepers who have been compensated. “As part of the project”, Singh informed, “two separate compensations have been provided. First, to the owners of the houses/shops purchased for demolition, and second, to the shopkeepers who did not own the shops but have been working at the shops for years. The second form of compensation isn’t a payment for demolition but for loss of livelihood.” Out of the 89 shopkeepers who found a mention in the list, one of them was a Muslim woman named Yasmeen Bano. “Several Muslim shopkeepers who had been working at the shops for a long period of time have been compensated,” said Singh. They were, however, not owners of the shops but tenants. The Kashi Vishwanath Corridor Project announced in March 2018 isn’t merely an initiative aimed at providing pilgrims clean and uncongested roads from the temple to the ghats. It is a full-fledged transformation project that intends to remodel the ancient city. Starting with clearing the houses and shops on the pathway of the 50-feet-wide corridor, the ambitious project envisions an upgrade of the ghats of Ganga, waiting rooms for pilgrims, museums and auditoriums, lodging for priests and pilgrims, and a food street, among other development initiatives. A ground report by the BBC‘s Samiratmaj Mishra said that numerous residents are unhappy with the project. Sceptical about parting with their homes despite the compensation, several locals have been protesting since the past three months. Many of their houses adorn posters which say – ‘Our homes are not for sale’, ‘We will not let our heritage get ruined.’ Mishra informed Alt News that the video doing rounds on social media depicts the site of demolition. However, he too stated that the houses razed did not belong to members of the Muslim community. We spoke to a local resident, Anurag Tiwari, for further corroboration. “The demolition sites did not have Muslim settlements but the houses and shops of Hindus residents. Most of these houses were built around temples, some big and some small. The government has compensated for the acquired properties and claims suggesting that Muslim homes were demolished seem communally motivated.” said Tiwari. The claim circulated on social media stands unsupported by facts. The localities being cleared for constructing the corridor are Hindu-dominated and none of the houses demolished to date belonged to members of the Muslim community. As corroborated by three independent sources, the temples rediscovered in the clearance were excavated from Hindu homes and not Muslim households. 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	16th April 2019 / 9:45 pm / Last updated: 23rd June 2021	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/false-claim-temples-rediscovered-upon-demolition-of-muslim-houses-for-kashi-corridor/", "author": "Pooja Chaudhuri" }
1,277	Panellist praising PM Modi is not a Congress spokesperson, false claim viral - Alt News Kinjal 21st December 2021 / 7:53 pm Footage from a primetime news debate is viral on social media. In the video, the anchor asks a panellist whether Rahul Gandhi would be able to woo Hindu voters as Narendra Modi did with the inauguration of the Kashi Vishwanath Corridor. The panellist states, “That would be difficult not just for Rahul Gandhi, but for anyone. Narendra Modi is a hero. Even today there must be 10-15 crore people who revere him like a god, and don’t want to hear about his failures. And as far as Kashi is concerned, whatever has been done in Kashi has been simply amazing…” It has been claimed that the panellist praising PM Modi is a spokesperson for the Congress party. Twitter handle ‘@VishalRuhelaIND’ shared the video with this claim. (Archive link) जब कांग्रेस प्रवक्ता से पत्रकार ने सवाल पूछा कि क्या नरेंद्र मोदी का मुकाबला राहुल गांधी कर सकते हैं? तब कांग्रेस प्रवक्ता ने मोदीजी के बारे में जो कहा वो अद्भुत था। आप भी सुनिए।🤗#फिर_से_योगी_सरकार pic.twitter.com/9oRAl1e9Ss — 🕉️📿Kshatriya Vishal Ruhela🇮🇳 (@VishalRuhelaIND) December 18, 2021 Another Twitter user promoted the video and accompanying claim. (Archive link) जब कांग्रेस प्रवक्ता से पत्रकार ने पूछा क्या नरेंद्र मोदी का मुकाबला राहुल गांधी कर सकते है? तब कांग्रेस प्रवक्ता ने मोदीजी के बारे में जो कहा, सुनिए… pic.twitter.com/WlPV97wdr8 — 🇮🇳 शेषधर तिवारी 🇮🇳 (@sdtiwari) December 18, 2021 The clip is widespread on Facebook and Twitter. The logo of the news channel which aired the debate is not clearly visible. However, the words ‘First News India’ do appear on the bottom of the screen. This is a local news outlet from Rajasthan. Alt News performed a keyword search on YouTube using this information. We discovered that the video has been taken from a live debate aired by the channel on December 14. Scenes from the viral clip appear at the 55:36 mark. In addition, at the start of the segment, the anchor introduces the panellist as channel head Jagdish Chandra. [youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-hEfcR0o0dQ] Upon further research about Chandra on the First India News website, we found another video report about the outlet completing eight years in the news business. He also appears in this video to offer congratulations. This is indeed the same man who appears in the viral video. To sum it up, a video featuring Jagdish Chandra, Channel Head of First India News, praising Narendra Modi, was falsely circulated as a Congress spokesperson speaking in favour of the prime minister. 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	21st December 2021 / 7:53 pm	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/false-claim-that-a-congress-spokesperson-praises-pm-modi-in-a-media-debate/", "author": "Kinjal" }
1,278	Video shared with false claim that SP MLA "Salim Haider" beat up a policeman - Alt News Kinjal 13th December 2021 / 5:24 pm A video of a group of people beating a policeman is viral on social media. It has been claimed that “Mukhtar Ganj SP MLA Salim Haidar” and Ram Kripal Yadav beat a police officer. Yadav is a BJP Bihar MLA. Twitter user ‘@DrGunwanta’ tweeted the visuals with the same claim. It received more than 1,700 views as of this writing. (Archive link) ये हैं मुख्तारगंजसे सपा विधायक सलीम हैदर साथमे रामकृपाल यादव,देखिए कैसे बीच सड़क पर पुलिस कर्मीको थप्पड़ मार रहे हैं,यदि सपा सरकार आई तो क्या हालहोगा क्या आपने योगीजीके राजमें देखा है कि किसी पुलिसकर्मियोंको विधायक या नेताने पीटा हैं चयन युपी वालोंको करना है गुंडाराज या योगीराज pic.twitter.com/jWGWe7DHQF — DR PRADIP GUNWANTA DESHMUKH (@DrGunwanta) December 6, 2021 The footage is viral on Facebook and Twitter. It was also posted in numerous Facebook groups, including ‘Rss # कार्यकर्ता‘, ‘I Support Narendra Modi, Yogi Ji & RSS‘, ‘योगी आदित्यनाथ जी के फैन (ग्रुप)’. The video was also uploaded on YouTube with the same claim. [youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lbxvs0jXoRQ] Alt News performed a keyword search and came across a Dainik Bhaskar report dated December 3. According to the report, this incident occurred on the night of December 2 in Lucknow. Inspector Vinod Kumar was driving through the area when his vehicle collided against another vehicle parked on the road outside a hotel. Following the collision, a group of people rushed outside to the scene and began attacking Kumar. Reportedly, a man named Ashish Shukla slapped the inspector. A case was filed against four individuals at the Hasanganj police station. They were later arrested. Lucknow police also reported that four people were arrested. In the video below, officer Prachi Singh identifies them as Pravendra Mathur, Priyank Mathur, Ashish Kumar Shukla and Pranjul Mathur. #Police_commissionerate_Lucknow सोशल मीडिया पर वायरल वीडियो में पुलिसकर्मी से मारपीट करने वाले 04 अभियुक्त थाना हसनगंज पुलिस टीम द्वारा गिरफ्तार।#UPPolice #Lkopolice_On_Duty pic.twitter.com/jWUNuz5QMG — POLICE COMMISSIONERATE LUCKNOW (@lkopolice) December 3, 2021 Alt News also contacted the SHO of Hasanganj police station Ashok Sonkar. He denied the claim about the perpetrators being affiliated with the Samajwadi Party. “The accused have no ties with the Samajwadi Party or any other political party,” he explained. Moreover, neither is there an MLA in the SP named Salim Haidar nor is Mukhtar Ganj a constituency. To sum it up, footage of people beating a policeman in the middle of a road was shared with the false claim that an SP MLA named Salim Haidar was behind the attack. It is worth noting that several false claims about the Samajwadi Party have been circulating on social media against the backdrop of the upcoming Uttar Pradesh legislative assembly elections. You can find Alt News’s fact-check reports on these here. 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	13th December 2021 / 5:24 pm	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/false-claim-that-a-cop-beaten-up-by-sp-mla-in-up/", "author": "Kinjal" }
1,279	Youth assaulting sadhu in MP's Khandwa is NOT Muslim - Alt News Kinjal 31st May 2022 / 4:19 pm A video of a youth forcefully cutting a sadhu’s beard and hair is viral on social media. The attacker is also heard abusing the monk. It has been claimed that a Muslim youth in Khandwa misbehaved with a sadhu. Twitter user ‘Mahesh Sahu’ shared this video and wrote that the youth should be punished under ‘Hindu Act’. (Archive link) खंडवा में एक मुस्लिम युवक ने एक अघोरी साधु महाराज की जटाएऔर दाढ़ी सारे आम काटी इस सूअर की औलाद को जल्द से जल्द पकड़ा जाए सभी इस पोस्ट को ज्यादा से ज्यादा फॉरवर्ड करें इसे सख्त से सख्त हिंदू एक्ट में सजा होना चाहिए @ChouhanShivraj आदरणीय संज्ञान लें। pic.twitter.com/fDuJScf1Wp — mahesh sahu महेश साहू (@sahumahesh324) May 28, 2022 Several Twitter users amplified the video and accompanying claim. खंडवा में एक मुस्लिम युवक ने एक अघोरी साधु महाराज की जटाएऔर दाढ़ी सारे आम काटी इस सूअर की औलाद को जल्द से जल्द पकड़ा जाए सभी इस पोस्ट को ज्यादा से ज्यादा फॉरवर्ड करें इसे सख्त से सख्त हिंदू एक्ट में सजा हो। @ChouhanShivraj @drnarottammisra @BJP4MP @MPPoliceOnline pic.twitter.com/BumOgmtEbp — Dr. Tarun Gupta🎵 (@Tarun_19_20) May 28, 2022 The clip was also circulated on Facebook with a communal angle. Taking a closer look, we noticed the video contains a logo that reads ‘Prithvi Chakra’. Upon further research, Alt News found that a channel named ‘Prithvi Chakra’ had posted this video on Facebook on May 24, 2022. According to the caption, a man named Praveen beat up a monk in Khandwa, Madhya Pradesh. Navbharat Times reported that a youth named Praveen Gaur had cut a monk’s hair and beard in front of a barber shop in the Patjan village of Khandwa district. The article also states that Praveen is the son of a hotelier and attacked the monk while intoxicated. The police were unable to identify the motive behind the attack. Aaj Tak also identified the accused as Praveen Gaur, who is presently in police custody. Furthermore, Khandwa SP Vivek Singh was quoted as saying that the appropriate action was being taken and a case has been registered in this matter. Alt News reached out to Khandwa police station in charge PR Davar. He informed us that there was no communal angle in the incident. “When the video of this incident went viral on social media, people objected to a monk being subjected to such an act. Following this, the police registered a case and the accused was taken into custody. However, the victim could not be traced during the investigation. The accused is not Muslim but hails from the Hindu community. He is currently in prison,” he said. To sum it up, a video of a young man assaulting a monk in Khandwa, Madhya Pradesh was falsely shared with a communal angle. The accused was not Muslim. 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. 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	31st May 2022 / 4:19 pm	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/false-claim-that-a-monk-beaten-up-by-by-muslim-in-khandwa/", "author": "Kinjal" }
1,280	Fact-check: Did Akhilesh Yadav not pay respects after Atal Bihari Vajpayee's demise? - Alt News Kinjal 2nd December 2021 / 7:19 pm A photo from Akhilesh Yadav’s wedding where the SP leader is pictured with former prime minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee is circulating widely on social media platforms. Users are claiming that Yadav did not pay his respects after the senior leader’s passing even though he was a guest at his wedding. अखिलेश यादव की शादी में अटल जी गये ।लेकिन अखिलेश यादव श्रद्धांजलि तक नही देने गया क्या यही इनका समाजवाद है..🤷 pic.twitter.com/ZLcWxfC5vf — Thor#Hindutv🚩 (@Thor00008) September 24, 2021 It is worth noting that a range of viral claims is being shared online against the backdrop of the upcoming Uttar Pradesh elections. The claim is widespread on Facebook and Twitter. Alt News discovered that this image had been circulated with the same claim back in 2018 as well. We performed a keyword search which led us to a tweet posted by Akhilesh Yadav dated August 17, 2018. He shared two photos of himself paying tribute to Atal Bihari Vajpayee. One of these is the same image that is viral currently. The other shows him paying his respects to the senior leader by offering flowers at his last rites ceremony. स्व. अटल जी ने राजनीति को दलगत राजनीति से ऊपर उठाया, सदैव अपने दल के सिद्धांतों व अपने दर्शन पर अडिग रहना सिखाया, जब भी राजनीति भटकी उसको सही मार्ग दिखाया, विदेशों से मित्रता का पाठ पढ़ाया. अटल जी का जाना भारतीय राजनीति एवं साहित्यिक जगत के मुखरित स्वर का मौन हो जाना है. मौन नमन! pic.twitter.com/1w4EOgr9qG — Akhilesh Yadav (@yadavakhilesh) August 17, 2018 The Times of India reported that Yadav had offered a floral tribute during Vajpayee’s last rites ceremony. A News18 Hindi report carried a photo of the tribute. SP had tweeted images of its members paying their respects to Atal Bihar Vajpayee on August 17, 2018. दिल्ली में पूर्व प्रधानमंत्री श्री अटल बिहारी वाजपेयी जी के निवास स्थान पर उनके पार्थिव शरीर के अंतिम दर्शन कर श्रद्धांजलि अर्पण एवं शोकाकुल परिजनों से संवेदना व्यक्त करते हुए राष्ट्रीय अध्यक्ष श्री अखिलेश यादव जी। pic.twitter.com/TjXUfmU5kw — Samajwadi Party (@samajwadiparty) August 17, 2018 An old viral claim about Akhilesh Yadav not paying a tribute to Atal Bihari Vajpayee after his death has gone viral once again, this time against the backdrop of the upcoming 2022 Uttar Pradesh elections. 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	2nd December 2021 / 7:19 pm	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/false-claim-that-akhilesh-yadav-didnt-offer-tribute-to-atal-bihari-vajpayee/", "author": "Kinjal" }
1,281	No, Akhilesh Yadav did not say SP will change Ayodhya's name if it comes to power in UP - Alt News Kinjal 1st December 2021 / 1:23 pm A screengrab from a Republic Bharat broadcast is viral on social media. It reads, “SP to change the name of Ayodhya if it comes to power”. It is claimed that Samajwadi Party (SP) leader and former Uttar Pradesh chief minister Akhilesh Yadav allegedly made this campaign promise. One Twitter user wrote, “Akhilesh Yadav is challenging us Hindus. What do you say, shall we knock the SP out of this election?” (Archive link) अखिलेश यादव की ये चुनौती है हिंदूओ फिर क्या सोचा है सपा को कर दें अबकी बार सफ़ा 🙏 pic.twitter.com/KFseP6nrVt — Riniti Chatterjee (@Chatterj1Asking) November 27, 2021 The image is also widespread on Twitter. In fact, a few users also amplified the claim without the accompanying photo. Among them were VHP Spokesperson Vijay Shankar Tiwari and Bhupesh Chaubey of the BJP. The image is also being circulated widely on Facebook. It was posted to a few Facebook, including ‘I am with Rohit Sardana‘, ‘I Support Raja Singh‘, ‘Kapil Mishra Fans’, and ‘Yogi Adityanath Fans’. Alt News performed a keyword search on YouTube and found a November 27 video report by Republic Bharat. The channel reported that Yogi Adityanath took a jab at Akhilesh Yadav by saying that if the SP won in Uttar Pradesh, the party would change Ayodhya’s name. This comment, made by the UP chief minister in an interview, appears at the 2:40 mark of the video attached below. Adityanath said that if the Samajwadi Party wins, it will change back the names of Ayodhya and Prayagraj. His statement is as follows, “Akhilesh Yadav and Owaisi speak the same language. Owaisi says that he will change Ayodhya’s name back. And Akhilesh Yadav says the same thing, that if his party came to power he would reverse the Ayodhya and Prayagraj name changes. They both give the same kind of statements and do the same kind of work. They complement one another. There’s no difference between the two.” [youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_IyRTeazV0Q] Alt News performed another keyword search to confirm whether Akhilesh Yadav had indeed made such a remark. However, we did not find any media reports that corroborated this. Thus, it was Yogi Adityanath, not Akhilesh Yadav, who claimed that the Samajwadi Party would change Ayodhya’s name if the SP came to power in Uttar Pradesh. 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	1st December 2021 / 1:23 pm	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/false-claim-that-akhilesh-yadav-said-will-change-the-name-of-ayodhya-if-come-in-power/", "author": "Kinjal" }
1,282	Video from 2012 falsely viral as Aryan Khan publicly urinating at a US airport - Alt News Priyanka Jha 4th January 2022 / 3:18 pm / Last updated: 4th January 2022 A video of a man in an inebriated state urinating in public at an airport has been circulating widely on social media. The video shows him being pushed to the ground by a security guard who handcuffs him. It has been claimed that the man is Shahrukh Khan’s son, Aryan Khan. It is noteworthy that Aryan was recently in the news in a drugs case. He was released on bail in October last year after spending three weeks in jail. Ajay Chauhan, who has a Twitter follower count of 60,000, also shared the clip urging anyone with more information to contact him. Numerous users on Twitter and Facebook promoted the video claiming Aryan was caught on camera urinating in public at an airport in the United States. Alt News also received several requests to investigate the clip on its WhatsApp helpline number (+91 76000 11160). We performed a keyword search on Google that led us to an article in the Daily Mail dated January 3, 2013. It identifies the man in the video as Bronson Pelletier, a cast member of the ‘Twilight Saga’ movie franchise. According to another report in the Daily Mail, the incident took place on December 17, 2012. The actor had first denied the charges and subsequently claimed that “a crazed fan bought him drinks at the airport and then reported him as drunk and had him removed from the plane”. But the court found him guilty and “handed two years’ probation as well as 52 court-mandated AA meetings, amounting to two a week for the next six-and-a-half months”. The man in the video is, therefore, not Aryan Khan. He is Twilight actor Bronson Pelletier. The video was recorded in 2012 when Pelletier was 25 years of age. 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 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	4th January 2022 / 3:18 pm / Last updated: 4th January 2022	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/false-claim-that-aryan-khan-peeing-on-airport-goes-viral/", "author": "Priyanka Jha" }
1,283	Azan heard from the sky in Germany? Old video, fictional claim - Alt News Kinjal 20th December 2021 / 3:56 pm A video has been shared on social media with the claim that azan, the Islamic call to prayer, played seemingly out of the sky in Berlin, Germany and surprised onlookers who began recording the sound. The incident is being portrayed as nothing short of a miracle. Facebook user Anwar Gaur promoted the clip with the same claim. (Archive link) प्रार्थना का आह्वान जर्मनी के बर्लिन शहर में आसमान से आया। ईश्वर की शक्ति से आप देख सकते हैं कि वहां के मुसलमान और ब्रिटिश लोग प्रार्थना के इस अनदेखे आह्वान की आवाज और वहां के दृश्य का वीडियो रिकॉर्ड कर रहे हैं। अल्लाहु अकबर अल्लाहु अकबर अकबर माशाअल्लाह माशाअल्लाह Posted by Anwar Gour on Tuesday, December 14, 2021 Back in 2020, Facebook user Mohammad Akhtar had shared the video and accompanying claim. (Archive link) आसमान से अज़ान की आवाज आ रही है बर्लिन जर्मनी में अल्लाह हुअकबर अल्लाह हूअकबर Posted by Mohd Akhtar Khan Khan on Wednesday, April 8, 2020 The video is widespread on Facebook, and has also made its way to WhatsApp with the same message. Alt News also received numerous requests to verify the visuals on our WhatsApp helpline number. Taking a closer look at the viral video, we noticed a few details worth noting. We performed a reverse image search of the multi-coloured building seen in the background of the video using Google Lens. Searching via Google Lens allowed us to easily find an exact match for the search query. This led us to a few links which identified it as a building located in the Flughafenstraße street of Berlin, Germany. Using Google Street View, we found that Dar Assalam Mosque is located next to this building. The photo listed on Street View is from 2008, and the exterior paint colour of the building has been changed since then. [googlemaps https://www.google.com/maps/embed?pb=!4v1639881040558!6m8!1m7!1sUplX4Ww9i_3yPxGbp6perQ!2m2!1d52.48104907693315!2d13.42685487847191!3f167.51!4f3.980000000000004!5f0.4352551983534266&w=600&h=450] You can compare the screengrab from the video in question with the Google Street View image below. The similarities are evident, apart from the paint colour. The mosque can clearly be seen next to both buildings. Upon further research of the visuals, we came across a video report by Ruptly. On April 5, 2020, several media outlets reported that a mosque’s call to prayer ended early after breaches in the social distancing norms in Berlin, Germany. At the 0:21 mark, a man is clearly seen singing, which confirms that the azan is not playing from the sky. [youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l1QrwC52Kpo] According to a Ruptly article dated April 4, 2020, around 300 people gathered outside the Dar Assalam Mosque in Berlin. However, the crowd was dispersed after they flouted physical distancing norms. To sum it up, a mosque in Germany broadcasted a call to prayer over a loudspeaker, which prompted a crowd to gather in the streets. A video of the incident was falsely circulated as azan prayers miraculously being playing from the sky. 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. 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 December 2021 / 3:56 pm	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/false-claim-that-azan-heard-from-sky-in-germany-berlin-miracle/", "author": "Kinjal" }
1,284	Viral BBC Hindi tweet on 'Brahmastra' team's monetary support for Pak flood victims is fake - Alt News Kinjal 5th September 2022 / 5:10 pm Bollywood film ‘Brahmastra’, slated to be released in September 2022, has been in the headlines for some time now. A call to boycott the film, too, has gained momentum on social media. Against this backdrop, a screenshot of an alleged tweet by BBC Hindi is being circulated widely. As per the post, Bollywood has come forward to offer aid to victims of the severe flooding in Pakistan. It is written that the producer of the film, Karan Johar, donated Rs. 5 crore, while actors Alia Bhatt and Ranbir Kapoor donated Rs. 1 crore each. Along with this, they announced that they would donate Rs. 51 crore if the film was a box office success. In the end, it states that Bollywood is an example of humanity. Twitter user ‘@CuteRashmika3’ posted this screenshot asking how much Bollywood had donated for flood relief in India and the 2022 flood victims in Assam. The tweet contained the hashtags #BoycottBramhastra #BoycottBollywood. (Archived link) #BoycottbollywoodCompletely How much money have they given for Indian floods ?? How much money did Bollywood give in #Assamfloods 2022.?? “Saviour Of Humanity”#आलिया_My_Foot #RanbirKapoor #BoycottBramhastra #BoycottBollywood #FridayFitness #ShameOnNDTV pic.twitter.com/H4eDqVRXRz — Love Is Rashmika (@CuteRashmika3) September 2, 2022 Several other Twitter users also amplified the image in opposition of the film ‘Brahmastra’. This screenshot is trending on Twitter with the hashtag ‘#BoycottBrahmastra‘. (Link 1, Link 2, Link 3) The screenshot is widespread on Facebook, and it is being circulated on Instagram as well. Taking a close look at this screenshot, we noticed some inconsistencies in the language and syntax. For example, the first sentence ends abruptly without a full stop. Besides, there is no space after the comma (,) between the words ‘crore’ and ‘Alia Bhatt’. At the same time, ‘and’ (aur in Hindi) is misspelt in the last line. Such grammatical errors on the part of media organisations is unusual. Another thing that we noticed was that BBC Hindi usually does not tweet only texts without some graphics or videos. However, the post in the screenshot only contains text. Next, on examining the Twitter timeline of BBC Hindi, Alt News could not find any tweet like the one shown in the viral image. We also noticed that BBC Hindi posted a tweet on September 2, 2022, clarifying that the screenshot featured a fake tweet. BBC Hindi clearly said it was the screenshot of a fake tweet and the outlet did not publish any such news. FAKE NEWS ALERT पाकिस्तान की बाढ़ और रणबीर कपूर, आलिया भट्ट की फ़िल्म ‘ब्रह्मास्त्र’ को लेकर एक फे़क ट्वीट सोशल मीडिया पर बीबीसी हिंदी के नाम से शेयर हो रहा है. ये ट्वीट फ़ेक है और ऐसा कोई ट्वीट या ऐसी ख़बर बीबीसी हिंदी ने नहीं की है. pic.twitter.com/MVylmCz7Ix — BBC News Hindi (@BBCHindi) September 2, 2022 Furthermore, when other tweets of BBC Hindi are compared with the viral screenshot, it becomes clear that the latter is fake: In addition, Alt News could not find any media report to corroborate that the ‘Brahmastra’ team had donated to help Pakistani flood victims. To sum up, it is evident from the announcement by BBC Hindi and our fact-check that the said screenshot is fake. It is pertinent to add that we have often encountered screenshots of fake tweets falsely shared on social media as real. Alt News has already published fact-check reports on several such fake tweets, which can be read here. 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. 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	5th September 2022 / 5:10 pm	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/false-claim-that-brahamastra-movieartors-and-producer-donated-crores-rupees-to-pakistan-flood-bbc/", "author": "Kinjal" }
1,285	No, Delhi HC has not ordered release of farm bill protestors arrested after Jan 26 violence - Alt News Anuradha Prasad 13th February 2021 / 4:13 pm / Last updated: 13th February 2021 India’s farmers have been agitating against the centre’s new farm laws for nearly four months now. As part of the demonstrations, they held a tractor rally in the capital on January 26 where violence was reported after a group of protesters took a detour to the Red Fort. The Delhi police resorted to using lathi charge and fired tear gas bullets to disperse crowds. Several protestors were arrested, with the Delhi police later releasing the names of 122 people arrested in connection with the Republic Day violence. In the backdrop of this, a claim about the High Court ordering the release of the arrested farmers has been going viral. The viral Hindi message reads, “The Delhi High Court ordered the release of all the farmers arrested by the Delhi Police. Long live farmer unity, long live our food providers.” This post by Facebook user Pram Rasoda racked up more than 2,800 shares. Dozens of people have been circulating this post on Facebook as well. Alt News combed through recent news reports on the arrest of farm bill protesters. None of these mentioned orders for their release. The collective release of 122 detainees associated with the farmers’ movement would have undoubtedly garnered widespread media coverage. On the contrary, the Delhi High Court dismissed a petition on the release of the ‘illegally detained’ protesters. It also ordered the Delhi police to investigate the FIR as soon as possible. The High Court ruled that the arrested persons could not be released without entering into the merit of FIRs and investigation. We also reached out to Additional PRO Anil Mittal of the Delhi police who said that they have not received any such information. Thus, the viral claim about the Delhi High Court ordering the release of those arrested following the clashes at the Republic Day tractor rally is completely false. 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	13th February 2021 / 4:13 pm / Last updated: 13th February 2021	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/false-claim-that-delhi-hc-ordered-people-arrested-during-farmers-protest-to-be-released/", "author": "Anuradha Prasad" }
1,286	False claim that Disha Ravi is Christian viral on social media - Alt News Archit 17th February 2021 / 3:38 pm On February 17, scores of Twitter and Facebook users claimed that Bengaluru-based activist Disha Ravi hid her Christian identity and her full name is Disha Ravi ‘Joseph’. Disha was arrested by Delhi Police on February 14 for allegedly editing a toolkit on Google docs related to farmers’ protest which was also shared by Swedish climate activist Greta Thunberg. Twitter user @SaffronSunanda wrote, “Her full name is Disha Ravi Joseph. That’s the tweet”. This tweet has gained over 4,000 retweets and 13,000 likes as of this writing. The Pioneer’s editor Pramod Kumar Singh and Asianet News CEO Abhinav Khare also tweeted the viral claim. BJP members Geetha Kothapalli and Prajwal Busta followed suit. Indian Film & Television Directors’ Association Ashoke Pandit and Supreme Court advocate Prashant Patel Umrao made the same claim. Umrao wrote, “Disha Ravi Joseph is a Syrian Christian from Kerala. Members of this community always at the forefront of Breaking India movements!” The text of Umrao’s now-deleted tweet has been copy-pasted by several Twitter and Facebook users. Alt News has documented misinformation shared by Umrao and Pandit on multiple occasions. Readers should note that Umrao recently falsely claimed that Nikita Jacob, who is also an accused in Greta Thunberg toolkit case, met Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal. Twitter account of the Indu Makkal Katchi, a Tamil-Nadu based right-wing Hindu political party, also tweeted that Disha is Christian. This tweet gained over 500 retweets. Likewise, Facebook page ‘NoConversion‘ made the same claim. This page has over three lakh followers. Anonymous Twitter account @SouleFacts, which is followed by PM Narendra Modi, wrote, “Fraud activist… Rice Bag Disha Ravi JOSEPH. Does the name ring a bell? They are always part of Break India Gang.” Similarly, several Twitter users followed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi claimed Disha Ravi hails from the Christian community. We spoke with multiple individuals who know Disha personally. They refuted the claim that she is Christian. This claim surfaced after it was reported that Disha is an alumnus of Mount Carmel College, Bengaluru. The false claim was earlier fact-checked by The News Minute (TNM) which stated that her full name is Disha Annappa Ravi. Prasanna R, a lawyer and close friend of Disha’s family, told TNM, “Her mother’s name is Manjula Nanjaiah, father is Ravi. They are from Tiptur in Tumkur district of Karnataka.” He added, “Disha’s religious identity does not matter here. How is it relevant if she is Christian or Hindu? She is a nature lover and had friends from all over. She has not followed any religion though she was brought up in a Lingayat household. It is unfortunate that we have to debunk this cooked up religious identity that is being used to spread hatred further.” No, her name is not Disha Ravi ‘Joseph’: Friends debunk lies about arrested activist https://t.co/787wtNYGWn — The News Minute (@thenewsminute) February 17, 2021 Sahana Das, professor at Mount Carmel College (MCC), told Alt News, “We have a database of over 10,000 students. While it is not impossible to find documents that establish Disha’s religious affiliation, MCC doesn’t want to encourage practices that overlook the achievements of passionate individuals and identifies them solely based on religion.” Despite being pointed out that Disha does not hail from the Christian community, BJP member Kothapalli wrote, “Lol What’s her father Ravi’s full name? He is Ravi Joseph smartly you told full names of Disha & her mother but hid the father’s full name…” TNM reporter Prajwal Bhat tweeted that her father’s name is Ravi Annappa. Her father name is Ravi Annappa btw — Prajwal (@prajwalmanipal) February 17, 2021 Journalist Pramod Kumar Singh later tweeted a correction without taking down his tweet carrying the false claim. To conclude, several prominent right-wing social media accounts falsely claimed that activist Disha Ravi is Christain. Even as the false claim is debunked, it is worthy to mention that Disha’s religious affiliation has no bearing on her case and this is just another attempt to malign a minority community. Since her arrest, Alt News has debunked multiple false claims targeting Disha Ravi. 🙏 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… 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… The video of a group of people stopping an e-rickshaw with BJP flags attached to…	news-altnews	2024-05-27T18:24:05.489452	17th February 2021 / 3:38 pm	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/false-claim-that-disha-ravi-is-christian-viral-on-social-media/", "author": "Archit" }
1,287	Photo of CWG medalists with Rakesh Tikait viral with misleading claims - Alt News Abhishek Kumar 16th August 2022 / 11:54 am India won a total of 61 medals in the Commonwealth Games 2022. This includes 22 Gold, 16 Silver and 23 Bronze medals. Bajrang Punia, Deepak Punia, Ravi Kumar Dahiya and Naveen are among the players who have won gold medals in wrestling. Since the conclusion of the Commonwealth Games, a picture is viral on social media. In this photo, along with farmer leader Rakesh Tikait, wrestlers Bajrang Punia, Deepak Punia and Ravi Kumar Dahiya are seen sitting on a stage. It is shared with the claim that it was clicked during the farmers’ protest. Rajasthan Youth Congress tweeted the picture and wrote, “This photo is of the farmers’ movement. And these three wrestlers have now returned victorious.” (Archive link) ये फोटो किसान आंदोलन की है. और ये तीनों पहलवान अब सोना जीतकर आए हैं !! pic.twitter.com/ajCRHmQv2H — Rajasthan Youth Congress (@Rajasthan_PYC) August 11, 2022 Congress leader Alka Lamba, quote-tweeted Rajasthan Youth Congress and wrote, “Blessings and prayers of our farmers were with all of them”. (Archive link) हमारे अन्नदाताओं का आशीर्वाद और दुआएँ जो थी इन सबके साथ.. 😊🇮🇳👍 https://t.co/ZN3PiqXiGI — Alka Lamba (@LambaAlka) August 12, 2022 Journalist Mandeep Punia also described it as a picture taken during the time of the farmers’ movement. (Archive link) ये फोटो किसान आंदोलन की है. और ये तीनों पहलवान अब सोना जीतकर आए हैं. pic.twitter.com/fCNxLrWdL5 — Mandeep Punia (@mandeeppunia1) August 11, 2022 On Facebook, this image has been shared by pages such as With INC, Yuva Desh, satirical page Rofl Gandhi etc., with the same claim. This picture is viral on Facebook and Twitter with the same claim. We noticed that in the viral picture there is a poster at the back that has text written in Hindi that reads ‘Players’ (‘खिलाड़ियों का’) and ‘Ceremony’ (‘समारोह’) written on it. Taking these clues, we performed a Google search using relevant keywords. This took us to a report by ETV Bharat published in September 2021. According to this report, the Sarvjati Kisan Garib Manch had organized a felicitation ceremony in Kharkhoda, Sonipat. In this programme, the winners of the Tokyo Olympics were honoured. Farmer leader Rakesh Tikait was also present at this ceremony. We also found a video related to this event. Farmer leader Rakesh Tikait including the player present in the viral picture can be seen in this video. The poster is also clearly visible in this photo – ‘Felicitation Ceremony of Olympic Medalist and President Awardee Players’ (‘ओलंपिक पदक विजेता व राष्ट्रपति अवार्डी खिलाड़ियों का सम्मान समारोह’). In this video, farmer leader Rakesh Tikait made a statement saying that a player does not belong to any party, caste, or religion. A player should stay away from politics. [youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ys7aIT80iJM] To sum it up, several social media users shared a picture from the players’ felicitation ceremony organized by Sarvjati Kisan Garib Manch in Kharkhoda, Sonepat, as a photo clicked at the farmers’ protest. 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). 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 August 2022 / 11:54 am	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/false-claim-that-gold-medalist-wrestlers-were-seen-in-farmer-protest/", "author": "Abhishek Kumar" }
1,288	KL Rahul was dismissed on a no-ball? Virender Sehwag gives false info, claim viral online - Alt News Ketan 26th October 2021 / 9:15 pm / Last updated: 26th October 2021 On October 24, the Indian cricket team played its first match of the T20 World Cup 2021 against Pakistan in Dubai. Pakistan made history by defeating India for the first time in a World Cup fixture. Unsurprisingly, Indian social media was rife with a flurry of activity following the match. Indian bowler Mohammed Shami was targeted online, leading to even some prominent people known to be neutral on social media debates come to the player’s defence. Apart from the widespread trolling, there was also a claim about the circumstances surrounding Indian batsman KL Rahul’s wicket. Several people shared an image and claimed that he had been given an out on a no-ball. They stated that Shaheen Afridi’s foot was outside the crease while bowling but the umpire failed to notice it, and India had to bear the brunt of his blunder. Twitter user Shiv Sharma tweeted this picture at 7.55 pm on Sunday evening, minutes after the player was dismissed stating that KL Rahul was given an out on a no-ball. The post had been retweeted 215 times as of this writing. (Archive link) Stupid umpiring in this crucial match is not accepted… Blind to see No Ball we lost Rahul 😡 #icc #ICCT20WorldCup #INDvPAK #KLRahul #ViratKohli #SanjayManjrekar. pic.twitter.com/pFASMXZtVM — Shiv Sharma (@ShivShharma) October 24, 2021 Replying to a tweet by YouTuber Ashish Chanchlani, user Rishi Bajaj stated that the match was fixed. He also claimed that KL Rahul was declared out on a no-ball and attached a photo as proof. This tweet also amassed a significant amount of likes and retweets. (Archive link) I think this match was fixed because Shaheen’s ball to KL Rahul was a no ball umpire also checked and it was clearly a front foot no ball. If Pakistanis don’t beleive I also have a pic pic.twitter.com/ylvxcJIuWc — Rishi Bajaj (@IamRishi306) October 24, 2021 Furthermore, former Indian cricketer Virender Sehwag, known for his comments on social media, made the same claim in his web show ‘Veerugiri’. He stated, “…and soon after that Rahul also got bowled over by Shaheen Afridi for 3 runs. However, replays done later revealed that Shaheen had overstepped and it was a no-ball.” Sehwag also made fun of the umpire, describing him as Rohit, the protagonist of director Rakesh Roshan’s ‘Koi Mil Gaya’, who was unable to see at one point in the film. It is also worth noting that Sehwag has served as a member of the commentary panel of the Indian Cricket Board and did the Hindi commentary for the Indian cricket team’s 2020-2021 Australia tour. First India News Rajasthan uploaded a clip to Facebook wherein the news anchor also stated that a controversial decision was taken in the World Cup match in which KL Rahul was declared out a no-ball. भारत पाक मैच पर विवाद ! नो बॉल पर आउट हुए KL Rahul भारत पाक मैच पर विवाद ! नो बॉल पर आउट हुए KL Rahul #FINVideo #IndiaVsPak Posted by First India News Rajasthan on Monday, October 25, 2021 Zee Salaam (an affiliate of Zee News) published a story covering the raging social media debate over whether the delivery on which KL Rahul was declared out was a no-ball. The outlet did not verify the claim. Debates over the alleged no-ball dominated Facebook and Twitter. Some videos made by a few YouTube channels supporting the claim also amassed thousands of views. Shaheen Afridi bowled the first ball of his second over while staying within the crease and it was not a no-ball. The claims being made on social media along with the comments made by Virender Sehwag are false. As Rahul was heading towards the pavilion after being declared out, an instant replay from the bowler’s end was aired from a side-on angle, and the viral image was taken from here. However, the image shows only a single frame. And cricket enthusiasts understand the significance of every single frame in this sport. The viral image makes it appear as though Afridi’s foot is outside the crease, hence the delivery should be considered a no-ball. However, watching the full video of him bowling reveals the whole story. When the bowler comes toward the crease to throw the ball, his foot is behind the line. This becomes evident from the frame shown below. But his foot slid forward after it landed on the ground while he was throwing the ball – in which case the delivery cannot be declared a no-ball. If you watch the video carefully, you will notice that his foot did in fact land inside the crease. Commentator Nasir Hussain also stated that it was not a no-ball. But it is obvious that such nuances cannot be included in an image, which is why the claim went viral with users circulating it knowingly and mistakenly. Nevertheless, Virender Sehwag and news channels should not be let off the hook for reporting that the ball was not legal purely on the basis of social media trends. Sehwag not only has a massive social media following but is a former player himself and is often invited onto big platforms as an expert on the sport. Every word he states about cricket carries immense weight. And news channels inherently have the biggest responsibility to report facts. What is the back foot no-ball law? ICC Rule 21.5 states that the bowler’s back foot must land within and not touch the return crease. The word ‘land’ is very important. This means that even if his foot slides after it lands, that doesn’t count as a no-ball. This video by cricket law-making body MCC also explains the rules of the back foot no-ball. The first part explains the law about the back foot landing on the return crease. It can be clearly seen that as per the rule, only the place where the foot lands is considered, and even if it is off the ground while throwing the ball, the delivery will not be considered a no-ball. [youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uQ_aQXo8BTM] To sum it up, the online claim by social media users as well as news channels about KL Rahul being declared out on a no-ball is completely false. Ketan is Senior Editor at Alt News Hindi. 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 October 2021 / 9:15 pm / Last updated: 26th October 2021	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/false-claim-that-kl-rahul-was-given-out-by-the-umpire-on-a-no-ball-in-t-20-world-cup-match-against-pakistan/", "author": "Ketan" }
1,289	False claim that Mohd Rafi's song on Kashmir 'Jannat ki hai Tasveer' was banned in 1966 - Alt News Pooja Chaudhuri 7th March 2019 / 6:48 pm / Last updated: 17th June 2019 A Mohammed Rafi song is viral on social media with the claim that the song that it was banned years ago by the Congress government upon protests by Pakistan. The message is further thanking the person who dug out the track and forwarded it on WhatsApp. “इस गीत को रेडियो-सेलोन पर बजाय जाने का पाकिस्तान ने जबरदस्त विरोध किया था।उस वक्त की कांग्रेस-सरकार ने इसे बैन कर ठंडे बस्ते में डलवा दिया था।प्रणाम उस बंदे को, जिसने इसे निकाल कर वहाटस-एप्प पर डाल दिया। Pakistan protested massively when this song was played on Radio Ceylon. The Congress government of the time banned the song without taking any action. A salute to the man who dug out the song and uploaded it on WhatsApp.” – read the message circulated along with a video of the song. इस गीत को रेडियो-सेलोन पर बजाय जाने का पाकिस्तान ने जबरदस्त विरोध किया था।उस वक्त की कांग्रेस-सरकार ने इसे बैन कर ठंडे बस्ते में डलवा दिया था।प्रणाम उस बंदे को🙏,जिसने इसे निकाल कर वहाटस-एप्प पर डाल दिया।👍👍👇👇👇👇👇 Posted by Vipan Goyal on Sunday, 16 June 2019 The video has been shared by multiple individual users and pages on Facebook. The same Rafi song was also viral earlier in March this year in the backdrop of the Pulwama terror attack. It was, however, shared with a slightly different caption. It was claimed that the song, which was a part of a movie, was censored from the film fifty years ago. “पचास साल पहले इस गाने को सेंसर ने कटवा दिया था लेकिन क्यों? सुने मोहम्मद रफी की आवाज में यह गीत जो कभी रिलीज नहीं हो पाया सुन कर बताइये! क्या कारण रहे होंगे (Fifty years ago, why was this song censored and cut? Listen in Mohammed Rafi’s voice the song that wasn’t released. What must have been the reason?),” read the accompanying caption. पचास साल पहले इस गाने को सेंसर ने कटवा दिया था ! लेकिन क्यों? सुने मोहम्मद रफी की आवाज में यह गीत जो कभी रिलीज नहीं हो पाया सुन कर बताइये ! क्या कारण रहे होंगे Posted by Hardip Singh Chumber on Thursday, 21 March 2019 The claim was viral on Facebook. Some Twitter users had also shared the song with the identical caption. पचास साल पहले इस गाने को सेंसर ने कटवा दिया था ! लेकिन क्यों? सुने मोहम्मद रफी की आवाज में यह गीत जो कभी रिलीज नहीं हो पाया सुन कर बताइये ! क्या कारण रहे होंगे pic.twitter.com/FSr5F8hIyT — Jay D ( JD)🇮🇳 (@jay63536736) March 8, 2019 The song was also shared with the same caption that is being used to currently circulate it, however, with an English text – “this song was opposed by Pakistan and Radio Ceylon was told not to play this song. Our Congress govt. also quietly banned this song. Hats off to the person who now brought this song to YouTube,” reads the caption. @INCIndia @RahulGandhi this song was opposed by Pakistan and Radio Ceylon was told not to play this song. Our Congress govt. also quietly banned this song.Hats off to the person who now brought this song out pic.twitter.com/zmvQpRL0YN — Shanti Gm (@ShantiGm1) May 11, 2019 The song viral on social media is ‘Jannat ki hai Tasveer’ and was part of the movie ‘Johar in Kashmir’ released in 1966. The film was set in Kashmir, circa late 1940s, after India was partitioned. Alt News found a Gazette of India document from 1966, which included official orders by the Central Board of Film Censor, Ministry of Information and Broadcasting. As seen in the screenshot below, only the underlined words ‘Haji Pir’ were asked to be deleted from the song. Some of the lines mentioned in the official document cannot be found in the lyrics of the song available online, hinting that the lyrics were modified after the censor board order. Alt News contacted Mohammed Rafi’ son, Shahid Rafi, for further insights. “That the song was censored is completely false. It was neither banned nor censored.” Shahid Rafi informed Alt News. “How could the song be a part of ‘Johar in Kashmir’ if it was banned?” he added. 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	7th March 2019 / 6:48 pm / Last updated: 17th June 2019	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/false-claim-that-mohd-rafis-song-on-kashmir-jannat-ki-hai-tasveer-was-banned-in-1966/", "author": "Pooja Chaudhuri" }
1,290	NCP's Sanjay Shinde wasn't named among Palghar lynching accused - Alt News Priyanka Jha 20th October 2020 / 2:23 pm Sanjay Shinde, taluka unit vice president of NCP, was burnt alive in his car due to a short circuit on October 15. According to news reports, the police said that the incident happened near the Baswant toll plaza on the Mumbai-Agra highway. Since then, social media users have been sharing a video of the incident claiming that Shinde was one of the accused in the Palghar lynching case. Facebook user Narender Singh wrote, “NCP leader Sanjay Shinde, the main murderer of the Palghar Sadhus, burned to death in a car accident.” भगवान के यहां देर है अंधेर नहीं पालघर साधुओं की हत्या के आरोपी NCP नेता संजय शिंदे अपनी कार में जिं ज भगवान के यहां देर है अंधेर नहीं पालघर साधुओं की हत्या के आरोपी NCP नेता संजय शिंदे अपनी कार में जिंदा जल कर मर गया । प्रकृति अपना उधार ब्याज सहित वसूल करती हैं। आज नही तो कल। Posted by Manoj Tiwari For Delhi CM on Thursday, 15 October 2020 Several Facebook pages, including ‘Manoj Tiwari for Delhi CM‘, ‘Kings of Rajput‘, ‘Raghavacharya Ji Maharaj Ayodhya‘, and users Chhagan Prajapat and Pankaj Mehra shared the video. The clip and accompanying claims have since spread to Twitter as well. A number of users, including @nandaji1958, @TheDeepak2020In, @AchAnkurArya, @MandirGuy, @Hiranyareta, @OfficeOfDGP, @bhaiyaji_kahin, @sukhdevgogamedi, and @thakurbjpdelhi promoted the claim. जलती हुई कार जो आप देख रहे है वास्तव में अंदर एनसीपी के संजय शिंदे नाम के एक राक्षस की चिता जल रही है जो पालघर में मारे गए साधुओं की हत्याओं का आरोपी था जब कल्पवृक्षगिरी जी चोट खाते हुए भी मुस्कुरा रहे थे तो उनका भाव यही था कि ईश्वर के घर देर है पर अंधेर नहीं न्याय अवश्य होगा.. pic.twitter.com/MsVVmvOyNj — अंबालिका भारद्वाज 🇮🇳 (@AKrisnapriya) October 15, 2020 Deepak Sharma (@TheDeepak2020In) is the man who had thrown black ink at Sanjay Singh, Rajya Sabha MP affiliated to the Aam Aadmi Party. Singh has also been in the news for allegedly fanning communal tensions. His tweet received 3,600 retweets and over 10,000 likes at the time of writing. महाराष्ट्र पालघर साधुओं के मुख्य हत्यारे NCP नेता संजय शिंदे की कार एक्सीडेंट में जिंदा जलकर हुई मौत ! भगवान के घर देर है अंधेर नही ! — Deepak Sharma (@TheDeepak2020In) October 15, 2020 On April 16, 2020, three people were beaten to death by a mob in the Gadchinchale village of Maharashtra’s Palghar district. Two of them were Hindu sadhus and the third individual was their driver. An attempt was made to give the matter a communal colour on social media. However, Alt News found that both the victim and the accused hailed from the same religious background. We did not find any reports which mentioned that Shinde was named as an accused in the Palghar lynching case. The reports also did not carry any controversial statement that Shinde might have given related to the murders. Alt News spoke to the Investigating Officer in the Palghar case. “NCP leader Sanjay Shinde has never been named in the Palghar case. This is a rumour,” he said. What have been the updates on the case since April 16? Maharashtra Home Minister Anil Deshmukh had tweeted the list of 101 people detained in the Palghar case on April 22. It did not contain Shinde’s name. The list of the 101 arrested in the #Palghar incident. Especially sharing for those who were trying to make this a communal issue.. pic.twitter.com/pfZnuMCd3x — ANIL DESHMUKH (@AnilDeshmukhNCP) April 22, 2020 We also went through a list of people who had been taken in police remand in this case. This list is from the month of May. There is no mention of Sanjay Shinde in this either. Initial investigation by the local police and CID revealed that the violence was sparked by rumours circulating on WhatsApp. It warned people about child kidnappers who sell organs of children. Villagers mistook the sadhus for members of the child kidnapping gang. The case was handed over to CID in April itself. A total of three charge sheets were filed. According to reports, the first two charge sheets were filed on July 15 against 126 accused. The same report mentioned that more than 808 suspects had been investigated by the CID, with 156 adults and 11 minors detained. The third charge sheet was filed on August 7. A case was registered against two out of 11 minors who were said to be directly involved in the lynching. Apart from this, 47 people were charged for direct involvement in rioting and murder. They were arrested in May. Amrit Adhikari, lawyer representing some of the accused, said that stones were pelted at policemen when they arrived to make the arrests. Alt News reached out to Adhikari who informed that the claims on social media are completely false. “NCP leader Sanjay Shinde’s name has never appeared in the list of the accused. I have read the entire chargesheet,” he said adding that all the accused are locals and no outsiders have been named. Shinde was a resident of Sakor, Maharashtra which is situated at a distance of more than 200 kilometres from Palghar. Therefore, online claims that NCP leader Sanjay Shinde who died in a recent car accident was the main accused in the Palghar case are false. 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	20th October 2020 / 2:23 pm	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/false-claim-that-ncp-leader-sanjay-shinde-who-died-in-a-car-accident-was-accused-in-palghar-lynching-case-is-viral/", "author": "Priyanka Jha" }
1,291	No, 'Pakistan Zindabad' slogan was not raised gram panchayat polls in Kutch, Gujarat - Alt News Kinjal 25th December 2021 / 12:59 pm A video of a group of people chanting slogans in Gujarat’s Kachchh is viral on social media. It has been claimed that locals in the Dudhai village of Kachchh allegedly chanted ‘Pakistan Zindabad’ after election results were announced. News24 reported that the incident took place after the gram panchayat election results. The channel later took down the tweet but an archived link can be accessed here. Several local media outlets, including VTV Gujarati also promoted the claim. A web portal named ‘Vibes of India’ also gave coverage to the viral claim. The video is viral on Facebook and Twitter with the claim that ‘Pakistan Zindabad’ slogans were raised in Dudhai, Kutch. After watching the video carefully, we discovered that the slogan being raised was not ‘Pakistan Zindabad’. This video was taken after the results of the gram panchayat elections were announced, where Reenaben Radhubhai Kothiwad was declared as the winning candidate. We performed a keyword search and came across a report published in Divya Bhaskar, Dainik Bhaskar’s Gujarati publication. The outlet reported that people chanted slogans in the Anjar area of the Dudhai village of Kachchh following the announcement of the election results. A video of this was circulated with the false claim of anti-India sloganeering, even as police investigated the claim and found it to be misleading. The report quoted Kachchh Superintendent of Police Mayur Patel as saying that locals were actually chanting ‘Radhubhai Zindabad’. The Twitter handle of SP East Kutch also clarified that the viral claim is false. The tweet said that the people in the video were not chanting ‘Pakistan Zindabad’ but ‘Radhubhai Zindabad’. Radhubhai is the husband of Reenaben, the winning candidate. This video’s circulating on social media FALSELY claiming that “Pakistan Zindabad” slogan was raised in election victory rally! Crowd in the video they told us that person hailed “Radhubhai Zindabad” twice. Radhubhai is name of Rinaben’s (victorious Sarpanch candidate’s) husband! pic.twitter.com/GV8O3XUSFS — SP East Kutch (@SP_EastKutch) December 22, 2021 Alt News contacted SP Mayur Patel’s office and was informed again that pro-Pakistan slogans were not raised. We were sent a video statement of the SP. “Female candidate Reenaben Radhubhai Kothiwad of Dudhai village was declared as the new sarpanch following the announcement of the gram panchayat election results yesterday. A rally was then taken out during which attendees chanted ‘Radhubhai Zindabad’ twice. A video of this was circulated with the false claim that the slogan being heard was ‘Pakistan Zindabad’. However, if you listen closely, you will come to know what the people are actually chanting. Action will be taken against those sharing the visuals with this misleading claim,” said SP Patel. Locals in Dudhai village of Kachchh, therefore, did not chant slogans of ‘Pakistan Zindabad’. Alt News has debunked similar videos of past rallies and public gatherings circulated with an identical false claim. 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	25th December 2021 / 12:59 pm	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/false-claim-that-pakistan-zindabad-slogans-raised-after-panchayat-election-results-in-dudhai-village-gujarat/", "author": "Kinjal" }
1,292	Fact-check: Pictures presented as Delhi government-run school are of a private school? - Alt News Abhishek Kumar 20th August 2022 / 11:24 am / Last updated: 20th August 2022 Political debates have heated up across the country after a report was published in the international edition of The New York Times about the government-run schools in Delhi. This story was also republished by the Khaleej Times on August 19. In the context of this report, several BJP leaders and social media users claimed that the picture shown to be of a Delhi government school in the Khaleej Times newspaper was actually of Mother Mary’s School, a private school. BJP leader Kapil Mishra tweeted the photo available in Khaleej Times and a photo present on the website of Mother Mary’s School and wrote, “These photos are not of a government school in Delhi but of the children of Mother Mary School in Mayur Vihar.” Along with this, he accused Arvind Kejriwal and Manish Sisodia of selling lies in the country and abroad. BJP leader Pravesh Sahib Singh also made a similar claim in his tweet. (Archive link) Jannayak Janta Party’s national spokesperson Virender Sindhu also made a similar claim while tweeting photos of the children of Mother Mary’s School. (Archive link) Others who have amplified this claim include BJP worker Priti Gandhi, Rakesh Goel, the state head of the BJP IT Cell in Punjab and Sumeet Bhasin. Pro-BJP media outlet OpIndia Hindi has also published a report based on these claims. We noticed that the image published in Khaleej Times is present in the article published on The New York Times website on August 16. Photojournalist Saumya Khandelwal has been credited for this photo. It is important to note that a syndicated report was published by Khaleej Times on August 19. Next, we did a reverse image search on Google to gather information about the photos shared by BJP leaders and social media users. This led us to the website of Mother Mary’s School, Mayur Vihar. Upon viewing the website of the school we came to know that it is an all-girls school. In its about section, it is clearly written that “Mother Mary’s School is a girls school. We don’t have any branch either in Delhi or outside.” A guard of the school confirmed to Alt News that it is a girls’ school. It is worth noting that in the picture present in Khaleej Times, boys can be seen sitting on the bench next to the girls in the class. We matched the photographs published in the Khaleej Times to those available on the website of Mother Mary’s School. Readers will notice in the picture below that there is a slight difference in their dress. In the picture published in the newspaper, the colour of the collar of the girl students matches their Kurti, while on the other hand, the colour of the collar of the girl students of Mother Mary’s School is different from the colour of their Kurti. Here, the colour matches the vest. There is also a difference in the sleeves of the dress of the girl students of both the schools. Upon a close look at the picture in the newspaper, it can be noticed that ‘Sarvodaya’ which is the name of the school is written in the logo of the dress. Readers should note that the Delhi government runs more than 400 Sarvodaya schools in the capital. We found a document from 2018 on the website of the Education Department of the Delhi Government. In this document, there are a total of 442 schools in the list of Sarvodaya Vidyalayas, out of which there are more than 70 co-ed schools, in which boys and girls attend together. Aam Aadmi Party leader Atishi Marlena, while replying to BJP leader Kapil Sharma in a tweet, said that this photo is of Sarvodaya Vidyalaya Kakrola. झूठे आरोप लगाने के लिए भी कुछ होमवर्क करना पड़ता है! झूठ बोलने की जल्दी में @KapilMishra_IND चेक करना भूल गए कि मदर मैरी स्कूल सिर्फ़ लड़कियों का स्कूल है! यह फ़ोटो सर्वोदय विद्यालय ककरोला का है। सोशल मीडिया पर झूठी खबरें फैलाने से फ़ुरसत मिले, तो आप भी आकर यह स्कूल देखिएगा! https://t.co/yIbEEg78fR — Atishi (@AtishiAAP) August 19, 2022 Photojournalist Saumya Khandelwal, who clicked this picture, confirmed to The Lallantop that the photo published in Khaleej Times is of Sarvodaya Vidyalaya in Kakrola, Delhi. She had clicked the picture on July 5 while she was on an assignment for The New York Times. The picture has now been used in a report by The New York Times. Along with this, Saumya also shared the metadata of this picture with The Lallantop. To sum it up, BJP leaders falsely claimed that the picture of the Delhi government-run school published in the Khaleej Times is of Mother Mary’s School, a private school in Mayur Vihar. Moreover, Mother Mary’s is an all-girls school but in the picture present in the report by Khaleej Times boys can be seen sitting next to the girls in the class, which further debunks the claim made by BJP leaders and social media users. 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). 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 August 2022 / 11:24 am / Last updated: 20th August 2022	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/false-claim-that-photo-of-a-govt-school-published-in-the-new-york-times-is-of-private-school/", "author": "Abhishek Kumar" }
1,293	Fact-check: Do UP schools serve paneer, apple and ice-cream in mid-day meal? - Alt News Abhishek Kumar 5th September 2022 / 7:50 pm / Last updated: 6th September 2022 A photo of a young boy standing in front of the Upper Primary Middle School in Jalaun, Malakpur with a plateful of food has been circulating widely on social media. On his plate, he has food items like puri, paneer curry, apples, ice cream, milkshake and salad. It is being claimed that this is the mid-day meal provided by the government to the children in the schools of Uttar Pradesh. BJP worker Arun Yadav tweeted the image, describing it as the mid-day meal at a government school in Uttar Pradesh. He added that if such a meal was provided at any school in Delhi, it would make headlines in international newspapers. (Archived link) He was obliquely referring to a New York Times report on August 16, which praised the AAP government for overhauling the government schools in Delhi. BJP affiliated lawyer Advocate Ashutosh Dubey also tweeted two photos, writing, “In Maharaj ji’s Uttar Pradesh there is only one drawback. Yogi Adityanath does not know how to advertise! (Archived link) Sagar Kumar of Sudarshan News also amplified the image on Twitter with the same claim. (Archived link) Shivam Pratap of Zee News, BJP Delhi’s Purvanchal Morcha president Kaushal Mishra, journalist Shweta Negi, and BJP worker Prakhar Bajpai also promoted the image and the claim. Alt News first examined the website of the Mid-Day Meal Authority, Uttar Pradesh. Here, we were able to find the weekly menu of mid-day meals. It is worth noting that the menu contains no mention of paneer curry, ice cream, milkshake, etc. However, in the viral picture, all these items are seen on the child’s plate. We performed a keyword search using terms related to the viral claim. This led us to a story by UP Tak on the Upper Primary Middle School in Malakpur, Jalaun. Speaking to ‘UP Tak’, Amit, the sarpanch of Malakpur, had said that this type of special menu was provided to the students two to three times in a month. Additional resources are arranged by the village head and money is raised via crowdfunding most of the time. We spoke to Amit, the village head of Malakpur for more information. He explained that when the concept of the mid-day meal was introduced, there were two objectives behind it. The first was to eradicate malnutrition among rural children and the other objective was to incentivize coming to school regularly. This is why, Amit said, he updated the mid-day meal menu. During December and January, the children’s winter vacation lasted long due to the Omicron virus. At the time, Amit used to take classes once a week. That’s when the children requested that he incorporate paneer and peas curry in the meal. He told the children that they would be provided the dish when regular classes resumed. After the school reopened, the teachers had an internal discussion and the new service was implemented from February 14. It was named the ‘Add-on Mid Day Meal’. This contained some added items in excess of what was predetermined in the mid-day meal menu. He designed the roster, as per which paneer curry was to be provided at least once a month, salad was to be given daily, sweets once or twice a month, apples twice a month and the prescribed quantity of milk or a milkshake to improve its nutritional value, etc. were added. Apart from this, he decided that the ‘Add on Menu’ would be provided on randomly selected days. Amit also shared with us the picture of the ‘Add on Menu’ notice. The ‘Tithi Bhojan’ concept was implemented from July 1, 2022. As part of this, any individual, organization or collective can provide special food to children on special occasions or festivals. This is mentioned in the sixth point of the About section of the Prime Minister’s Poshan Shakti Nirman (PM POSHAN), a government website. Amit informed Alt News that the viral picture was taken on August 31. A person named Saurabh, the branch manager at Canara Bank, Kanpur, had arranged the special meal for school children under Tithi Bhojan on his birthday in that particular school. Amit posted these pictures on his Facebook page. The images featured school children holding boards in their hands with the name of the school, the date of the meal, and the name of the panchayat. Along with this, the children can also be seen wishing Saurabh on his birthday with messages written on the board. Amit had earlier shared some more pictures of children being provided meals under Tithi Bhojan on July 9 and August 1 on Facebook. To sum it up, an image of a meal provided to school children under the Tithi Bhojan programme was falsely circulated on social media as the items in the mid-day meal in Uttar Pradesh. The initiative was the brainchild of village head Amit and carried out with public support. Many BJP leaders and social media users shared it while praising the Uttar Pradesh government. 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). 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 September 2022 / 7:50 pm / Last updated: 6th September 2022	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/false-claim-that-puri-paneer-apple-ice-cream-being-served-in-the-mid-day-meal-of-up-govt-school/", "author": "Abhishek Kumar" }
1,294	False claim that UP police arrested 'Naved Alam' for dumping bodies in Ganga viral - Alt News Archit 24th May 2021 / 7:38 pm / Last updated: 2nd June 2021 A viral claim suggests that the Uttar Pradesh police has arrested ‘Naved Alam’ for digging out dead bodies and dumping them in the Ganga river to defame Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath and Prime Minister Modi over rising deaths due to COVID. The claim has been shared in both English and Hindi — Naved Alam and नावेद आलम (Facebook, Twitter). Twitter user @MJ_007Club garnered 500 retweets for the claim. Twitter user @Vineetbhargava9 and @TheAbhishek_IND posted this claim in Hindi. Their tweets gained over 3,000 retweets cumulatively. Among other handles that amplified the claim is @agor1312. [Hindi text: मुर्दा घर में पड़े लावारिस लाशों को पैसे देकर उठाया गया और नदियों में बहाया गया….दफन किए हुए शवों को खोदकर गंगा नदी में फेंकने वाले नावेद आलम को यूपी पुलिस ने गिरफ्तार किया है.] The following screenshots show Facebooks posts that gained high engagement. Some of the posts were carried by UP CM Report Card, Narendra Modi for 2024 PM, and We are with Modi ji. The claim is also viral on WhatsApp. Download our mobile application to send such forwards for verification (Android, iOS) or share your queries on our WhatsApp helpline (76000 11160). In the second week of May, Dainik Bhaskar reported that over 2,000 bodies were found along 1,140 km bank of river Ganga, spread across several districts in Uttar Pradesh. Multiple other media outlets – Reuters, Hindustan Times, India Today, Mojo Story, and BBC – have reported about the river swollen with corpses. Alt News spoke with Dainik Bhasker reporter Aditya Tiwari, one of the correspondents who broke the story. “In our report, we covered an area of 1140 km and counted over 2,000 dead bodies. As per my knowledge, as of May 24, UP police has not arrested a person named Naved Alam for dumping dead bodies in Ganga as suggested on social media,” he said. More crucially, not a single media outlet has published a report stating that Uttar Pradesh police has arrested ‘Naved Alam’. Sky News recently tweeted drone footage of mass graves along the banks of the Ganga where people can also be seen carrying bodies to be buried. Drone footage shows hundreds of graves along the banks of the River Ganges in India. Many of those buried are thought to have died from #COVID19. Get more news from around the world: https://t.co/pmROrmQ7e7 pic.twitter.com/ouln46gl1z — Sky News (@SkyNews) May 22, 2021 Alt News has reached out to UP Additional Director General of Police, Law and Order Prashant Kumar on his phone number and on Twitter. His response will be added to the report if and when he gets back to us. Several people have shared the screenshot of the claim tweeted by one Sanatani Thakur who has since taken down her post. We found that many individuals questioned her about the source of the information. Unbelievable!! Can you please share the source — Sriram (@ScientistMughal) May 22, 2021 Using social media monitoring tool CrowdTangle, we found that all posts carrying the screenshot of Thakur’s tweet were made on Facebook after 11:01 am on May 22. This is the earliest instance of the false claim that we could locate. Uttar Pradesh police has not arrested anybody named Naved Alam for dumping dead bodies in the Ganga to defame Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath and Prime Minister Modi amid COVID. 🙏 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	24th May 2021 / 7:38 pm / Last updated: 2nd June 2021	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/false-claim-that-up-police-arrested-naved-alam-for-dumping-bodies-in-ganga-viral/", "author": "Archit" }
1,295	False claim that US researcher Dr Lieber "made and sold" coronavirus to China continues to float online - Alt News Archit 10th August 2020 / 9:46 pm Several users on Facebook and Twitter have shared a news clip with the claim, “The United States has just discovered the man who made and sold the Corona virus to China. Dr. Charles Lieber, Head of the Department of Chemistry and Biology at Havard University, USA. USA He was arrested today according to sources from the US department.” A Twitter user posted the viral video. It has over 3,000 views. نواں کٹا کھُل گیا جے USA just discovered the man who manufactured and sold the Corona virus to China. Dr Charles Lieber, head of the chemistry and biology department at Havard University, USA. He was just arrested today according to American department sources. Check 👉🏽👇🏼👇🏼👇🏼 pic.twitter.com/7sPRbxu11x — Basit Alvi (@bpk69) April 5, 2020 In the video, US attorney Andrew Lelling can be heard saying that the chairman of the chemistry department at Harvard University Dr Charles Lieber was arrested from his office. Liebling says that the complaint filed against Dr Lieber alleges that he signed a contract with the Chinese University in Wuhan and was paid up to $50,000 per month and up to $158,000 in living expenses. It was further reported that Dr Lieber allegedly received more than one and a half million dollars to set up a research lab in China all while working at Harvard and receiving multiple research grants from the US Department of Defense and national institutes of health. Alt News has received several requests to fact-check the video on WhatsApp (+917600011160) and on our official Android application. The video carries a logo of US-based ABC News on the bottom right corner. Alt News performed a keyword search ‘dr charles lieber abc news’ on YouTube and found that the video was uploaded by WCVB Channel 5 Boston on January 29. The channel is affiliated with ABC News. The title of the video reads, “Harvard department chair arrested; charged with concealing ties to China.” Next, Alt News performed a keyword search on the official website WCVB Channel 5 Boston and found three articles that include the keywords ‘Dr Charles Lieber’. On April 9, WCVB Channel 5 Boston published a fact-check report debunking conspiracy and false claims surrounding Lieber, China and COVID-19. Lieber was arrested on January 28 for “making false statements to the agency of the United States Government,” or lying to federal authorities about his ties to China, as per the fact-check report. The channel added that prosecutors have never alleged that Lieber was involved in manufacturing and/or selling a virus to China. The full federal court complaint against Dr Lieber can be read here. The report also clarified Lieber’s links to Wuhan. The report stated, “Lieber travelled to WUT (Wuhan University of Technology) in mid-November 2011 ostensibly in order to participate in a Nano-Energy Materials Forum.” On July 29, Dr Lieber’s attorney Marc Mukasey told WCVB Channel 5 that he didn’t hide anything or get paid as the government alleges. Thus, the social media claim that Harvard professor Dr Charles Lieber “made and sold” the COVID-19 virus to China is false. 🙏 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… 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 August 2020 / 9:46 pm	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/false-claim-that-us-researcher-dr-lieber-made-and-sold-coronavirus-to-china-continues-to-float-online/", "author": "Archit" }
1,296	False claim, unrelated photos: Weapons seized from a madrasa in Rajkot, Gujarat - Alt News Arjun Sidharth 1st August 2019 / 8:44 pm / Last updated: 1st August 2019 A set of photographs has been shared on social media platforms with the claim that a massive arms haul was recovered from a madrasa in Rajkot, Gujarat. I had tweeted recently that in Muslim majority areas in Kerala, as far back as the 1990s the Peaceful community had started stockpiling weapons in every home. Actually they are preparing for civil war. This arms haul is from a madrassa in Rajkot. pic.twitter.com/fnDUzZ01rh — Rakesh Krishnan Simha (@ByRakeshSimha) July 31, 2019 The above tweet is of July 31 and has been retweeted over 750 times so far. The tweet has four photographs in it. One of the photos, of a stock of arms, has been posted on Facebook with the identical claim i.e. these weapons were recovered from a madrasa in Rajkot. মিষ্টিমুখ করুন: গুজরাতের রাজকোটে র এক মসজিদ থেকে এই অস্ত্রের পাহাড় ধরা পড়েছে । আপনি কি কিছু বুঝতে পারছেন ??? Mu Mithai ho jay ??? Sweets recovered from a Madrassa Masjid in Gujrat !!! Posted by Indranil Mookerjee on Sunday, July 28, 2019 The above post by an individual user has been shared over 1100 times so far. It was posted on July 29. This claim has also been posted in a group I AM WITH PM MODI AND YOU? The claim that a large stock of weapons has been seized from a Rajkot madrasa is false. Alt News could not find a single news report to this effect. Moreover, the photographs used to bolster this false claim are old and unrelated to the claim. Let us scrutinise these pictures one-by-one. Alt News reverse-searched the above image on Google and came across an article by India Today which stated that this photograph is actually from a ‘kirpan’ factory in Patiala, Punjab. According to the article, the photo is from the ‘Khalsa Kirpan’ factory in the city. Alt News contacted ‘Khalsa Kirpan’ factory and confirmed that the picture is indeed from the factory at Patiala. The above photo is indeed from Rajkot, but these swords were recovered not from a madrasa but from a hotel on the Ahmedabad-Rajkot highway. This picture had been shared earlier as well with the same narrative. Alt News’ fact-check on this may be read here. Alt News reverse-searched the above photograph and found it on Tumblr. The photo was posted in March 2019. It was earlier shared with the claim that weapons were recovered from a madrasa in Sherkot, UP. The above photograph is recent. It pertains to a raid on a madrasa in Bijnor, Uttar Pradesh in which weapons were recovered. According to Bijnor police, the weapons seized were part of an illegal arms racket. Six people have been arrested in this case which is of July 2019. थाना शेरकोट @bijnorpolice द्वारा मदरसे में अवैध शस्त्रों की तस्करी करते 06 अभियुक्तगण 01 पिस्टल, 04 तमंचे व भारी मात्रा में कारतूसों सहित गिरफ्तार। #uppolice @Uppolice @adgzonebareilly @digmoradabad @News18India pic.twitter.com/WDj3kkBfIu — Bijnor Police (@bijnorpolice) July 11, 2019 In conclusion, it may be stated that the claim about a large stash of weapons recovered from a madrasa in Rajkot, Gujarat is false. Additionally, the pictures shared along with this claim are either old or unrelated. 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 August 2019 / 8:44 pm / Last updated: 1st August 2019	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/false-claim-unrelated-photos-weapons-seized-from-a-madrasa-in-rajkot-gujarat/", "author": "Arjun Sidharth" }
1,297	No, UP police will not conduct 30-day mask checking initiative - Alt News Kinjal 27th February 2021 / 6:37 pm A viral message on social media claims that the Uttar Pradesh police will conduct a 30-day mask checking campaign. It says that individuals caught without masks will be liable for either a fine or a 10-hour jail sentence. “Issued in the public interest by the Uttar Pradesh Police,” concludes the message. A Facebook page titled ‘The Bareilly Viral’ shared the message. (Archive link) Twitter user @Dubey1Vij posted a picture of the Uttar Pradesh logo with the same claim. (Archive link) कल प्रातः 9 बजे से 30 दिन तक उत्तर प्रदेश के सभी थाना क्षेत्रों में मास्क लगाना अनिवार्य है जो व्यक्ति बिना मास्क के पकड़ा जायेगा उसे 10 घंटे अस्थाई जेल में रहना होगा-@Uppolice मास्क लगायें दो गज की दूरी बनाये, कोरोना जैसी बीमारी से खुद और परिवार का बचाव करें । pic.twitter.com/miynoSjX74 — ⛳Vijay Adv HC⛳ (@Dubey1Vij) February 25, 2021 Several other users also shared the claim on Facebook and Twitter. It has also made its way to WhatsApp. Facebook user Waseem Akram tweeted another claim on February 24 about a three-day-long lockdown being imposed in Uttar Pradesh. According to his post, a total lockdown would be in place across the state from February 29 to 31. The Uttar Pradesh police itself took to social media to debunk the viral claim clarifying that there were no plans to conduct a 30-day mask checking initiative. उत्तर प्रदेश पुलिस द्वारा मास्क चेकिंग का 30 दिन का ऐसा कोई भी अभियान नही चलाया जा रहा है, और न ही ऐसी कोई सूचना प्रसारित की गई है। अतः ऐसी भ्रामक खबरों पर ध्यान न दें, जो भी इस प्रकार की भ्रामकता फैलायेगा, उसके विरुद्ध आवश्यक विधिक कार्यवाही की जाएगी।#UPPAgainstFakeNews pic.twitter.com/hciSvogmxA — UP POLICE (@Uppolice) February 25, 2021 Apart from this, the claim about a lockdown in UP is also baseless since the last day of February is 28th. 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. 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	27th February 2021 / 6:37 pm	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/false-claim-up-police-30-days-mask-checking/", "author": "Kinjal" }
1,298	False claim: Violent protest by Muslims in Bhopal against RSS and Bajrang Dal - Alt News Arjun Sidharth 26th July 2019 / 4:09 pm “भोपाल में आर एस एस और बजरंग दल के खिलाफ सड़कों पर उतरे मुसलमान अभी भी समय है एक हो जाओ वरना अंत समय नजदीक है। पूरे भारत में और भोपाल में मुस्लिम यह कर रहे हैं तो कम से कम आप लोग वीडियो ही शेयर कर दो ताकी हिंदुओं की आंखों पर बंधी पट्टी खुल जाए” Translation: “Muslims out on the streets in Bhopal against RSS and Bajrang Dal, there is still time, please unite otherwise the end is near. Muslims are doing this in Bhopal and throughout the country, you at least share this video so that blindfolded Hindus may take note.” The above message accompanies a 45-second video clip which shows an irate mob vandalising a bus. The video and message have been posted on Twitter. भोपाल में आर एस एस और बजरंग दल के खिलाफ सड़कों पर उतरे मुसलमान अभी भी समय है एक हो जाओ वरना अंत समय नजदीक है। पूरे भारत में और भोपाल में मुस्लिम यह कर रहे हैं तो कम से कम आप लोग वीडियो ही शेयर कर दो ताकी हिंदुओं की आंखों पर बंधी पट्टी खुल जाए🙏 @Payal_Rohatgi @RSSorg @UP_Silk pic.twitter.com/KPlIIhckPl — ठाकुर प्रशांत कुमार (@Prashantmlsm) July 25, 2019 The above tweet has been retweeted over 1300 times so far. भोपाल में आर एस एस और बजरंग दल के खिलाफ सड़कों पर उतरे मुसलमान अभी भी समय है एक हो जाओ वरना अंत समय नजदीक है। पूरे भारत में और भोपाल में मुस्लिम यह कर रहे हैं तो कम से कम आप लोग वीडियो ही शेयर कर दो ताकी हिंदुओं की आंखों पर बंधी पट्टी खुल जाए🙏 @Payal_Rohatgi @UP_Silk pic.twitter.com/z8NQzySy8L — Prajjval palhore { मै भी हिन्दु }😘❣️💙 (@Prajjval_) July 25, 2019 The video and the accompanying claim have also been shared on WhatsApp. The video in question was fact-checked earlier by Alt News, when it was shared with the false claim that Muslim auto drivers in Mumbai had damaged state govt transport buses. This incident had taken place in Surat, Gujarat and NOT Bhopal, MP. In the video, the word ‘SITILINK’ can be seen imprinted on the side of the bus. SITILINK stands for Surat Bus Rapid Transit System, which is an integrated public bus transportation system that runs only in Surat. The second clue was the number plate of the bus. A faint ‘GJ 05’ is visible at numerous points in the video. GJ 05 is the RTO vehicle registration code for Surat. On the basis of these clues, Alt News found several news reports pertaining to the incident. A rally in protest against mob lynchings was taken out in Surat on July 5, 2019. The agitation however had turned violent, and the mob started pelting stones. According to a Times of India report, “Police lobbed 15 teargas shells and fired one round in air on Friday to disperse a mob which was pelting them with stones during a rally organised by a city-based organisation to protest against mob lynching incidents in different parts of the country. Five policemen suffered injuries in stone pelting by the mob.” It may be noted that the video in question represents an incident of mob violence in Surat, and is not from Bhopal as claimed. 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	26th July 2019 / 4:09 pm	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/false-claim-violent-protest-by-muslims-in-bhopal-against-rss-and-bajrang-dal/", "author": "Arjun Sidharth" }
1,299	False claim viral about arrest of Amzath Ali and Thamim Shaikh in Kerala elephant death case - Alt News Pooja Chaudhuri 5th June 2020 / 1:33 pm / Last updated: 5th June 2020 The horrific death of an elephant in Kerala’s Palakkad has turned into yet another issue to target the Indian Muslim population. After reports came pouring in that the animal died a slow death after explosives went off in her mouth, numerous social media users claimed that the persons arrested for the crime are Amzath Ali and Thamim Shaikh. Amar Prasad Reddy, media advisor to the Union Minister of State for Health and Family Welfare, was one of the earliest to tweet. He later took it down but not before it garnered thousands of likes and retweets (archive). He subsequently tweeted a clarification. Live Hindustan wrote an article on the purported arrests where Amar Prasad Reddy’s tweet was featured (archive). News Nation anchor Deepak Chaurasia made the same claim in Hindi (archive) — “हत्या के मामले में अमजद अली और तमीम शेख की गिरफ्तारी हुई है।” Sudarshan News penned an article on the claim (archive). Last year, Alt News had compiled a list of dangerous communal misinformation promoted by Sudarshan News. Alt News contacted Palakkad Superintendent of Police G Siva Vikram who termed the social media claims “fake” and informed that a man named P Wilson has been arrested in the matter. This was also reported by DD News Malayalam and Hindustan Times. The accused Sh.Wilson being taken to plantation premises for gathering of evidence. He was a tapping labourer and overseer in the plantation there. @DDNewslive pic.twitter.com/kQqSqHZZNL — DD News Malayalam (@DDNewsMalayalam) June 5, 2020 Thiruvazhamkunnu Forest Station, Deputy Range Officer, M Sasikumar confirmed the arrest to The News Minute. Wilson works as a rubber tapper in a plantation in the district. “The Forest Department identified three people suspected to be involved in the case, but let off two persons after interrogation,” the report further states. SP Vikram told Alt News that the two people who were let off were not named Amzath Ali and Thamim Shaikh. Malayalam news outlets Mathrubhumi and Janmabhumi reported that the owners of the rubber plantation where Wilson works are also suspects in the case. Their names are Abdul Kareem and his son Riyazuddin. This was also confirmed to Alt News by SP Vikram who said that the duo is currently absconding. ഗര്‍ഭിണിയായ ആനയെ കൊന്ന കേസിലെ ഒന്നാം പ്രതി അബ്ദുള്‍ കരീം, രണ്ടാം പ്രതി മകന്‍ റിയാസുദ്ദീന്‍, ഇരുവരും ഒളിവില്‍; തേങ്ങയില്‍ പടക്കം വെച്ചത് വില്‍സണ്‍ https://t.co/mqqXKYWKVD — Janmabhumi (@janmabhumidaily) June 5, 2020 Prashant Patel Umrao, whose trysts with misinformation have been documented here, also made the same claim (archive). Others who pushed the anti-Muslim narrative were author Ravi Rai (archive), BJP leader Varun Gandhi’s secretary Ishita Yadav (archive), VHP member Abishek Mishra (archive), BJP UP member Richa Rajpoot (archive), OpIndia sub-editor Anupam Singh (archive), columnist Rakesh Krishnan Simha (archive), Twitter user BALA @erbmjha (archive) and Twitter account of Hindu nationalist party in Kerala Indu Makkal Katchi (archive). In an earlier report, Alt News debunked media reports which claimed that the incident took place in Malappuram. The district’s Muslim majority population led to communal misinformation on social media. The case pertains to Palakkad. [Update: The names of rubber plantation owners Abdul Kareem and his son Riyazauddin who are suspects in the case were added to the article after the same was reported by the police. This is a developing story. Updates will be included as and when they come to light.] Pooja Chaudhuri is a senior editor at Alt News. 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	5th June 2020 / 1:33 pm / Last updated: 5th June 2020	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/false-claim-viral-about-arrest-of-amzath-ali-and-thamim-shaikh-in-kerala-elephant-death-case/", "author": "Pooja Chaudhuri" }
1,300	NYT editor 'Joseph Hope' praised Modi in an article? Fake piece, fictional name - Alt News Anuradha Prasad 6th February 2021 / 8:54 pm / Last updated: 5th July 2021 A job advertisement on The New York Times (NYT) seeking a South Asia Business Correspondent based out of New Delhi created quite a stir on media outlets sympathetic to Prime Minister Modi. A portion of the job description stating, “India’s future now stands at a crossroads. Mr Modi is advocating a self-sufficient, muscular nationalism centered on the country’s Hindu majority,” did not sit well with PM Modi’s supporters. However, amid the brouhaha, supporters of the PM have revived an appreciative piece claimed to have been penned by NYT editor-in-chief Joseph Hope. The piece has also been widely shared by individual users on Facebook. We found that Gaurav Pradhan shared it on his Telegram channel. The same piece was circulating earlier in February when farmers’ protests grabbed international attention after several celebrities and politicians tweeted in solidarity. International media outlets also started covering the protests, many of whom reported on police violence and the internet shutdown. The lengthy piece on Prime Minister Narendra Modi was shared to portray international support for him. Twitter user @angshguds made this claim in a January 29 tweet, which garnered more than 650 retweets at the time of writing. The editor of The New York Times is Dean Bacquet and a thorough search of the NYT website did not throw up any employee named ‘Joseph Hope’ Moreover, the excerpt is replete with grammatical errors which would be unusual for an editor of an international media outlet. The author also seems to have gone out of their way to shower praises on Prime Minister Modi. Alt News reached out to Ari Isaacman Bevacqua, Director of Communications at The New York Times. He informed us that the American daily has neither written any such story on PM Modi nor does it have an employee named ‘Joseph Hope’. NY Times Communications also took to Twitter to call out the fake story viral in the outlet’s name, “A false claim circulating in India related to Prime Minister Narendra Modi and The New York Times has been fact-checked; it is not true.” A false claim circulating in India related to Prime Minister Narendra Modi and The New York Times has been fact-checked; it is not true. https://t.co/wh8J0ll570 pic.twitter.com/UY3l7r0QLj — NYTimes Communications (@NYTimesPR) January 30, 2021 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	6th February 2021 / 8:54 pm / Last updated: 5th July 2021	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/false-claim-viral-message-hailing-pm-modi-drafted-by-nyt-editer/", "author": "Anuradha Prasad" }
1,301	False claim: Voters can ask for 'challenge vote' if name is missing from electoral roll - Alt News Arjun Sidharth 6th April 2019 / 2:12 pm When you reach poling booth and find that your name is not in voter list, just show your Aadhar card or voter ID and ask for ” challenge vote” under section 49A and cast your vote. If you find that someone has already cast your vote, then ask for “tender vote” and cast your vote. If any polling booth records more than 14% tender votes, repolling will be conducted in such poling booth. Please share this very important message with maximum groups and friends as everyone should aware of their right to vote As India gears up for general elections, the above message has been shared widely on social media and messaging platforms. The same message has been posted by several Facebook users. According to the message, 1. Voters just need to show their Aadhaar card in case their names are missing from the electoral rolls. Supposedly, under ‘section 49A’, voters can ask for a ‘challenge vote’ in such a case. 2. A ‘tender vote’ can apparently be cast if a voter finds out that someone else has already voted in her/his name. 3. Repolling will be conducted at every polling booth where more than 14% tender votes are recorded. Voters just need to show their Aadhaar card in case their names are missing from the electoral rolls. Supposedly, under ‘section 49A’, voters can ask for a ‘challenge vote’ in such a case. According to the Conduct of Elections Rules, 1961, section 49A is titled Design of Electronic Voting Machines. It does not refer to ‘challenge vote’ as claimed in the viral message. The section reads: “Every electronic voting machine (hereinafter referred to as the voting machine) shall have a control unit and a ballotting unit and shall be of such designs as may be approved by the Election Commission.” A ‘challenged vote’ refers to a vote by a person whose identity has been challenged by the polling agent. Section 49J of the Rules lays out the procedure for ‘challenged votes’. If the identity of the voter is held to be in doubt by the polling agent, his vote may be ‘challenged’ and the matter taken up with the presiding officer, who will then conduct an inquiry. The ‘challenged’ voter’s name and address is then put in the list of challenged votes in Form 14. There is no reference to ‘challenge vote’ in section 49A, as claimed. A ‘tender vote’ can apparently be cast if a voter finds out that someone else has already voted in her/his name. Section 49P of the Conduct of Elections Rules, 1961 states that “If a person representing himself to be a particular elector seeks to vote after another person has already voted as such elector”, he/she will be given a tendered ballot paper for voting provided he/she has satisfactorily answered questions relating to his/her identity “as the presiding officer may ask”. Simply put, if a voter finds out that someone has already cast the vote in his/her name, the aggrieved voter can still cast his/her vote. Such a vote is called a ‘tendered vote’. Tendered votes are considered only in cases where the victory margin is narrow, and are not usually counted in case of victory by huge margins. Repolling will be conducted at every polling booth where more than 14% tender votes are recorded. Alt News could not find a single reference, in either the Conduct of Elections Rules, 1961 or the Handbook For Polling Agent, to the claim that repolling is mandatory at every polling booth where the percentage of tender votes recorded is over 14%. The figure of 14% is a figment of imagination. While it is true that repolling may be conducted at polling booths where a certain proportion of bogus votes have been cast, this decision is at the discretion of the Election Commission. The same was clarified via a tweet by former Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Dr. S Y Quraishi. It may be reiterated that the claim that repolling is to be conducted at every polling booth where more than 14% tender votes are cast, is false. However, it is true that repolling may be conducted if the ECI decides so. If your name is NOT in the voter list (for whatever reason), you cannot do anything. That’s why you have to check your voter list in advance. If your name is in the list but your vote has been cast, then tendered vote. EC can order repol if it notices any serious breaches. https://t.co/gnSWasfDds — Dr. S.Y. Quraishi (@DrSYQuraishi) April 6, 2019 Voters may note that registration is mandatory, and that it is not possible to vote unless the respective voter’s name is present in the electoral roll. Voters may follow this link to check if their names are present in the electoral roll. If the name of the voter is present in the roll but he/she does not have a voter ID card, any of the official identity documents such as Aadhaar, Passport, Driving License, PAN card etc. may need to be produced at the time of voting. The FAQ section of the ECI website can be accessed here for further details. 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	6th April 2019 / 2:12 pm	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/false-claim-voters-can-ask-for-challenge-vote-if-name-is-missing-from-electoral-roll/", "author": "Arjun Sidharth" }
1,302	No, SC judges who reprimanded Nupur Sharma are NOT in this photo - Alt News Abhishek Kumar 7th July 2022 / 9:30 pm Nupur Sharma’s recent alleged objectionable remarks on Prophet Muhammad during a TV debate triggered nationwide outrage, prompting a flurry of FIRs against the BJP leader in several parts of the country. Following this, Sharma moved the Supreme Court seeking the transfer of all FIRs filed against her in other states to Delhi. In its ‘Oral Observation’ on the matter, the apex court raised questions on the attitude of the Delhi police. It remarked there must have been a ‘red carpet‘ placed for the leader, adding that “when you (Sharma) register an FIR against someone then they are arrested but not you. This shows your clout.” The top court rejected her plea. Justice Pardiwala was on the vacation bench that passed this order led by Justice Surya Kant. Following the hearing, pro-BJP propaganda website OpIndia accused the Supreme Court of being “Islamist”. An online campaign was started against the Supreme Court judges who were also abused on Twitter. It is worth noting that terms such as ‘Supreme Kotha‘ were trending on the micro-blogging platform. RSS mouthpiece Organiser Weekly and BJP supporter Vijay Patel among others also alleged that the father of one of the judges was a Congress MLA. Expressing concern over the backlash, Justice B Pardiwala stated, “Attacks attempted at our judges for the judgments will lead to a dangerous scenario where the judges will have to pay greater attention as to what the media thinks rather than what the law actually mandates.” Against this backdrop, a photo of NDTV co-chairpersons Prannoy Roy and Radhika Roy, and Communist Party of India (Marxist) leader Brinda Karat with two other men is being widely circulated on social media. A user named Rakesh Kumar Pandit tweeted the picture. He wrote that Supreme Court judges Justices Surya Kant and Pardiwala were seen sitting with the “Naxal” gang. (Archive link) Another user named Brajesh Singh amplified the image with a similar claim. (Archive link) One Jitendra Sharma shared the photo on a Facebook group titled Pushpendra Kulshrestha Fan Club. The image is widespread on Facebook and Twitter with the same claim. We noticed that The Hindu Publishing Group Director N Ram and NDTV co-chairperson Prannoy Roy can be seen in this picture. We examined Ram and Roy’s Twitter handles for more information. This led us to a tweet posted from the former’s handle, in which he denied the viral claim and shared a Facebook screenshot. The accompanying caption mentions that the two individuals believed to be Justices Surya Kant and JB Pardiwala are actually Tamil Nadu Finance Minister Dr. P Thiagarajan (PTR) and Ram himself. How idiotic! The calibre of your disinformation is pathetic, beneath contempt. pic.twitter.com/v6blzH0Cru — N. Ram (@nramind) July 5, 2022 Prannoy Roy also tweeted the screenshot of Ram’s Facebook post in which he refuted the viral claim. pic.twitter.com/iEbq80lSco — Prannoy Roy (@PrannoyRoyNDTV) July 6, 2022 We reached out to N Ram for more information. He told Alt News, “I am sitting in front, on the right. The person sitting next to me is the Tamil Nadu Finance Minister, Dr P. Thiagarajan (PTR). This photograph was taken with our permission on July 1, 2022, when we were having lunch at the restaurant at MindEscapes. The restaurant commands a spectacular view of the Ketti Valley. Finance Minister PTR was travelling from Coimbatore to the Defence Services Staff College (DSSC) in Wellington, where he had been invited to give a lecture. My wife, Mariam Ram, and I had arranged to meet him en route over lunch at MindEscapes. We invited our friends, Prakash Karat, Brinda Karat, Prannoy Roy, and Radhika Roy, who were in the Nilgiris at the time, to join us for lunch, to meet the Finance Minister.” He added, “I confirm that neither Justice Surya Kant nor Justice J B Pardiwala of the Supreme Court of India is in this photograph. I confirm that we did not meet them. I can also confirm, based on subsequent verification, that these judges were not in the MindEscapes restaurant. I very much doubt that they were anywhere in the Nilgiris District on July 1, 2022.” He identified the other individuals in the image as follows: On the right – N Ram, former editor-in-chief of The Hindu and director of The Hindu Publishing Group; Tamil Nadu Finance Minister Dr. P. Thiagarajan (PTR); Prakash Karat, CPI(M) Politburo member; and Deepali Sikand, Chief Inspiration Officer and Founder of MindEscapes. On the left – Mariam Ram, N Ram’s wife and Managing Director, TNQ Technologies; Dr. Prannoy Roy, Executive Co-Chairman, NDTV Group; Brinda Karat, CPI(M) Politburo member; and Radhika Roy, Executive Co-Chairman, NDTV Group. We also found this picture posted on the Twitter account of MindEscapes. The July 3 tweet also contains the names of all the diners seen here. A Chef’s Table session with Finance Minister – Tamil Nadu, Mr. P. Thiagarajan, Dr. Prannoy Roy and Mrs. Radhika Roy, Mrs. Brinda Karat and Mr. Prakash Karat, Mrs. and Mr. N. Ram and Dipali Sikand. #ExperienceMindEscapes #ChefsTable #Nilgiris #GreatMindsMeet pic.twitter.com/pPrBGZh4Ij — Mindescapes (@MindEscapesClub) July 3, 2022 To sum it up, several social media users falsely claimed that Supreme Court judges Justices Surya Kant and JB Pardiwala, who reprimanded Nupur Sharma, were seen having lunch with NDTV’s Prannoy Roy and Radhika Roy, CPI (Marxist) leader Brinda Karat. 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). 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	7th July 2022 / 9:30 pm	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/false-claim-with-viral-image-ndtv-ndtv-prannoy-roy-radhika-roy-brinda-karat-n-ram-justice-pardiwala-surya-kant/", "author": "Abhishek Kumar" }
1,303	False claim: Woman's hair chopped off for not wearing burkha - Alt News Jignesh Patel 28th June 2018 / 8:51 pm / Last updated: 9th July 2018 “If Dont Wear A Burqa This Is The Way A Women Is Punished By Cutting Her Hairs With Daughter In Her Lap. And These Cowards Say They Will Conquer The World? These Moron Mujahids Are The Most Cowards Creatures On Earth,They Can Only Torture Helpless Humans. They Cant Face Real Men” tweeted a social media user Singh Singh(@HatindersinghR) on June 26, 2018, with an attached video. The tweet claims that a woman’s hair was chopped off because she refused to wear a burqa. If Dont Wear A Burqa This Is The Way A Women Is Punished By Cutting Her Hairs With Daughter In Her Lap. And These Cowards Say They Will Conquer The World? These Moron Mujahids Are The Most Cowards Creatures On Earth,They Can Only Torture Helpless Humans. They Cant Face Real Men pic.twitter.com/sNnrdlqkYn — ☬ SINGH ਸਿੰਘ ☬ 🇮🇳 (@HatindersinghR) June 26, 2018 The above tweet has been retweeted more than 1800 times and ‘liked’ more than 1300 times. It may be noted that the audio in this clip is unclear. Another tweet from Akhil Agrwal(चाय वाला) (@akhil_agrwal) was retweeted more than 750 times and has been liked more than 600 times. It was also shared on Facebook. Googling the phrase as seen in the video, “man cuts off woman’s hair” throws a list of articles, in which a Daily Pakistan article shows a frame of the video. The article refers to a Facebook post which has now been deleted. According to the article, this is allegedly a video of a husband who is cutting her wife’s hair for cheating on him with his nephew. It further states, “The shocking episode, according to the post, took place in Guarapuava, Brazil and the woman, who got her hairs cut, was cheating on her husband with her nephew. They are gypsies. The husband’s name is Fabrício Yanovich”. For further verification, we did a Google search with the similar text in Portuguese, “homem corta o cabelo da mulher” (man cuts woman’s hair – Google translation). This led us to a video titled, ‘Mulher tem os cabelos cortados na frente da filha (Woman has her hair cut in front of her daughter -translation)’ uploaded on January 18, 2017. It has received more than 50000 views and more than 220 comments in Portuguese. The sound in this video is audible. Moreover, an article was published by Diretão da Verdade(Truth Directory) on November 12, 2016, with the sub-heading, “Ele foi traído e pra se vingar cortou o cabelo da esposa (He was betrayed and for his revenge cut his wife’s hair -Google translation)“. This is the earliest article we found which refers to the incident. A screenshot of the same has been posted below. We also found another article of April, 2017 published by Blasting News titled, “Marido faz vídeo cortando cabelo de sua esposa por traição (Husband makes video cutting his wife’s hair for betrayal – Google translation)”, with the same claim. In both the articles which have been posted in Portuguese, it has been claimed that the incident took place over an extra-marital relation. There is no reference to the claims made in the tweet- that this couple is a Muslim couple and that her hair was chopped off because she refused to wear a burqa. Moreover, the audio of the clip posted by Singh Singh is not the original audio. Alt News also spoke with Vandan Kumar who teaches Portuguese in New Delhi. He confirmed that the language spoken in the video was Portuguese with a Brazilian accent. He further stated that the man in the video was accusing the woman of adultery. He also stated that there was no part of the video which would suggest that the woman was being punished for not wearing a burkha. In the past, we have seen videos from different countries and regions being spread with false claims which constantly target a particular religious minority. For example, in 2017, a video of a Guatemalan woman being lynched was passed off as an assault on a Marwadi woman by a Muslim mob. Such videos with false claims are shared with the objective of inciting communal sentiments. Social media users should be circumspect with regard to such provocative claims. 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	28th June 2018 / 8:51 pm / Last updated: 9th July 2018	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/false-claim-womans-hair-chopped-off-for-not-wearing-burkha/", "author": "Jignesh Patel" }
1,304	False claims about Safoora Zargar's marriage and pregnancy viral on social media - Alt News Pooja Chaudhuri 4th May 2020 / 11:03 pm / Last updated: 10th July 2021 Jamia Millia Islamia (JMI) scholar Safoora Zargar was arrested on April 10 and subsequently charged under non-bailable offences under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act. Since her arrest, social media has been brimming with vile personal attacks. Manoj Kumar Azad, who identifies as a BJP member from Muzzafarpur, tweeted on May 4, “Unmarried Jamia law student Safoora Zargar is in Tihar jail on charges of inciting riots. When she was given a coronavirus test in jail, it was found that she is two months pregnant.” Another user Sweta Singh who claims to be a member of the RSS shared photographs of Zargar and promoted the same claim. #शाहीन_बाग में दंगा भड़काने को लेकर चर्चा में आई अविवाहित जामिया की लॉ की छात्रा #सफूरा_जरगर जो कि इस समय तिहाड़ जेल में बंद हैं! जेल में कोरोना टेस्ट किया गया तो ये दो महीने की #प्रेग्नेंट निकली! भाई, ये चल क्या रहा है? बचाव में अब ये मत कहना कि ये ऊपर वाले की देन है!! 🙄😏 pic.twitter.com/hSaVzEKyUh — रामभक्त स्वेता सिंह ✪ (@Real_Sweta) May 4, 2020 That she is unmarried and her pregnancy was discovered during incarceration is a claim viral on social media. Safura Zargar, a law student of unmarried Jamia, who is currently lodged in Tihar Jail, came to the fore regarding the incitement of riot in Shahin Bagh, Delhi. When the #corona test was done in the jail, she turned out to be two months pregnant #mondaythoughts #MondayMotivation pic.twitter.com/jch5oKtYJy — Jasleen kaur (@Jasleen_Kaur11) May 4, 2020 It has also been promoted using a Bengali text – “#শাহীনবাগ ধরর্নায় #বসা বিপ্লবী #সাফুরা_জার্গার তিহার #জেলের একটি #মেডিকেল চেকআপে #দুই মাসের #গর্ভবতী ধরা #পড়ছেে যার #অর্থ হলো ওটা #কি …… ছিল? #সাফুরা_জার্গার একজন #ছাত্রী এবং #অবিবাহিত সে #কি করে #গর্ভবতী হয়? #শাহীনবাগ এর সমর্থকরা এর উত্তর দিন।” Before we begin this fact-check it is important to point out here that women are routinely targetted on social media with sexist and distasteful comments. The harassment is viler if they hail from a minority community. Zargar’s personal life has no bearing on her case yet certain people attempted to tarnish her reputation with hominem attacks. We have witnessed this culture before. Female voices on social media – activists, authors, journalists or student leaders – are attempted to be shunned with derogatory remarks. Personal attack is the easiest route. “It doesn’t matter if a woman is married or not. How she chooses to conceive is her choice. A mother is a mother. It is a shame that right-wing trolls cannot even show respect for an expectant mother. Such attacks prove that the government does not have a case against her. It shows the kind of ugly majoritarianism unleashed by forces emboldened under the Modi government’s protection,” Shehla Rashid, former vice-president of JNU students’ union, told Alt News. Rashid is a prominent voice on social media who regularly finds herself at the receiving end of cyberbullying. Her Muslim identity, just as Zargar’s, attracts the worst form of trolling. Social media claims suggesting Safoora Zargar is an unmarried woman are false. Alt News spoke with Zargar’s husband who informed that they have been married since 2018. Furthermore, the claim that her pregnancy was recently discovered in prison is also false. It was already in news since early April when Zargar was taken into custody. Below is a screenshot of an IANS report from April 12. It says that a plea for bail was filed in the court citing Zargar was three months pregnant when she was arrested on April 10. A report in Al Jazeera states that Zargar had fainted during a scuffle between the police and students on February 10 and had to be hospitalised briefly. “Since then, with her advancing pregnancy a concern, she had gradually restricted her physical movement. And after the outbreak of COVID-19, she had virtually stopped stepping out of the house except for essential work. She was mostly working from home,” her husband is quoted as saying. Another court application filed on April 21, requesting bail, also refers to her medical condition. “Despite it being in the public domain that Safoora is married, a false impression is being created through motivated and malicious posts. It is evident that this issue is being raked up with the motive and hope of maligning her and the anti-CAA Shaheen Bagh movement with which she is associated. Safoora’s pregnancy is relevant to her incarceration. There is a serious concern that her health and well being will be adversely affected in jail,” said women’s rights activist and lawyer Vrinda Grover to Alt News. “Spreading allegations and misinformation about women’s personal lives, creating the impression that women ought to be ashamed about aspects of their sexuality, is a common patriarchal and misogynist weapon, intended to undermine their politics. This has a chilling effect and deters women from being active in public life. It demonstrates how difficult it is for women and particularly young, bold women from marginalised groups to participate in civic discourse. It is a despicable and dastardly attempt to delegitimise her voice, the politics she espouses, and the movement that she is part of. Instead of engaging with the critical questions raised by Safoora on the unconstitutionality of CAA, she is sought to be silenced by questioning her morality,” continued Grover. Social media claims suggesting that Safoora Zargar is an unmarried woman are therefore false. The claim that her pregnancy was discovered in prison is also baseless. Pooja Chaudhuri is a senior editor at Alt News. 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	4th May 2020 / 11:03 pm / Last updated: 10th July 2021	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/false-claims-about-safoora-zargar-marriage-and-pregnancy-viral-on-social-media/", "author": "Pooja Chaudhuri" }
1,305	False claims of Gurmehar Kaur interviewed by BBC in Pakistan; statements twisted - Alt News Pooja Chaudhuri 21st February 2019 / 8:26 pm / Last updated: 23rd February 2019 Twitter handle @squintneon, which has been suspended by the micro-blogging site twice in the past, is back with circulating misinformation. At 1:23 PM on February 21, ‘Comrade Squinty’ tweeted student activist Gurmehar Kaur’s interview with BBC Urdu and claimed that it was shot in Pakistan. The handle also alleged that she “went to Pakistan just to say that an attack like Pulwama hurts minorities.” @squintneon is run by state social media in-charge of ABVP Assam, Manas Jyoti Sharma. In the 19-second slip, Kaur can be heard saying, “When an attack like this happens it hurts our minorities and many politicians bank on this polarisation within the country before the elections. What’s most important is that citizens don’t pay heed to such talks.” A few after its initial tweet, @squintneon tweeted about some confusion regarding the studio where the interview was shot. It might be in London, the tweet said but added that since the anchor was talking in Hindi, the interview was most likely shot in Islamabad. The tweet ended with the statement, “I will delete once it’s clear.” Soon after, another handle infamous for circulating misinformation, @DrGPradhan, tweeted similar claims. “But the bigger question is why she is in Pakistan?,” he asked. Gulmohar goes to Pakistan just to say an attack like Pulwama hurts minorities Gurmehr was funded by whom?? Was it @priyankagandhi as she is her role model? But the bigger question is why she is in Pakistan ? pic.twitter.com/we8nGDnb2S — #GauravPradhan 🇮🇳 (@DrGPradhan) February 21, 2019 BBC Urdu uploaded its complete broadcast on Pulwama attack on its official YouTube channel. The reportage titled ‘Sairbeen Friday 15th February 2019 – BBCURDU’ is 17:37 minutes long and at the start of the broadcast, the anchor says in Hindi, “This is Shafi Naqi Jamie from our London studios.” The BBC journalist himself said that he was reporting from BBC Urdu’s London studios. For further confirmation, Alt News reached out to Aliya Nazki, BBC Urdu presenter based in London. She corroborated that Kaur’s interview with BBC happened in their London studios. Moreover, the student leader herself responded to the false claims, saying that she has never been to Pakistan. Are you fucking daft? Stop spreading fake news. I’ve never been to pakistan. @Twitter @TwitterIndia @misskaul can you please check this handle spreading this nonsense? — Gurmehar Kaur (@mehartweets) February 21, 2019 Not only did @squintneon and @DrGPradhan circulate misinformation that Kaur’s interview was shot in Pakistan, but her statements were also twisted and placed out of context. At 12:18 minutes, the anchor questions Kaur in Hindi, “This attack has visibly affected India-Pakistan relations, but is it having any effect on the internal politics in India right before the elections?” Kaur answers, “Even now it can be seen how politicians are using this attack. Because of the attack, there is so much hatred in the minds of the people. We have noticed how Islam and Pakistan are suddenly seen in the same light. When an attack like this happens it hurts our minorities and many politicians bank on this polarisation within the country before the elections. What’s most important is that citizens don’t pay heed to such talks.” Kaur’s statements were portrayed as though she said that only minorities were affected by the Pulwama terror attack. When, in fact, she said that the aftermath of the attack witnessed polarisation within the country, which is affecting minorities. Twitter handle @squintneon has an infamous reputation on social media. Its daily online activities juggle between circulating misinformation (often communal in nature), targetting journalists (most of whom are female), and sending out offensive tweets to those its handler, Manas Jyoti Sharma, seems to disagree with politically. Twitter handle @squintneon is followed by senior BJP leaders Smriti Irani and Office of Piyush Goyal. It is also followed by Delhi BJP spokesperson Tajinder Pal Singh Bagga. Alt News has documented the fake news circulated by @squintneon several times in the past. In the aftermath of the violence perpetrated by Kanwar Yatra pilgrims last year in August, the handle attempted to falsely propagate that it was Muslims who committed the violence in the garb of the Hindu pilgrims. But the newspaper clip shared by @squintneon actually said that two Muslim youths dressed as Kanwariyas to pass a road jammed due to the attacks. However, they accidentally hit a constable. At another instance, a beggar beaten up by a Hindu family for molesting a woman was shared by the handle as an attack on a Naga Sadhu by Muslims. In June 2018, @squintneon claimed that the Rupee-Dollar exchange rate has slipped by only Re 1 since 2014. However, the claim was unsurprisingly false. 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 / 8:26 pm / Last updated: 23rd February 2019	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/false-claims-of-gurmehar-kaur-interviewed-by-bbc-in-pakistan-statements-twisted/", "author": "Pooja Chaudhuri" }
1,306	No, youth pouring beer on Shivling in this video are not Muslims - Alt News Kinjal 6th July 2022 / 7:46 pm A 26-second video of two men pouring beer on a Shivling has been circulating widely on social media. It is being claimed that the two are Muslims who committed this act to provoke Hindus. Twitter handle ‘@VISHNUK35030487’ tweeted the clip with this claim. (Archive link) शिवलिंग पर बियर डालकर हिन्दुओ की भावनाओ को भड़काया जा रहा है, यह दो जिहादी जनता के हाथ चढ़ गए तो संबिधान का रोना रोयेंगे लोग चंडीगढ़ का वीडियो बताया जा रहा यह pic.twitter.com/DNTAxq8zBN — VISHNU KUMAR MISHRA (@VISHNUK35030487) June 25, 2022 Several users promoted the video on Facebook and Twitter. Alt News performed a keyword search and came across a report by TV9 Bharatvarsh dated June 25, 2022. The report said that the incident took place in Chandigarh. A report by The Indian Express from June 27 states that the video was shot near the Ghaggar river in Panchkula. After it went viral on social media, police arrested the two accused, Dinesh Kumar and Naresh Kumar. The article quotes the police as saying that Dinesh Kumar had deleted the video from his phone even before he was arrested. The police added that Dinesh and Naresh had gone for a walk near the Ghaggar river. They were intoxicated when they came across a broken shivling and poured the beer over it as a joke while asking a minor to record them. A report by Amar Ujala also identifies the accused as Dinesh and Naresh. Speaking to a few fact-checking websites, Chandigarh police clarified that the claim about the accused being Muslim is false. (Link 1, Link 2) To sum it up, the two men seen pouring beer over a Shivling are not Muslims, but Hindus. A video of the incident was circulated online with a false communal claim. 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. 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	6th July 2022 / 7:46 pm	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/false-communal-angle-viral-with-a-video-that-muslim-boys-offering-beer-shivling/", "author": "Kinjal" }
1,307	Daral Uloom didn't issue fatwa to lace food served to Hindus with chemicals, fake tweet viral - Alt News Anuradha Prasad 8th March 2021 / 6:04 pm / Last updated: 30th March 2022 Social media users have been sharing a screenshot of an alleged tweet by “@gayur_sheikh” that appeals to the Muslim community to sell poor quality food and beverages laced with chemicals to Hindus to make them sick. The last sentence alleges this is a fatwa issued by ‘Madrasa Darul Uloom Deoband’. Posted by ऊधम सिंह चौधरी on Wednesday, 16 February 2022 The purported screenshot is widely circulating on Facebook. It also carries the following message for the Hindu community – “सभी हिन्दुभाइओ से अपील है, कीसी मुस्लिमसे कोई भी चीज न खरीदे, अपने बच्चोको भी सावधान करें.” This translates to – “It is an appeal to all Hindus to not buy things from Muslims. Warn your children as well.” The same post was also shared last year by Facebook page ‘हिन्दू राष्ट्र संघ’ (Hindu Rashtra Sangh), where it garnered over 800 shares. Several Facebook users shared the viral screenshot in 2021. We looked for @gayur_sheikh on Twitter and found that the handle no longer exists. However, using web.archive.org, we found archived versions of dozens of tweets posted by this account. We also found the viral tweet but noticed that it carried a lot of grammatical errors, indicating that it may be fake. There were also a lot of errors in the bio of the account as seen in an archived link below. Alt News reached out to Ashraf Usmani, the media in-charge of Darul Uloom Deoband, and inquired about this viral claim. “This fake post has gone viral several times in the past. I have clarified that it is not true on many occasions. We have not issued any such order,” he said. Examining other archived tweets of @gayur_sheikh, we discovered that its earlier username was @sekh_gayor. In one of the tweets, a user called the account “fake” and accused its owner of trying to incite a riot. It is noteworthy that the tweets made from this handle date back to the anti-CAA-NRC protests. Therefore, social media users shared a fake fatwa attributed to Darul Uloom Deoband. The Twitter handle which posted the original screenshot of the message no longer exists. A journalist and a dilettante person who always strives to learn new skills and meeting new people. Either sketching or working. 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	8th March 2021 / 6:04 pm / Last updated: 30th March 2022	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/false-communal-message-in-the-name-of-fatwa-from-darul-uloom-madarsa-viral/", "author": "Anuradha Prasad" }
1,308	False communal spin added to Delhi's Naraina murder case - Alt News Kalim Ahmed 28th March 2022 / 6:33 pm / Last updated: 28th March 2022 Days after the murder of a youth in West Delhi’s Naraina, a video clip of the alleged incident went viral on social media. Several BJP leaders and supporters of the party such as @ippatel, @nkgurjar4bjp, @ElvishYadav, @HinduITCell, and others (1, 2, 3, 4, 5) claimed that the accused are from the Muslim community and called the incident a ‘mob lynching’. These tweets were accompanied by the hashtag ‘#Justice_For_Shiva_Gurjar‘. BJP’s Kapil Mishra tweeted that Shiva Gurjar was murdered mercilessly in ‘jihadi style’. Sudarshan News called the alleged murder a ‘Taliban style execution’ thus, insinuating that it was carried out by Muslims. A video of this incident has been widely shared on Facebook with similar claims. We performed a keyword search on Google and came across news reports by India Today, Hindustan Times and Times Now. According to these reports, on the night of March 18, Shiva Gurjar, 29, and his friends were visiting the PVR complex in West Delhi’s Naraina, where Shiva’s bike came in contact with an employee of a paan shop. This led to an argument between the shopkeepers and Shiva and in a fit of rage, one of the employees stabbed Shiva in the chest. He succumbed to the injuries. According to the police investigation, the employee of the shop was a minor and both the victim and the perpetrators belong to the same community. Delhi police also released a video statement where they have confirmed the same and have dismissed the communal claims made on social media. पश्चिमी जिले के नारायणा थाना इलाके में हुई युवक की हत्या पर #दिल्ली_पुलिस ने तत्काल कार्यवाही की है।@DCPWestDelhi ने बताया कि मामला साम्प्रदायिक नहीं, बल्कि आपसी मारपीट से जुड़ा है। घटना से संबंधित सभी अभियुक्तों को गिरफ्तार किया जा चुका है।#DelhiPoliceUpdates@ANI@CPDelhi pic.twitter.com/twtXlcuQUs — Delhi Police (@DelhiPolice) March 27, 2022 The accused have been identified as Dharmendra Rai, his relative who’s a minor, his two sons Sachin Rai and Ramanuj Rai, and his employee Vakil Ahmed. DCP West Delhi Ghanshyam Bansal told Alt News that Dharmendra Rai’s relative (the minor) is accused of stabbing Shiva. Hence, the gruesome murder of a youth in West Delhi’s Naraina was given a false communal spin on social media. [Update: Details about the minor accused have been added to the report.] 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	28th March 2022 / 6:33 pm / Last updated: 28th March 2022	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/false-communal-spin-added-to-delhis-naraina-murder-case/", "author": "Kalim Ahmed" }
1,309	False conspiracy about 'love jihad' in Noida spun based on 2017 image from Lucknow - Alt News Archit 9th April 2021 / 4:48 pm Around the first week of April, several social media users posted an image of a policeman interrogating a couple, while passers-by record the incident on phone cameras. The image has been shared with the claim that the police in Noida caught a Muslim boy ‘trapping’ a Hindu girl in ‘love jihad’. नोएडा में ओखला के पास एक पार्क है नाम है,,,, बुद्ध पार्क। कल वहां एक लड़का और एक लड़की को पकड़ लिया योगी जी की एंटी रोमियो… Posted by राजेश आर्य on Tuesday, 30 March 2021 An elaborate message shared with the photograph claims that Uttar Pradesh chief minister Yogi Adityanath’s anti-Romeo squad caught a couple in Buddha Park in Noida’s Okhla. The boy identified himself as Lalit while the girl said that her name was Vandana. They said that they were hanging out with mutual consent but the policeman present at the scene was not convinced. The boy’s name turned out to be Rehan when the cop looked at his identity proof. “Vandana was in sheer disbelief. She had seen him wear a Hanuman locket around his neck,” says the message before warning men to not let their sisters and daughters befriend any man without the family’s consent. (Viral Hindi message: नोएडा में ओखला के पास एक पार्क है । नाम है बुद्ध पार्क….. कल एक लड़का और एक लड़की को पकड़ लिया योगी जी की एंटी रोमियो squad ने। लड़के से नाम पूछा तो बताया ललित और लड़की ने बताया वंदना। दोनों बोले मर्जी से बैठे हैं…… पुलिसवाले चाचा कहाँ मानने वाले थे। बोले अपना ID दिखाओ। लड़की ने झट कॉलेज का ID निकाल कर दिखा दिया। लड़का ना नुकर करने लगा तो दरोगा जी ने कान पकड़ लिए। फिर आख़िरकार पर्स में से ID निकाला। नाम था रेहान। लड़की के पैरों तले जमीन खिसक गई। वंदना तो ललित के गले में पड़े हनुमान जी का लॉकेट के अलावा कुछ देख ही नहीं पाई थी कुछ समझे? आखिर ये एंटी रोमियो स्क्वाड किस लिए बनाई गई है? अपनी बहन -बेटी को समझायें की बिना परिवार की सहमति के किसी भी लड़के से दोस्ती न करें । किसी भी प्रकार के झाँसा में या प्रलोभन में न फँसे। जय सत्य सनातन हिन्दू धर्म।) BJP member Subodh Sharma who has close to three lakh followers posted this claim. नोएडा में ओखला के पास एक पार्क है । नाम है बुद्ध पार्क….. कल वहाँ एक लड़का और एक लड़की को पकड़ लिया योगी जी की एंटी… Posted by Subodh Sharma on Monday, 29 March 2021 Multiple Facebook users shared this post in right-wing groups (1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6). Similarly, the viral image has also been shared on Twitter. User @FromSomalia21‘s tweet gained over 400 retweets. नोएडा में ओखला के पास एक पार्क है। नाम है बुद्ध पार्क… कल वहाँ एक लड़का और एक लड़की को पकड़ लिया योगी जी की एंटी रोमियो squad ने। लड़के से नाम पूछा तो बताया ललित और लड़की ने बताया वंदना। दोनों बोले मर्जी से बैठे है… पुलिसवाले कहाँ मानने वाले थे। बोले अपना आई डी दिखाओ। pic.twitter.com/MBthzqouSZ — आज की मैत्रेयी (@FromSomalia21) March 31, 2021 The photograph dates back to March 2017. Several media outlets had used the image to report about ‘Anti-Romeo Squad,’ an initiative by UP CM Yogi Adityanath, that aims to check eve-teasing, stalking, harassment of women and more importantly, curb ‘love jihad’ cases. ‘Anti-Romeo Squad‘ was formed at the police station level in the state. The Quint had published the image in a March 27, 2017 article where the caption states that the incident took place in Lucknow and the photo credit is given to IANS. The image is available in PTI archives which also identifies the location as Lucknow. It was uploaded on PTI on May 22, 2017. Alt News reached out to several photojournalists and crime reporters in Lucknow in an attempt to identify the person who shot the photograph or the police officer in the image. While we were unable to discern the photographer’s name, the officer is inspector DK Upadhyay. Upadhyay recognised the image by our description and said, “It’s been several years since this incident happened. I don’t recollect the details. However, to the best of my knowledge, this incident is not related to love jihad.” Earlier this year, in an RTI application filed by India Today, Uttar Pradesh police said that between March 22, 2017, and November 30, 2020, anti-Romeo squads arrested 14,454 people. “Crimes against women in the state have not declined. As per the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) data in 2017, when anti-Romeo squads were formed, there were 153 cases of crimes against women every day. But in 2019, the figure stood at 164. But the number of rape cases in the state did go down after the squads were formed. Rape cases in UP in 2017 stood at 13 per day, this went down to 8 every day in 2019,” read the report. A four-year-old image from Lucknow was shared by several right-wing Facebook users as a recent ‘love jihad’ incident that took place in Noida. 🙏 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	9th April 2021 / 4:48 pm	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/false-conspiracy-about-love-jihad-in-noida-spun-based-on-2017-image-from-lucknow/", "author": "Archit" }
1,310	News18, Jagran blame bad weather for CM Khattar's rally cancelled due to farmer protests - Alt News Priyanka Jha 12th January 2021 / 2:08 pm Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar had planned to hold a rally on January 10 in Karnal district’s Kaimla village on the benefits of the Centre’s new farm laws. That same evening, News18 and Dainik Jagran reported that the event was cancelled since Khattar was not able to attend due to bad weather. News18 wrote, “Due to bad weather, the Chief Minister of Haryana Manohar Lal Khattar could not reach Kaimla village to join the Kisan Mahapanchayat. His helicopter was not permitted to fly due to bad weather. This event was planned by the BJP, assembling those farmers who were in support of the new agricultural policies.” Dainik Jagran also similarly reported that the CM could not reach the gathering because his helicopter was having trouble flying due to bad weather. Although both of these articles have been updated now, their archived versions can be seen here and here. Apart from this, a website named Hindi Samachar24 also published a story. Several other news outlets published reports on the cancellation of the Kisan Mahapanchayat program. According to Aaj Tak, “Hundreds of farmers protesting the new farm laws reached the venue before CM Khattar could get there. They waved black flags and raised slogans against him.” The event was cancelled amid the ruckus. ABP News reported, “Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar’s visit was cancelled after heavy opposition from farmers in Karnal. The protesting farmers also took control of the helipad. The chief minister had planned to discuss the benefits of the new agricultural laws at the Mahapanchayat.” Jagran and News18 updated reports without acknowledgement A few social media users, including journalist Abhisar Sharma, pointed out that these outlets had published incorrect information. Following this, both edited their reports to reflect that the CM was not able to address the Mahapanchayat in Karnal due to the commotion created by a group of protestors. A link to the updated stories of Dainik Jagran and News18 are added below where the URL attributes the cancellation of the event to the weather. Speaking on the cancellation of the Mahapanchayat in a press conference, Chief Minister Khattar said, “Leaders of the protesting farmers had spoken to officials. They agreed that they would hold a symbolic protest. The administration had made its arrangements based on this agreement. Today, when I was supposed to reach there, some honoured their word and stayed back as agreed. However, some other youth, who had perhaps been influenced by other forces, began to ransack the venue. Our leaders had already reached there by then, and only I was to arrive via helicopter. However, the protesters began thronging the helipad in large numbers. Out of concern for the escalating law and order situation, I ordered my helicopter to land in Karnal instead.” Live : प्रेस कॉन्फ्रेंस को संबोधित करते हुए https://t.co/n4ehZk3NzQ — Manohar Lal (@mlkhattar) January 10, 2021 Two major news outlets, Dainik Jagran and News18, therefore incorrectly reported that the reason for the cancellation of CM Khattar’s Kisan Mahapanchayat was bad weather. Once this was pointed out on social media, they amended their articles without an update. Recently, in a similar manner, almost every television news channel in India falsely reported that a Pakistani ex-diplomat admitted that 300 of their soldiers had been killed in the Balakot airstrike. This was all based on a doctored video. 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… Right after Elon Musk took over the reins of microblogging site Twitter, the organization carried… A six-second-long clip of a civilian slapping French President Emmanuel Macron while he is interacting… Former Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan was allegedly shot at during a rally in Wazirabad… In a now-deleted article titled “दीप प्रज्ज्वलन के वैज्ञानिक और आध्यात्मिक पक्ष, जानें ये है…	news-altnews	2024-05-27T18:24:05.489452	12th January 2021 / 2:08 pm	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/false-dainik-jagran-news-18-misreport-hariyana-cm-manohar-lal-khattar-farmer-rally-cancel-weather/", "author": "Priyanka Jha" }
1,311	False dataset made viral to claim US elections registered more votes than voters - Alt News Archit 24th November 2020 / 12:11 pm On November 19, Rudy Giuliani and members of the Trump campaign legal team held a 90-minute press conference and made multiple allegations about voter fraud in the US Presidential elections. At the 29-minute mark, Giuliani said, “There were numerous backdated ballots, we’re just counting them now. Run over into the thousands and there were many precincts in which there was an overvote. Now let me explain to you what an overvote is which is something you should have explained to the American people because it’s about the clearest circumstantial evidence of massive fraud that you can have. An overvote is if 200% of the people who are registered in a district vote. Think about that. 200% of the registered voters in a district vote. What does that mean? That means somebody voted twice, that means somebody who’s not entitled to vote voted, an illegal, a person from another city or state, a person who’s not registered, but what it means is that those are illegitimate votes. You don’t have an overvote of 200% or 300%.” A similar claim was earlier widespread in November. It compares two datasets — registered voters in eight US states vs higher corresponding number under the heading “projected votes”. This image was shared by chairman of Manipal Global Education Mohandas Pai (archived link) on November 5. It has been retweeted over 1,000 times since. Alt News has documented multiple instances where Pai has put out misinformation occasionally. This screenshot was also published by right-wing news website Sirf News (archived link). This was also posted by the website’s founder Surajit Dasgupta (archived link). Alt News received several requests to fact-check this claim on our WhatsApp helpline number (+917600011160) and on our official Android application. On WhatsApp, the image has been shared with the text, “First time in human history, many states had over 100% voting. More votes than voters! It requires basic math skill to carry out this fraud!” Prior to President-elect Joe Biden securing the majority, incumbent President Donald Trump consistently put out misinformation about the elections being rigged. On November 6, The New York Times reported that Twitter labelled 15 of 44 tweets and retweets by Trump as misleading since the first polls closed on Election Day. When the chart was viral, the following US states were yet to declare results — Georgia, Pennsylvania, Nevada, Arizona and North Carolina. The viral image cites two websites — Real Clear Politics and World Population Review (WPR) — as its source. As per the data set, some States have more voters than their population. On November 5, US-based news channel WBTV News reported that the viral image shows the registered voters from 2018 mid-term United States elections as per WPR. According to WBTV News, WPR later updated the data set and added the following disclaimer: “A previous version of this page contained data from 2018. The current data is the most recent provided by each state.” Alt News visited the US Census Bureau in order to view the number of registered voters in 2018 mid-term United States elections. The date on ‘Reported Voting and Registration, for States: November 2018’ was listed under table 4a. The data in the table is in thousands. This data matches the data in viral screenshot. As of November 8 data-sets, 2020 US presidential elections voter registration statistics from each US state was: On November 4, US-based fact-checking website Snopes debunked the claim that Wisconsin counted more votes than registered voters in 2020. On November 6, CNBC interrupted a press conference by Trump where he said, “Tens of thousands of unsolicited ballots without any verification whatsoever…” Anchor Shepard Smith interjected saying, “We are interrupting this because what the President of the United States is saying, in large part, is absolutely untrue.” President Trump just spoke at the White House, as key states continue to count votes. Shep has the facts: “What the President of the United States is saying, in large part, is absolutely untrue.” #Election2020 https://t.co/E6DBt6OodD pic.twitter.com/HVa87qUCzB — The News with Shepard Smith (@thenewsoncnbc) November 6, 2020 Therefore, a screenshot compared registered voters in eight States during the 2018 mid-term US elections along with higher numbers under the subheading “projected voters” ahead of declaring the winner of 2020 Presidential election to build a voter fraud narrative. This screenshot was widely shared on Indian social media as well. 🙏 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	24th November 2020 / 12:11 pm	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/false-dataset-made-viral-to-claim-us-elections-registered-more-votes-than-voters/", "author": "Archit" }
1,312	False message blamed Muslim community for Mangalore bomb scare - Alt News Nibedita Sen & Pooja Chaudhuri 23rd January 2020 / 8:57 pm / Last updated: 23rd January 2020 “Days ago, Jihadis almost burnt Mangalore city Now a live bomb has been detected in Mangalore International Airport Bcoz of few traitors, Jihadis are getting more power But if police take action against masterminds behind these, Politicians come to their rescue! Disgusting,” tweeted Mahesh Vikram Hedge, the founder of fake news website Postcard News, on January 20. His tweet, blaming the Muslim community for planting a bomb in Mangalore International Airport, was liked over 2,500 times and retweeted more than 1,000 times before he took it down. An archived version can be accessed here. Another tweet by Pratheesh Viswanath that same day alleged, “Jihadis are looking for ways to penetrate and hit.” Vishwanath is followed by BJP Delhi Spokesperson Tajinder Pal Singh Bagga. His tweet reads, “Bomb found in a left over bag at Mangalore airport. Jihadis are looking for ways to penetrate and hit. Be careful all. Inform to authorities abt any suspicious activities seen around. Inform if seeing any left over bags or anything. Be careful abt jihadis.” Viswanath is a member of Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) and had led a strike against the Supreme Court order allowing women’s entry in Kerala’s Sabarimala temple. After a quick keyword search, Alt News came across newspaper reports from January 22, according to which the suspect’s name is Aditya Rao. He surrendered before the police, claiming that he had planted Improvised Explosive Devices (IED) at the Mangalore International Airport. The police had recovered the explosives on January 20. Rao confessed two days later. According to The Hindu, “The city police are investigating as to whether Aditya Rao, who is suspected to have placed an explosive at the Mangaluru International Airport on January 20, had done so as an “act of vengeance” or if there were others who might have set him up for the task.” An article from Times of India says, “Last year, he [Rao] had made a series of hoax bomb calls to Bengaluru’s Kempegowda International Airport for which he was arrested by the cops.” Mahesh Vikram Hegde and Pratheesh Viswanath blamed the Muslim community before the police revealed the name of the suspect. Hegde deleted his tweet after it was reported two days that the suspect is Aditya Rao. Earlier, a photograph of an RSS worker was shared to falsely claim that he is Aditya Rao. 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 / 8:57 pm / Last updated: 23rd January 2020	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/false-message-blamed-muslim-community-for-mangalore-bomb-scare/", "author": "Nibedita Sen & Pooja Chaudhuri" }
1,313	False messages circulated regarding the use of mobile phones and WhatsApp - Alt News Jignesh Patel 22nd February 2019 / 5:31 pm Several messages are circulating on social media alerting netizens regarding issues like government surveillance and ISIS hackers misusing WhatsApp profile pictures. One such viral message purportedly issued by IPS officer A.K Mittal designated as the Commissioner of Delhi is now doing the rounds on social media. It claims that the WhatsApp CEO has urged users to remove their profile pictures as ISIS hackers can misuse it for terrorist activities. (सावधान)Hi Friendsजिस किसी की भी व्हाट्सएप्प पे प्रोफाइल फ़ोटो खुद की हो जल्द से जल्द बदल दो. क्योंकि Whatsapp पे ISIS अपने आतंकी गतिविधियों के लिए और कुछ ऐसे hackers आये है जिनके पास आपका व्हाट्सएप्प नंबर है वो लोग उस प्रोफाइल फ़ोटो का गलत इस्तेमाल कर रहे है. Whatsapp के CEO ने सलाह दी है की अगले 20-25 दिन तक खुद की profile photo न रखे. Whatsapp के engineers आपको safe के लिए आपके साथ co-operate करेंगे. इस मैसज को आगे forward करो. Thank You. A.K. Mittal(IPS) 9849436632 Commissioner Delhi. The message is viral on both Facebook and Twitter. A simple Google search reveals that WhatsApp CEO had never issued any alert with regards to the misuse of profile picture by ISIS hackers. While the viral message is signed off by Commissioner of Delhi A.K. Mittal, Delhi never had a commissioner with this name. Hence, the claim proves to be a completely cooked-up hoax which was chain circulated across social media platforms. In 2016, The Indian Express had also published an article debunking the hoax viral on WhatsApp. Another message widely circulated on social media proclaims that every mode of communication is being monitored under a new communication regulation passed by the government. “From tomorrow onwards there are new communication regulations. All calls are recorded All phone call recordings saved WhatsApp is monitored Twitter is monitored Facebook is monitored All social media and forums are monitored Inform those who do not know.Your devices are connected to ministry systems.Take care not to send unnecessary messages Inform your children, Relatives and friends about this to take care Don’t forward any posts or videos etc., you receive regarding politics/present situation about Government/PM etc.Police have put out a notification termed ..Cyber Crime … and action will be taken…just don’t delete …Inform your friends & others too.Writing or forwarding any msg on any political & religious debate is an offence now….arrest without warrant…This is very serious, plz let it be known to all our groups and individual members as group admin can b in deep trouble.Take care not to send unnecessary messages. Inform everyone about this to take care. Please share it; it’s very much true.Groups please be careful.” A Hindi version of the same message claims that devices will be linked to the Ministry of Interior regulation. The message is widely circulated on Twitter and Facebook. While the message claims that devices are monitored via Ministry of Interior Regulation, no ministry with such a name exists in India. Countries like Ghana, Pakistan and Saudi Arabia among others have the Ministry of the Interior mandated to ensure internal security in the country whereas India has Union Home Ministry. In April 2017, this message had also gone viral in Ghana. An article published by Daily Graphic, a state-owned Ghanaian daily on April 10, 2017 stated, “The Ministry of the Interior has denied social media publications alleging government monitoring of phone calls and social media activities of Ghanaians.” “There is a Whatsap group called’ Interschools. If invited, don’t join the group. It belongs to Daesh(ISIS)”, reads a message circulated on Twitter, Facebook and WhatsApp. The message also urges people to share and warn their family regarding the same. There are no credible news reports about an ISIS WhatsApp group, which invites and entraps users to their group. Moreover, there is no way a WhatsApp group creator can prevent users from exiting the group. This is explicitly mentioned in the WhatsApp FAQ. This claim was earlier debunked by fact-checking website, Snopes, in June 2017. In conclusion, social media users are advised not to spread any rumour or hoax which they may come across, as it will only stoke confusion, fear and panic. 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	22nd February 2019 / 5:31 pm	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/false-messages-circulated-regarding-the-use-of-mobile-phones-and-whatsapp/", "author": "Jignesh Patel" }
1,314	False claim: Mosque in Bengaluru named after Prime Minister Narendra Modi - Alt News Arjun Sidharth 20th June 2019 / 9:57 pm / Last updated: 20th June 2019 “Muslims in Bangalore have named a mosque after @narendramodi Ji. Dont know how many are going to commit suicide after seeing this.” The above message claims that a mosque in Bengaluru has been named after Prime Minister Narendra Modi. It has been tweeted by a user @mahesh10816, who is followed on the platform by PM Modi himself. Muslims in Bangalore have named a mosque after @narendramodi Ji. Dont know how many are going to commit suicide after seeing this 😃😃😃 https://t.co/ERpRfyIxl7 pic.twitter.com/w9k6RDEGNQ — Madhav 🇮🇳 (@mahesh10816) June 19, 2019 The above tweet has been retweeted over 400 times. Two photographs have been posted along with it. In the photo on the left, the words ‘Modi Masjid’ can be seen written at the entrance of what appears to be a mosque. In the photo on the right, a poster of PM Modi can be seen in the background. The aforementioned claim has gone viral on WhatsApp as well. Alt News found that there is indeed a Modi masjid in Bengaluru, but it has NOT been named after Prime Minister Narendra Modi. It has been named after a samaritan named Modi Abdul Gafoor, and was established more than 175 years back. The mosque was recently renovated, which is why it was in the news. It is in the Shivaji Nagar area of the city. Insofar as the two photographs in the above tweet are concerned, while the photo on the left is indeed of the Modi mosque in Bengaluru (NOT named after PM Modi), the photo on the right could not be conclusively established. However, it is not of the Modi mosque. The poster in the background shows PM Modi visit to the Ashara Mubaraka event at Indore in 2018. The claim that a mosque in Bengaluru has been named after PM Narendra Modi, is false. 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	20th June 2019 / 9:57 pm / Last updated: 20th June 2019	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/false-mosque-in-bengaluru-named-after-prime-minister-narendra-modi/", "author": "Arjun Sidharth" }
1,315	False news of former President Pranab Mukherjee's passing tweeted by journalists - Alt News Archit 13th August 2020 / 5:20 pm / Last updated: 13th August 2020 On August 13, several social media users claimed that former president Pranab Mukherjee has passed away. The hashtag #ripPranabMukherjee was the number one trend on Thursday morning, as per the data on Trends24, a website that tracks Twitter trends. Rajdeep Sardesai, consulting editor at India Today Group, tweeted, “Breaking: Former president Pranab Mukherjee has passed away.. farewell Pranab da.. many many fond memories of a dyed in the wool true Indira generation politician who lived and breathed politics..” Sardesai subsequently deleted his tweet. Similarly, journalist Swati Chaturvedi and Congress member Vamshi Chand Reddy also claimed that Mukherjee passed away. Both these tweets were subsequently taken down. Alt News has received several requests to fact-check the news on WhatsApp (+917600011160) and on our official Android application. As per media reports, former president Pranab Mukherjee tested positive for COVID-19 on August 10. Mukherjee had also tweeted about contracting the virus. His infection was discovered prior to brain surgery to remove a clot. On a visit to the hospital for a separate procedure, I have tested positive for COVID19 today. I request the people who came in contact with me in the last week, to please self isolate and get tested for COVID-19. #CitizenMukherjee — Pranab Mukherjee (@CitiznMukherjee) August 10, 2020 The news of Pranab Mukherjee’s death was refuted by his son Abhijit Mukherjee who took to Twitter to clarify, “My Father Shri Pranab Mukherjee is still alive & haemodynamically stable! Speculations & fake news being circulated by reputed Journalists on social media clearly reflects that Media in India has become a factory of Fake News.” My Father Shri Pranab Mukherjee is still alive & haemodynamically stable ! Speculations & fake news being circulated by reputed Journalists on social media clearly reflects that Media in India has become a factory of Fake News . — Abhijit Mukherjee (@ABHIJIT_LS) August 13, 2020 In a follow-up tweet, Abhijit wrote, “Update: My father is & has always been a fighter! He is slowly responding to medical interventions & all his vital parameters are stable. I urge upon every well-wisher to pray for my father’s speedy recovery! We need them.” Update : My father is & has always been a fighter ! He is slowly responding to medical interventions & all his vital parameters are stable . I urge upon every well wisher to pray for my father's speedy recovery ! We need them 🙏 https://t.co/7FdYxcUwXR — Abhijit Mukherjee (@ABHIJIT_LS) August 13, 2020 Mukherjee’s daughter Sharmistha Mukherjee also refuted the news of her father’s passing. Rumours about my father is false. Request, esp’ly to media, NOT to call me as I need to keep my phone free for any updates from the hospital🙏 — Sharmistha Mukherjee (@Sharmistha_GK) August 13, 2020 Pranab Mukherjee is currently recovering after brain surgery at New Delhi’s Army Research and Referral hospital. “The condition of former President Pranab Mukherjee remains unchanged this morning. He is deeply comatose with stable vital parameters and continues to be on ventilatory support: Army Research & Referral (R&R) Hospital, Delhi,” tweeted ANI. The condition of former President Pranab Mukherjee remains unchanged this morning. He is deeply comatose with stable vital parameters and continues to be on ventilatory support: Army Research & Referral (R&R) Hospital, Delhi https://t.co/JPhaOOoEvL — ANI (@ANI) August 13, 2020 Rajdeep Sardesai apologised for his blunder upon discovering that he had fallen for misinformation. My deep deep apologies for falling for fake news being circulated on Pranab Mukherjee passing away. I am deeply distraught for falling for this fake news.. it was unprofessional of me to not reconfirm it before tweeting. Apologies to all.. and prayers with the family.. 🙏🙏🙏 — Rajdeep Sardesai (@sardesairajdeep) August 13, 2020 Meanwhile, Swati Chaturvedi and Vamshi Chand Reddy shared Sharmistha and Abhijit Mukherjee’s rebuttal. 🙏 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… 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	13th August 2020 / 5:20 pm / Last updated: 13th August 2020	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/false-news-of-pranab-mukherjees-passing-tweeted-by-journalists/", "author": "Archit" }
1,316	False news that Dr Fauci has been sacked as chief medical adviser to US President viral - Alt News Archit 24th June 2021 / 5:21 pm Several Facebook and Twitter users have shared a video of a press conference in the US and claimed Dr Anthony Fauci, America’s top infectious diseases expert and chief medical adviser to the US president, has been sacked. Twitter user @ssingapuri posted the video in question and claimed that Dr Fauci was sacked and the US admitted that the COVID-19 virus is man-made. 👆Dr Faucci sacked. US admits virus is man made! Contd …. pic.twitter.com/VwtOhSeR9Z — Sandy Boy 🇮🇳(Sundeep) (@ssingapuri) June 21, 2021 The video has been circulating on WhatsApp. You can send us your queries on our WhatsApp helpline number (76000 11160). Alt News has received multiple verification requests on our application. Download our mobile application to send such forwards for verification. (Android, iOS) The official website of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) lists Dr Anthony S. Fauci as its director. If the claim about Dr Fauci being sacked was true it would be reported widely in the media. The video in question is a June 15 press conference by far-right conspiracy theorist Marjorie Taylor Greene and House Republicans where they discuss the Fire Fauci Act, a bill introduced by the Republicans to fire Dr Fauci. In the past, Greene has publically supported QAnon, a discredited far-right conspiracy theory alleging that a cabal of Satanic, cannibalistic paedophiles run a global child sex trafficking ring and conspired against former president Donald Trump during his term in office. [youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kIP5yxL69Bo?start=678] To sum it up, the social media claim that Dr Anthony Fauci is sacked is false. However, a section of Republicans, led by far-right conspiracy theorist Marjorie Taylor Greene, is seeking to get Dr Fauci sacked. They blame him for the response to the coronavirus pandemic, accusing him of misleading Americans and providing contradictory advice on masks and social distancing. 🙏 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… 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 June 2021 / 5:21 pm	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/false-news-that-dr-fauci-has-been-sacked-as-chief-medical-adviser-to-us-president-viral/", "author": "Archit" }
1,317	False quote attributed to WHO claims no vegetarian has been affected by coronavirus - Alt News Jignesh Patel 14th May 2020 / 9:43 pm A graphic is circulating on messaging applications like WhatsApp. It attributes a claim to the World Health Organization (WHO) which says that no vegetarian is “effected by coronavirus” and that the virus requires animal protein in the body to survive. The graphic also includes a statement credited to WHO’s representative in China Gauden Galea. The statement reads, “As long as people eat meat there is going to be some risk of infection.” It further states that not a single vegetarian was infected with the coronavirus. This claim was also viral on Twitter and Facebook in March this year in Hindi. “विश्व का एक भी शाकाहारी व्यक्ति कोरोना से ग्रस्त नहीं पाया”, it reads. The graphic has also been shared on Twitter. Moreover, Alt News has received several fact-check requests on its official Android application A Google search with relevant keywords bore no results and we couldn’t find any media report which attributed the statement – no vegetarian is affected by coronavirus – to WHO. In an email response to Alt News, a WHO personnel from the country office, said, “WHO has not issued any such statement that endorses or condemns any particular diet.” Thus, the claim is false. In a statement given to international news agency AFP, India’s WHO representative Supriya Bezbaruah had rubbished the claim that a WHO report found that no vegetarian has contracted coronavirus. On the contrary to what is claimed in the graphic, we also found that nutrition advice published on WHO’s website recommends consumption of red and white meat for adults during the coronavirus pandemic. Gauden Galea’s statement While the statement attributed to WHO’s China representative Gauden Galea in the graphic is true, it has been taken out of context. Galea statement’s appeared in a CNN report on the origin of the novel coronavirus being traced back to seafood market in Wuhan, China. The introduction of the report makes it clear that Galea’s statement was in the context of sale and consumption of exotic and wild animals in China. “CNN has obtained this video filmed inside the market showing that more than seafood was on offer for sale. Images of the market from early December taken by a concerned customer indicate that it was apparently selling other live wild animals including skinned birds, snakes, raccoon dogs. Sparking concerns that the virus might have been transmitted from animals to humans.” says the report. Later in the video at 3:40 minutes, Galea said, “In our interface with the animal world, there will always be the danger of spillover and as long as people eat meat, there is going to be some risk of infection”. Thus, Galea does not advise against the consumption of meat but his statement is in the context of exotic meat. [youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GEARtTBHXEw?start=220] Therefore, the claim that no vegetarians are affected by coronavirus was falsely attributed to WHO. It may be reiterated that the global health body has rubbished the graphic by saying that it has not issued any statement that condemns or endorses any particular diet. Since the coronavirus outbreak, propaganda against the consumption of meat is on a rise. Earlier, false messages ascribed to the Health Ministry and the ICMR promoted similar claims. 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. 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 2020 / 9:43 pm	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/false-quote-attributed-to-who-claims-no-vegetarian-has-been-affected-by-coronavirus/", "author": "Jignesh Patel" }
1,318	False quote suggests Japanese Nobel laureate Tasuku Honjo said coronavirus is man-made - Alt News Archit 27th April 2020 / 1:47 pm / Last updated: 28th April 2020 A lengthy text message has gone viral on WhatsApp which claims that Japan’s Nobel Prize-winning immunologist Tasuku Honjo said that coronavirus is not natural but “manufactured by China”. Along with the text, there is a link to Honjo’s Wikipedia page. The complete message reads, “SHOCKING Japan’s professor of Physiology or Medicine, Professor Dr Tasuku Honjo, created a sensation in front of the media today by saying that the corona virus is not natural. if it is natural, it wudn’t hv adversely affected entire world like this. bcoz, as per nature, Temperature is different in different countries. if it is natural, it wud’ve adversely affected only those countries hvg same temperature as China. instead, It is spreading in a country like Switzerland, in the same way it is spreading in the desert areas. whereas if it were natural, it would hv spread in cold places, but died in hot places. I have done 40 years of research on animals and viruses. It is not natural. It is manufactured and the virus is completely artificial. I have worked for 4 years in the wuhan laboratory of China. I am fully acquainted w/all the staff of that laboratory. I have been phoning them all, aftr the Corona accident. but, all their phones r dead for last 3 months. It is now u/stood that all these lab technicians have died. Based on all my knowledge and research till date, I can say this with 100% confidence that Corona is not natural. It has not come from bats. China has manufactured it. if what I am saying today is proved false now or even after my death, the government can w/draw my Nobel Prize. but China is lying and this truth will one day be revealed to everyone. Every once in a while we get Strange forwards , but can’t vouch for its credibility but some of the info makes sense https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tasuku_Honjo” Alt News has received several requests to fact-check this on WhatsApp (+91 76000 11160) and on our official Android application. Several Twitter and Facebook users have shared this message as well. All three claims are false. 1. Tasuku Honjo never made such statements Alt News performed a keyword search on Google and found no reports which suggested Honjo said that coronavirus has a man-made origin. Had a Nobel laureate in medicine made such a statement it would have been all over the news. However, that is not the case. Moreover, on April 10, in an interview with Nikkei Asian Review, Honjo was asked — “Why have medical advances been unable to eradicate infectious diseases? ” He responded, “Medicine has evolved dramatically even compared with 20 years ago, but every new virus requires a new response. Physics and chemistry have established principles, but biology is a science that’s still developing, and there’s so much we still don’t know. So one novel virus can turn the world on its head. Many people probably wonder why, but that’s just the reality. Infectious diseases are completely different from something like cancer. Infectious diseases can spread quickly to a large number of patients.” In none of his recent interactions with the media has Honjo said that coronavirus does has a man-made origin. Honjo currently works as Deputy Director-General and Distinguished Professor at Institute for Advanced Study, Kyoto University. Alt News reached out to Honjo via an email. David Hajime Kornhauser, Director of Global Communications at Kyoto University, shared Honjo’s official statement in the form of the press release. The statement issued on April 27 reads, “In the wake of the pain, economic loss, and unprecedented global suffering caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, I am greatly saddened that my name and that of Kyoto University have been used to spread false accusations and misinformation.” The full statement can be read here. 2. Tasuku Honjo has never worked in Wuhan lab for four years According to the Kyoto University Institue for Advanced Studies’ (KUIAS) website, Honjo is Deputy Director-General at the University. In 2018, Honjo and James Allison were awarded Nobel prize for their discovery of cancer therapy by inhibition of negative immune regulation, as per the Nobel Prize website. The KUIAS website also lists a detailed biography of Honjo starting from 1966 and it doesn’t mention that he was working at Wuhan for a period of four years. David Hajime Kornhauser shared a link to Honjo’s detailed curriculum vitae which established that he has never worked at Wuhan lab. 3. Scientists across the world agree that COVID-19 isn’t man-made A statement by public health scientists published in The Lancet says, “We stand together to strongly condemn conspiracy theories suggesting that COVID-19 does not have a natural origin. Scientists from multiple countries have published and analysed genomes of the causative agent, severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), and they overwhelmingly conclude that this coronavirus originated in wildlife, as have so many other emerging pathogens.” The World Health Organisation has said that bats are the most likely ecological reservoir for the novel coronavirus, and illegally traded pangolins could be the intermediary hosts. However, a later update by the World Economic Forum states, “Originally, scientists believed the virus may have developed in bats, and later pangolins. However, genomic comparisons suggest that the SARS-Cov-2 virus is the result of a recombination between two different viruses, meaning the exact origin of the virus is still unclear.” Alt News published two reports last month — March 14 and March 28 — which debunked this claim. Thus the claims made in the viral text are false. Nobel laureate Tasuku Honjo never said that coronavirus was manufactured in a lab in Wuhan. Moreover, there is no evidence to support the claim that the novel coronavirus is man-made. 🙏 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… 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	27th April 2020 / 1:47 pm / Last updated: 28th April 2020	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/false-quote-suggests-japanese-nobel-laureate-tasuku-honjo-said-coronavirus-is-man-made/", "author": "Archit" }
1,319	False: Rahul Kanwal's claim about Trump suggesting early access of COVID-19 vaccine to India - Alt News Sam Jawed 12th April 2020 / 12:32 pm / Last updated: 12th April 2020 Rahul Kanwal, News director of India Today, claimed that President Donald Trump has suggested that India could have early access to COVID-19 vaccines being developed in the US since PM Modi accepted his “request” regarding Hydroxychloroquine (HCQ). Kanwal quoted a Fox News interview as the source of his claim. In new interview to Fox, President Trump suggests India could have early access to #Covid19 vaccines being developed in US since PM Modi accepted request on HCQ. This is why fighting #CoronaVirus together is important. You never know when you can go from helping to needing help. — Rahul Kanwal (@rahulkanwal) April 8, 2020 Kanwal’s claim came on heels of the controversy regarding the use of the term ‘retaliation’ by President Trump with regard to his request for HCQ and India’s ban on its export. I spoke to him (PM Modi), Sunday morning & I said we appreciate it that you are allowing our supply (of Hydroxychloroquine) to come out, if he doesn’t allow it to come out, that would be okay, but of course, there may be retaliation, why wouldn’t there be?: US Pres Donald Trump pic.twitter.com/kntAqATp4J — ANI (@ANI) April 6, 2020 India had prohibited HCQ exports ‘without any exception’ on April 4. However, on April 6 India changed its stance and agreed that it will supply HCQ and paracetamol to neighbours as well as countries badly hit by the coronavirus “in view of the humanitarian aspects of the pandemic.” In view of the humanitarian aspects of #COVID19 pandemic, it has been decided that India would licence paracetamol & Hydroxychloroquine in appropriate quantities to all our neighbouring countries who are dependent on our capabilities: Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) pic.twitter.com/W7Vox2sd2E — ANI (@ANI) April 7, 2020 Alt News watched the telephone interview of Trump to Hannity on Fox News and found no mention of giving early access of vaccine to India. At 8.35 in the video, Trump can be heard saying, “I bought millions of doses [of HCQ]. More than 29 million. I spoke to PM Modi, a lot of it comes out of India. I asked him if he would release it? He was Great. He was really good. You know they put a stop because they wanted it for India. But there is a lot of good things coming from that.” “Lot of people looking at it and saying, you know I don’t hear bad stories, I hear good stories. And I don’t hear anything where it is causing death. So it is not something like,” he continues while subsequently talking about vaccines, “You know we are doing vaccines. Johnson and Johnson, they need to test that. When you inoculate, when you give millions of shots of a vaccine, its got to be safe. But this [HCQ] has been in the market for decades. It’s worked very well. They are finding that people, like in the malaria countries, it doesn’t seem that those countries have been hit [with coronavirus] because people take it.” It is worthwhile to note that if early access to vaccines to India was suggested by Trump, it would have got extensive media coverage in India. However, the ‘news’ has not even been covered by India Today. India’s decision to lift the ban and agree to supply HCQ to the US has given rise to several unfounded claims by PM Modi’s supporters regarding the positive outcomes as a result of the decision. Twitter user Rishi Bagree tweeted that in return for the drug, US agreed to provide unrestricted access to US market for Indian Pharma companies and lifted all bans levied by US FDA. His tweet was shared over 12k times and liked by over 35k users. USA wants #hydroxychloriquine urgently from India India Govt in return asked ➡️Unrestricted Access to USA market for its Pharma companies ➡️Lift all bans levied by US FDA ➡️FDA will not harass Indian Pharma companies henceforth USA accepted all demands in 24 hours — Rishi Bagree 🇮🇳 (@rishibagree) April 7, 2020 Bagree however is known to have circulated misinformation on many occasions and needless to say, this time around too his claims were not backed with evidence or media reports. Kanwal’s tweet garnered 5.4k retweets and 24k likes at the time of writing. Several Twitter users asked the journalist to disclose at what point in the interview Trump suggested that India could have early access to COVID-19 vaccines. So far he has neither answered nor provided any clarification. 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 April 2020 / 12:32 pm / Last updated: 12th April 2020	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/false-rahul-kanwals-claim-about-trump-suggesting-early-access-of-covid-19-vaccine-to-india/", "author": "Sam Jawed" }
1,320	Old misreport shared as BJP killed its own worker in West Bengal - Alt News Kinjal 15th October 2019 / 2:22 pm / Last updated: 23rd October 2019 On October 8, a family of three – Bandhu Prakash Pal, his pregnant wife and an 8-year-old child – was murdered in West Bengal’s Murshidabad. The BJP claimed that Pal was an RSS worker. This was refuted both by the police and the victims’ family. A week later, the police arrested one Utpal Behara and cited financial dispute as the motive behind the murder. In the backdrop of the triple murder, a screenshot of an article by Daily Hunt titled, ‘पश्चिम बंगाल मे BJP ने ही कराई थी अपने कार्यकर्ता की हत्या, बजरंग दल के 11 कार्यकर्ता गिरफ्तार (BJP had killed its own member in West Bengal, 11 Bajrang Dal workers arrested)’ – was circulating on social media. This article was viral on Twitter. It had also been shared on Facebook. This report by Daily Hunt was published on June 4, 2018, and is still available online. However, the news is false. According to a March 2018 report by NDTV, two people were killed in violence that erupted during Ram Navami celebration in West Bengal. Two months hence, several media outlets – Rajasthan Patrika, Times of India, Deccan Chronicle – reported that the 11 members of Bajrang Dal were arrested. A June 5, 2018 report by Newslaundry said that news agency ANI was the first to publish a report which was later picked up by varied media outlets. However, ANI later took down the copy where it claimed that 11 Bajrang Dal workers were arrested for the murder of two BJP workers. Speaking to Newslaundry, ANI informed that the story was pulled down owing to an “error in assessment”. “We were told that the editorial team mixed up two stories. The arrest of the Bajrang Dal activists was in connection with Ram Navami violence in the state and not the gruesome murders of Bharatiya Janata Party workers,” reported Newslaundry. In June this years, the official Twitter and Facebook handles of BJP Madhya Pradesh had shared the same erroneous report carried by Daily Hunt after a BJP worker was killed in West Bengal in violence that erupted during the 2019 Lok Sabha elections. Alt News had debunked the misinformation here. A misreport by ANI which was carried by Daily Hunt continues to misinform on social media as the latter is yet to take down the false report. 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	15th October 2019 / 2:22 pm / Last updated: 23rd October 2019	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/false-report-of-2018-bjp-killed-its-own-worker-viral-again/", "author": "Kinjal" }
1,321	False rumours of child-kidnapping gangs viral on social media: A compilation - Alt News Pooja Chaudhuri 27th July 2019 / 10:10 pm False rumours of child-kidnapping gangs on a prowl have emerged on social media leading to mob attacks across the country. A transgender person was beaten to death in West Bengal on the suspicion of being a child-lifter. At least 15 separate cases of violence have been reported from Madhya Pradesh. In fact, three Congress leaders, mistaken as kidnappers, were thrashed in the state. Two women were beaten by locals in Bihar on similar allegations. Child-kidnapping rumours had caused at least 30 deaths in mob lynchings last year. The rampant misinformation has found credence once again with numerous individuals sharing unauthenticated videos and photographs across social media platforms. A video where a man who seems visibly disoriented has been doing rounds on social media with the claim that a gang of organ traders were nabbed in Larankelo, Himachal Pradesh. It further alleges that the arrested members revealed that they are a gang of 500 people who prowl in groups of 15-20 which include women and children. The message urges people to not open their doors if they hear a baby cry at midnight. आज तक मे अफवाह मान रहा था लेकिन जब रियल वीडियो देखा तो विश्वास हुआ बच्चा चौर का । आखिर प्रशासन का ध्यान इस तरफ क्यो नही जा रहा हे । हमारे मालवा क्षेत्र मे बहुत लोग सहमे हुये हे। यह सच हे या नही इसकी जाँच प्रशासन को करनी चाहिये । pic.twitter.com/tGKbZxcIq4 — O.P.Sharma Dipavat (@opsharm39653533) July 20, 2019 The most commonly shared message with the aforementioned narrative reads as follows – “अलर्ट Ambala, Yamunanagar, kurukshetra, Karnal, Panipat ख़ासकर घरेलू महिलाओं से अनुरोध है किसी भी अजनबी जैसे कबाड़ी वाला फेरी वाला बाबा या कोई भिखारी कोई भी हो उसके लिए दरवाज़ा ना खोले ना ही कोई बात करे बस हल्ला करके भगा दें। ग़लती से भी ये शब्द ना कहे । “अभी घर में कोई नही है बाद में आना या चले जाओ “ घर में अगर कुत्ता है तो उसे खोल दो उसी टाइम और मेन गेट मत खोलो। अपना और अपने बच्चे का ध्यान रखिए । सतर्क रहें। सुरक्षित रहें । Larankello से आज खबर मिली है की भिखारी के बेस में पांच सौ लोग निकले है जो रास्ते में जो मिलता है उसको काटकर कलेजे अौर कीडनी निकाल रहे है जिसमे से छः सात लोग पकड़े गाए है .जो पकडे़ गए हैं वही लोग को कडी़ पुछताच के बाद पांच सौ लोग आने की बात कबुल की है इसलिए हमारे भाईयों मेसेज को आपके जितने परिवार और मेंबर है सबको फाॅरवर्ड कीजिए: कृप्या सावधान रहे 15 से 20 लोगों की टोली आई है उनके साथ बच्चे और महीलांए हैं और उनके पास हथियार भी हैं और और आधी रात को किसी भी वक्त आते हैं और बच्चे के रोने की आवाज आती है कृपया दरवाजा ना खोले प्लीज ज्यादा से ज्यादा ग्रुप में से शेयर करें पूरे एरिया में 2 से 3 दिन के अंदर फेल जाना चाहिए। अपनी सूरक्षा अपने हाथ, सावधान रहे, जनहित मे जारी .“ The video depicts a mentally-challenged man who was roughed-up by locals in Madhya Pradesh’s Raisen district on false allegations of being a child-kidnapper. SHO Rajesh Mishra of Mandideep police station saw the video and confirmed to Alt News that the said incident took place in his area. “The incident took place in Sarakiya village. It took place at least 10-12 days ago. We had identified the person and he was later hospitalised. No FIR was filed regarding the matter. He was a mentally-challenged person. He had not kidnapped any child. The men were posing leading questions to him and he said anything,” he informed. Alt News’s full report debunking the misinformation can be read here. A photograph of policemen standing behind a group of people which includes both men and women is floating on social media with the claim that cops in Madhya Pradesh arrested a child-lifters gang of Rohingya Muslims who kidnap 17-18-year-olds. The message warns that 500-2000 such people are on a prowl to lift children from outside schools. “सावधान मध्यप्रदेश में 500से 2000 लोगों की अलग अलग रोहिग्या मुस्लिमो की टोली आई है उनके साथ महिलाएं और उनके पास हथियार भी है और वो 17 या 18 साल तक के लड़कों को पकड़ के ले जाते है स्कूल के आस पास से .. इसको आप सारे ग्रुप में शेयर करें। भोपाल पुलिस C.S.P.Send to all group plz,” reads the complete message circulated with the photograph. Alt News found that the incident was unrelated to child-kidnapping. The people seen with policemen were alleged members of a sex racket gang. They were arrested from a redlight area located on Lebad-Nayagoan four-lane road in Madhya Pradesh. The incident was reported by Patrika on July 15. Alt News’s full report debunking the misinformation can be read here. A video showing dismembered bodies laid out in a room is floating on WhatsApp with the claim that 500-2000 Rohingya Muslims divided into small groups are on a prowl in Madhya Pradesh to lift children aged 17 and 18 years. The message suggests that these gangs are armed and they lift kids from outside schools. The video can be viewed here. The message shared with the video says, “सावधान मध्यप्रदेश में 500से 2000 लोगों की अलग अलग रोहिग्या मुस्लिमो की टोली आई है उनके साथ महिलाएं और उनके पास हथियार भी है और वो 17 या 18 साल तक के लड़कों को पकड़ के ले जाते है स्कूल के आस पास से .. इसको आप सारे ग्रुप में शेयर करें।भोपाल पुलिस C.S.P. Send to all group plz.” Alt News had debunked this video in June when it was viral with the false claim that organ smugglers travelling from Bihar to Jharkhand were killing innocents to sell their body parts. The video actually depicts riots that had broken out in Brazil’s Alcaçuz prison on January 14, 2017. Alt News’s complete report debunking the misinformation can be read here. In a video widely circulating on social media, a father-son duo can be heard alleging that miscreants had attempted to kidnap the son. The video is circulating with a narrative about a child-lifting gang of organ traders arrested in Larankelo, Himachal Pradesh. The message states that the members of the arrested gang revealed that they are a group of 500 who prowl in smaller groups of 15-20 people that include women and children. It urges people to not open their doors if they hear a baby cry at midnight. The message attempts to alert the cities – Ambala, Yamunanagar, Kurukesta Karnal and Panipat – located in Haryana. अलर्ट Ambala, Yamunanagar, kurukshetra, Karnal, Panipat ख़ासकर घरेलू महिलाओं से अनुरोध है किसी भी अजनबी जैसे कबाड़ी वाला फेरी वाला बाबा या कोई भिखारी कोई भी हो उसके लिए दरवाज़ा ना खोले ना ही कोई बात करे बस हल्ला करके भगा दें। ग़लती से भी ये शब्द ना कहे । “अभी घर में कोई नही है बाद में आना या चले जाओ “ घर में अगर कुत्ता है तो उसे खोल दो उसी टाइम और मेन गेट मत खोलो । अपना और अपने बच्चे का ध्यान रखिए । सतर्क रहें। सुरक्षित रहें । Larankello से आज खबर मिली है की भिखारी के बेस में पांच सौ लोग निकले है जो रास्ते में जो मिलता है उसको काटकर कलेजे अौर कीडनी निकाल रहे है जिसमे से छः सात लोग पकड़े गाए है .जो पकडे़ गए हैं वही लोग को कडी़ पुछताच के बाद पांच सौ लोग आने की बात कबुल की है इसलिए हमारे भाईयों मेसेज को आपके जितने परिवार और मेंबर है सबको फाॅरवर्ड कीजिए: कृप्या सावधान रहे 15 से 20 लोगों की टोली आई है उनके साथ बच्चे और महीलांए हैं और उनके पास हथियार भी हैं और और आधी रात को किसी भी वक्त आते हैं और बच्चे के रोने की आवाज आती है कृपया दरवाजा ना खोले प्लीज ज्यादा से ज्यादा ग्रुप में से शेयर करें पूरे एरिया में 2 से 3 दिन के अंदर फेल जाना चाहिए। अपनी सूरक्षा अपने हाथ, सावधान रहे, जनहित मे जारी🙏🏼 Posted by K.S. Tyagi on Thursday, 25 July 2019 The viral message says – “अलर्ट Ambala, Yamunanagar, kurukshetra, Karnal, Panipat ख़ासकर घरेलू महिलाओं से अनुरोध है किसी भी अजनबी जैसे कबाड़ी वाला फेरी वाला बाबा या कोई भिखारी कोई भी हो उसके लिए दरवाज़ा ना खोले ना ही कोई बात करे बस हल्ला करके भगा दें। ग़लती से भी ये शब्द ना कहे । “अभी घर में कोई नही है बाद में आना या चले जाओ “ घर में अगर कुत्ता है तो उसे खोल दो उसी टाइम और मेन गेट मत खोलो। अपना और अपने बच्चे का ध्यान रखिए । सतर्क रहें। सुरक्षित रहें । Larankello से आज खबर मिली है की भिखारी के बेस में पांच सौ लोग निकले है जो रास्ते में जो मिलता है उसको काटकर कलेजे अौर कीडनी निकाल रहे है जिसमे से छः सात लोग पकड़े गाए है .जो पकडे़ गए हैं वही लोग को कडी़ पुछताच के बाद पांच सौ लोग आने की बात कबुल की है इसलिए हमारे भाईयों मेसेज को आपके जितने परिवार और मेंबर है सबको फाॅरवर्ड कीजिए: कृप्या सावधान रहे 15 से 20 लोगों की टोली आई है उनके साथ बच्चे और महीलांए हैं और उनके पास हथियार भी हैं और और आधी रात को किसी भी वक्त आते हैं और बच्चे के रोने की आवाज आती है कृपया दरवाजा ना खोले प्लीज ज्यादा से ज्यादा ग्रुप में से शेयर करें पूरे एरिया में 2 से 3 दिन के अंदर फेल जाना चाहिए। अपनी सूरक्षा अपने हाथ, सावधान रहे, जनहित मे जारी .“ Upon contacting Satlapur police station, Alt News was told that police investigation found the boy’s claims to be implausible. “It’s an old incident. It took place nearly 10-15 days back. We verified the boy’s claim and found it to be implausible. The boy said that he had sensed someone coming towards him in the dark while he was going home from the path behind the buildings where he resides. According to the boy, sensing someone coming towards him, he took out his belt to scare him away. The boy also claimed that this person then ran away jumping a 6ft grill with extra fencing. We tried to verify his version and found that there were no footprints at the site and also there was no way anybody could jump that wall [grill]. No FIR was filed in the matter because it was totally implausible,” SHO Piyush Charles informed. Alt New’s full fact-check debunking the video can be read here. A video of a woman caught by a mob that interrogates her on suspicions of child-kidnapping has emerged on social media. It has been shared with the claim that gangs of Rohingya Muslims are on a prowl to lift children at night. Posted by Kirar Manoj Dhakad on Friday, 19 July 2019 The message accompanying the video says, “सावधान भोपाल में 15 से 20 लोगों कीअलग अलग रोहिग्या मुस्लिमो की टोली आई है उनके साथ बच्चे और महिलाएं हैं और उनके पास हथियार भी है और 2 बजे आधी रात को और किसी भी वक्त आते हैं और बच्चे की रोने की आवाज आती है कृपया दरवाजा ना खोले प्लीज इसको आप सारे ग्रुप में शेयर करें। भोपाल पुलिस C.S.P. Send to all group plz.” According to Patrika, an inebriated woman had mistakenly entered a person’s house in Bareli [Raisen district] on the night of July 19. Falsely suspecting her to be a child-kidnapper, a mob beat her up. The woman was later admitted to a hospital after the police intervened. Alt News corroborated the set of events with Bareli police. The complete fact-check story can be read here. Last month in June, child kidnapping rumours were viral in Gujarat with the claim that miscreants driving Ecco car, abduct children and sell their kidneys. The text of the viral message said, “ઈકો ગાદી લઈને આવે છે નાના બાળકો લઈ જાય છે અને કિટની વેચે છે જલ્દી સારે મોબાઇલ મા ફોરવર્ડ કરો હમારા બાળકો ની જીદગી બચી જાય મહેસાણા પાટન પાલનપુર જલ્દી જપ્ત કરાવો GJ19AF 0827.” The first image is related to a gang of thieves that was arrested in Madhya Pradesh’s Hoshangabad in 2017. The incident was reported by Patrika. 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	27th July 2019 / 10:10 pm	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/false-rumours-of-child-kidnapping-gangs-viral-on-social-media-a-compilation/", "author": "Pooja Chaudhuri" }
1,322	False rumours of people being killed for illegal organ trade revived on social media - Alt News Pooja Chaudhuri 15th June 2019 / 9:32 pm / Last updated: 16th June 2019 A rumour viral on social media claims that organ smugglers are killing innocents to sell their body parts. The message circulating in Telugu claims that 500 people travelling from Bihar to Jharkhand, disguised as beggars, are killing people to sell their bodies and kidneys to medical colleges and illegal organ trade businesses. The rumour suggests that six to seven perpetrators have been caught by the police. Following is the Telugu text of the message – “ఒరిస్సా నుంచి ఈ రోజు అందిన సమాచారం ఏమిటంటే,,,బీహార్ నుంచి జార్ఖండ్ మధ్యలో బిచ్చగాళ్ళ వేషంలో ఒక 500 వందల మంది బయలుదేరారు..మార్గమధ్యంలో ఒంటరిగా దొరికిన వాళ్ళను చంపి మెడికల్ కాలేజీలకు,,మరియు కిడ్నీ ల దందా లకు సరఫరా చేస్తున్నారు…వీరిలో 6,7 మంది పట్టు బడినారు…ఆ 6,7 మందిని విచారిస్తే వారు మేము కాక ఇంకా 500 వందల మంది ఉన్నాం అని ఒప్పుకున్నారు…అందుకే బ్రదర్స్ ఎంత వీలైతే అంత మందికి ఈ మెసేజ్ ని మీ,,మీ ,,మిత్రులకు వాట్సాప్ ఇతరత్రా ద్వారా చేరవేయగలరు. (There are reports from Odisha that 500 people disguised as beggars are travelling between Bihar and Jharkhand. On the way, they are killing people whom they find lonely and supplying bodies to medical colleges and kidney businesses. Six-seven people have been arrested. After interrogation they revealed that they are about 500, so please forward this message to all family members and social media platforms on an urgent basis.)” The message seems to be widely shared on WhatsApp, however, Alt News was able to locate a few on Facebook and Twitter as well. A video shared along with the message shows dismembered bodies laid out in a room. The same message is also being circulated with photographs of men being escorted by the police. These images had led to mob lynchings in southern states last year. The same message is also circulating in Hindi with a similar set of images. The message reads, “उड़ीसा से आज खबर मिली है की बिहार से झारखंड होते हुए भिखारी के बेस में पांच सौ लोग निकले है जो रास्ते में जो मिलता है उसको काटकर कलेजे और कीडनी निकाल रहे है जिसमे से छः सात लोग पकड़े गए है .जो पकडे़ गए हैं वही लोग को कडी़ पुछताछ के बाद पांच सौ लोग आने की बात कबुल की है इसलिए हमारे भाईयों मेसेज को आपके जितने परिवार और मेंबर है सबको फॉरवर्ड कीजिये इसमे एक विडयो भी है जो फेसबुक इजाजत नहीं देता (There are reports emerging from Odisha that 500 people disguised as beggars are travelling from Bihar to Jharkhand. Whoever they come across is killed, and the kidney and liver are removed. Six-seven people have been arrested. After interrogation, they revealed that they are about 500 so please forward this message to all family members. There is a video too which Facebook is not giving permission to upload.” The same message is also being shared with the video of mutilated bodies. Alt News had debunked this message last year. However, it was not circulated along with the video which is currently viral. Breaking down the video into multiple keyframes and reverse-searching individual images on Yandex revealed that the video has been doing rounds on social media at least since 2017. It has been shared in varied foreign languages. In March 2019, Agence France-Presse (AFP) had fact-checked a photograph depicting the same events shown in the video. It was then viral as, “kidnapping syndicates in the Philippines targeting people for their organs.” The image had over 1.3 lakh shares. AFP cited an article on a website gorebrasil.com, published on January 18, 2017, which carried the same video. According to the Portuguese article translated by AFP, a riot had broken out in Alcaçuz prison in Brazil on January 14, 2017. The people in the video are conversing in Portuguese with a Northeast Brazilian accent. At the 20-second mark in the video, a man can be spotted wearing a t-shirt that says, “Polícia Civil”, which is Portuguese for ‘civil police’ in Brazil. On January 14, a riot between rival gangs had broken out in Alcaçuz prison which led to the death of at least 30 inmates. Gory images of decapitated bodies were seen in the aftermath of the violence. The incident was widely covered by international media, including The Guardian, AFP, Al Jazeera and BBC, among others. “Members of a drug gang started the clash by invading a pavilion in the Alcaçuz prison where rivals rested, Rio Grande do Norte state’s security secretariat said on Sunday,” reported The Guardian. In January 2018, at least 140 inmates had died in gang warfare in the prison. “The gangs were believed to be fighting for control of lucrative drug smuggling routes,” reported The New York Times. “Decapitations and mutilations are common in Brazil’s violent, overcrowded prisons, in which 40 per cent of inmates have yet to be sentenced, but the latest wave of brutality has appalled many here,” it furthered. While Alcaçuz prison authorities were unresponsive to AFP’s queries about the origin of the video, similar imagery of mutilated bodies were reported in mainstream media. The set of images currently viral has been debunked by Alt News several times in the past. They are now viral with a different claim that suggests that a gang of child-kidnappers, who sell body parts in an organ trade racket, are on a prowl in Gujarat. This message is circulating in Gujarati. These images have been floating on social media since last year and were debunked by Kannada newspaper Prajavani. The media outlet quoted the Karnataka police who said that the images are 3-4 years old. The police had appealed to people to not believe such rumours circulating on WhatsApp. Rumours of kidnappers targeting children for their organs took at least 31 lives in mob-lynchings across the country in the past two years. Such rumours are region-specific, which means that they are circulated in the language familiar to a particular state. Social media users are advised to look for media reports verifying the rumours. The absence of the same is a clear indication that the messages are carrying unverified information. 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	15th June 2019 / 9:32 pm / Last updated: 16th June 2019	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/false-rumours-of-people-being-killed-for-illegal-organ-trade-revived-on-social-media/", "author": "Pooja Chaudhuri" }
1,323	Family searching for their missing son falsely accused of child-lifting and beaten in UP - Alt News Jignesh Patel 26th August 2019 / 2:32 pm Two videos of an angry mob beating three men are circulating on WhatsApp with the claim that residents of Trilokpur gram sabha in Dharmapur village have caught a gang of child-kidnappers. “ग्राम सभा त्रिलोकपुर के धर्मापुर गांव में पकड़े गए बच्चा चुराने वाला गिरोह त्रिलोकपुर व धर्मापुर गांव के लोगों ने पकड़ा व मौके पर पुलिस भी पहुंची”, reads the WhatsApp text shared with two videos and photographs of the incident. Below is the screenshot of the WhatsApp forward. Twitter user Shivam Maurya posted another video of the same incident with a similar narrative. जिला उन्नाव थाना पुरवा का मामला ग्राम सभा त्रिलोकपुर के धर्मापुर गांव में पकड़े गए बच्चा चुराने वाला गिरोह त्रिलोकपुर व धर्मापुर गांव के लोगों ने पकड़ा व मौके पर पुलिस भी पहुंची pic.twitter.com/oBwoM4rwPM — Shivam Maurya सांसद कार्यकर्ता (@ShivamM29743978) August 24, 2019 Alt News was unable to locate any credible news reports about the incident. However, the license plate of a motorcycle visible in the video hinted that the incident took place in Uttar Pradesh’s Unnao district. On checking a publically available data of vehicle registration in India, we found that the vehicle is registered under the name of one Pankaj Kumar Tripathi. We then Google searched with keywords, “पंकज त्रिपाठी उन्नाव “, and found an article on a website circle.page. On August 23, a father, along with his three sons and a relative, was searching for his missing son and was beaten up by a mob over false suspicion of child-lifting. The incident took place in UP’s Unnao district. Moreover, we found one more article on the incident published by a news website Manvadhikar Media. A 65-year-old resident of Unnao town Gaya Prasad Tripathi along with his family members had gone to Dharmapur village to search for his missing son Munesh, according to the report. They were looking for him in a forest while their vehicles were parked on the road. When they inquired with the villagers about Prasad’s missing son, they were mistaken for child-kidnappers. In a complaint given to the police, Prasad said that a missing complaint of his son was filed at Maurawan police station. Purwa police have lodged an FIR against unidentified people. Alt News contacted Purwa police station to inquire about the claims circulating on social media. We were informed that these men were not child-kidnappers and a case has been filed against some unidentified men. In conclusion, a video where family members looking for their missing kin were falsely accused of child-lifting and beaten up by a mob in Unnao, Uttar Pradesh, is circulating on social media to give credence to the false rumour. 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	26th August 2019 / 2:32 pm	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/family-searching-for-their-missing-son-falsely-accused-of-child-lifting-and-beaten-in-up/", "author": "Jignesh Patel" }
1,324	Coin featuring Lord Ram issued by East India Company? No, it's a fantasy creation - Alt News Arjun Sidharth 11th November 2019 / 6:47 pm / Last updated: 23rd February 2021 Images of coins bearing figures of Hindu gods and goddesses have been posted by social media users, with the narrative that these were issued by the erstwhile East India Company during its rule in India. “It is a coincidence that two anna coin in 1818 featured Sri Ram darbar on one side and a lotus flower on the other. It seems this was a message that Diwali will be celebrated in Ayodhya when lotus will be in power and Lord Ram’s grand temple will be built. This has now been proven true. (इसे एक संयोग ही कहा जायेगा 1818 में जो २ आना का सिक्का होता था उसमें एक तरफ.श्रीराम दरबार अंकित था और दूसरे । तरफ कमल का फूल बना हुआ था। ऐसा प्रतीत होता है ये संदेश था कि जब कमल का राज आएगा अयोध्या में तभी दीपोत्सव मनाया जाएगा एवं भगवान श्रीराम जी का भव्य ____ मंदिर बनेगा जो अब सच साबित हुआ है.)” – reads the complete message shared with the picture. जय जय श्री राम सभी को राम राम जय सीता राम🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏 Posted by Bunty Pandit Amit on Monday, 22 February 2021 The photo of the coin is massively widespread on Facebook. One side of the coin bears the figure of the lotus and Om, the Hindu religious symbol. The value of the coin is mentioned to be ‘2 anna’, and the year 1818 is inscribed, apart from ‘East India Company’. The other side of the coin bears five figures, with the central figure shown as Lord Ram. The words ‘Sri Ram darbar’ are seen inscribed on the coin. “Do you know that two anna coin was released in 1818 by East India Company; and you will be surprised to see the other side of the coin”, read the text shared with the image two years ago. Do you know that two anna coin was released in 1818 by East India Company; and you will be surprised to see the other side of the coin. श्रीराम राम रणकर्कश राम राम । श्रीराम राम शरणं भव राम राम ।। pic.twitter.com/kgFQZZYCXh — Ajit Doval Fan (@AjitKDoval_FAN) November 8, 2019 The pictures were posted with identical text by several Facebook users. Some users had even posted videos featuring these coins. The images had also been shared with text in Tamil, which stated “முக்கிய செய்தி….. பகிரவும் அதிகம் 50 வருடம் ஆட்டம் போட்ட ஆட்டு மந்தைகளுக்கு இது சமர்ப்பணம் உன் பாட்டன் பூட்டன் காலத்திலே 2 நா நாணயத்தில் பிரிட்டிஷ் கவர்மெண்ட் கொடுத்த மகத்தான சாட்சி #இந்து_மதம் இது @mkstalin மற்றும் ஓசி சோறு வீரமணி பல கிருஸ்துவ கம்பெனிக்கு சமர்ப்பணம்”. முக்கிய செய்தி….. பகிரவும் அதிகம் 50 வருடம் ஆட்டம் போட்ட ஆட்டு மந்தைகளுக்கு இது சமர்ப்பணம் உன் பாட்டன் பூட்டன் காலத்திலே 2 நா நாணயத்தில் பிரிட்டிஷ் கவர்மெண்ட் கொடுத்த மகத்தான சாட்சி #இந்து_மதம் இது @mkstalin மற்றும் ஓசி சோறு வீரமணி பல கிருஸ்துவ கம்பெனிக்கு சமர்ப்பணம் pic.twitter.com/57enZ3fN12 — ஹரி சம்புவரையர் மாவட்டத்தான் 🇷🇴🔥 (@Hari42147154) November 6, 2019 As can be seen in the above tweet, the image on the left shows a coin with the lotus symbol, whereas the coin on the right represents five figures, with the words ‘Jai Shri Ram’ inscribed at the bottom. The images with accompanying text in Tamil were posted on Facebook. They had also been uploaded on the Alt News mobile app for verification. Alt News’s fact-check found that the images in circulation do not represent coins minted by the British East India company. Alt News spoke to numismatist and author Mohit Kapoor for more information. Mr. Kapoor is the regional secretary for the South Asian chapter of the Oriental Numismatic Society. He said, “All of these are fantasy issues as the East India company never minted any coins of this type. Moreover the years that these pieces have on them 1616, 1717 and 1818 had hand struck coinage whereas these fantasy pieces are all struck using machines. Another thing that clearly points out that these are fantasy issues is the denominations that are inscribed on these pieces. Specific denominations were struck in specific metals, a 2 Anna would be in silver and not in copper. In fact the earliest example of a 2 Anna in Copper-Nickel alloy is the one struck in 1919, which too saw stiff resistance by the general population as they were used to the denomination being in Silver.” Since the images in circulation supposedly show coins issued by the company in 1818, we shall consider the late 18th and early 19th centuries as our reference period, in order to probe the nature of coinage under the East India company. With the royal charter granted by Queen Elizabeth I on December 31, 1600, the East India company embarked on a quest for commercial and imperial expansion. The company became a force to reckon with in the subcontinent after the victory at the Battle of Plassey in 1757, and eventually cemented its rule with the establishment of the Calcutta, Madras and Bombay presidencies. The coining of money was the logical outcome of the consolidation of territory, serving as proof of sovereignty in a newly conquered land. However, the company’s initial approach was atypical. The coins issued by the East India Company in the late 18th and early 19th centuries acknowledged the supremacy of the native rulers, with inscriptions in Persian or other native languages including Hindi, struck either in the name of the Mughal emperor or other native rulers and princes. This was particularly true of the Bengal and Bombay presidencies. Three kinds of currencies were in circulation in the territories of the East India Company, pertaining to the three presidencies of Madras, Calcutta and Bombay where the company had established mints in several towns. It was only later in 1835 that a uniform system of coinage was adopted. An article by J.M.C Johnston titled ‘Coinage of the East India Company’, published in The Numismatic Chronicle and Journal of the Numismatic Society (Fourth series, Vol.3) states, “Under the third period, which commences with the administration of the Company in Bengal 1765, when the rule of the emperor Shah Alam was purely nominal, it is difficult to make any distinction between coins issued in his name by provincial governors, those issued at mints under native control under the authority of the Company, and coins struck at the company’s own mints.” Posted below are some illustrations of the coinage of the East India company in the late 18th and early 19th centuries. These coins were minted in the Bengal presidency. As can be seen, the coins bear the Persian, Bengali and Hindi languages. The value of these coins is one pice. Also, these coins are clearly hand-struck, unlike the machine-made coins represented by the viral images. The coins are made of copper. Insofar as the Madras presidency was concerned, the company struck coins bearing Tamil and Telugu scripts, apart from Persian. Whereas the Bengal and Bombay presidencies struck several coins in the name of the Mughal emperor, numerous coins of the Madras presidency in the corresponding period bore the royal coat of arms and the bale mark, although coins in the name of the Mughal emperor were struck in the later period. Interestingly, the gopuram (entrance tower of the temple) was struck on some of the coins, as was the image of Vishnu. An article titled ‘Coins of the English East India Company under Great Britain’ published in the American Journal of Numismatics states, “Although not formally authorized to coin money, the Madras presidency assumed the privilege prior to its legalization by charter at Bombay; for in the same year in which that charter was granted in 1677, the President and Council at Fort St. George solicited the permission of the king of Golconda to coin rupees and pice, the coinage of pagodas having been found profitable. It does not appear when the latter practice commenced- probably around 1671.” The below picture represents one such coin; the obverse side featuring the temple gopuram (also referred to as pagoda), and the reverse side portraying the figure of Vishnu. Mr. Kapoor in his conversation with Alt News confirmed this. “The Bombay and Calcutta Presidencies struck Silver coins in the names of the Mughal Emperors, however the Madras Presidency struck gold and silver coins (for a very brief period) which had the image of Lord Vishnu on one side and the image of a temple gopuram on the other.” This coin is made of silver and weighs over 10 grams. Hence, while the Madras presidency in the early 19th century had minted coins featuring the gopuram and Lord Vishnu, Alt News could not find a reference to any such coin issued by the East India company as shown in the viral images, purportedly bearing the figure of Lord Ram. The pictures in circulation represent fantasy creations. 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	11th November 2019 / 6:47 pm / Last updated: 23rd February 2021	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/fantasy-creation-shared-as-coin-featuring-lord-ram-issued-by-east-india-company/", "author": "Arjun Sidharth" }
1,325	Image morphed to claim farmer was carrying condom packet in his pocket during protest - Alt News Kinjal 23rd July 2021 / 6:17 pm The farmers’ agitation against the centre’s agricultural laws took a new turn on July 22, when a group of demonstrators started a Kisan Sansad (Farmers’ Parliament) at New Delhi’s Jantar Mantar. Misinformation targeting the protest began circulating once again after the Kisan Sansad. A photo of a man in a turban carrying a packet of condoms in his kurta pocket started gathering a lot of traction on social media. Twitter user @Bhagwa_sherni22 posted the photo and wrote, “Here’s a farmer walking around carrying protest-related documents in his pocket. Fake farmers’ movement.” Twitter user ‘हम लोग We The People’ also shared the image with the same claim. The handle has been known to spread misinformation on several occasions in the past. Several users circulated the image on Facebook and Twitter mocking the farmers’ movement. Alt News performed a reverse image search which led us to the original image in a Kaumi Marg article dated May 3, 2021. It is clear that there is no packet of condoms in the man’s pocket. The same image was also carried in a 2018 article in Tribune. The individual in the photo is Sucha Singh Langah, a former Shiromani Akali Dal minister. He was a cabinet minister in the Punjab government. A photo of Sucha Singh Langah, who was previously affiliated with the Shiromani Akali Dal, was edited to make it appear as though he was carrying a pack of condoms in his pocket. The image was circulated while targeting the ongoing farmers’ protests. Unrelated images and videos have been shared online often in an attempt to question the credibility of the movement and its participants. 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	23rd July 2021 / 6:17 pm	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/farmer-has-a-condom-in-pocket-morph-image-of-former-akali-minister-sucha-singh-langah-shared-with-false-claim/", "author": "Kinjal" }
1,326	Video from farmers' protest shared as Nupur Sharma's arrest - Alt News Abhishek Kumar 23rd June 2022 / 6:02 pm BJP spokesperson Nupur Sharma has been “untraceable” since she issued her controversial public remarks on Prophet Muhammed. She skipped an appearance at Narkeldanga police station in Kolkata on Monday and later sought four weeks’ time. Against this backdrop, a video of a woman’s arrest is making the rounds on social media with the claim that Sharma was arrested. हमारे प्यारे नबी की शान में गुस्ताखी करने वाली नूपुर शर्मा आखिरकार गिरफ्तार हो ही गई पर ज्यादा से ज्यादा 15 या 20 दिन हवालात में रहेगी और वह भी ऐसी वाले रूम में pic.twitter.com/xU7JfWlSpu — Abdul Rahman@)7900 (@RahmanR41753986) June 20, 2022 User Amjad Ali made the same claim while tweeting the video. (Archive link) A Facebook page named ‘Digital TV‘ also amplified the video with the same claim. At the time of writing, the video had amassed over 4.5 lakh views. Alt News received several requests on its WhatsApp number +917600011160 to investigate the video. The viral visuals are being circulated on Twitter and Facebook with the same claim. Alt News performed a keyword search on Twitter to gather more information on the video. We found a tweet posted by Bhagwant Singh Rupal, a journalist from the Punjabi daily ‘Rozana Spokesman’. He wrote that the video does not feature Nupur Sharma but Bhumi Birmi, while tweeting a link to the original video posted on Birmi’s Facebook profile on June 15. She Is Not Nupur Sharma.. She Is Bhumi Birmi…. And This Video Is Old Too.. Sharing Original Video Link:https://t.co/4zFXaWFv3c#FactCheck #NupurSharma #FactsMatter https://t.co/fOCIBkkBuS — Bhagwant Singh Rupal (@iambhagwant16) June 21, 2022 Upon further examination of her Facebook account, we found a few more videos posted on June 15 depicting scenes of clashes with the police. In her Facebook introduction (intro), Birmi has described herself as the District President of the Women’s Wing of the Indian Farmers Union in Rajasthan’s Churu district. Another Google search led us to a June 16 report by ABP News. According to the article, farmers in Churu, Rajasthan were staging a dharna with a 20-point list of demands. Birmi also addressed the gathering at the dharna. On June 15, farmers held a fierce protest at the subdivision office of Churu’s Taranagar assembly constituency. Angry protesters also tried to break through the police barricades. According to ABP News, the women involved in the agitation were beaten by the female police officers with sticks. Alt News reached out to Bhumi Birmi, who confirmed that she was the woman in the viral video. She also verified that the video was taken during the June 15 demonstration at Taranagar, located in Rajasthan’s Churu district. Scenes from the viral video appear in a video aired by ‘First India News’. However, this one was recorded from another angle. [youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WLRaSUG6LK8] To sum it up, a video of clashes in Rajasthan between farmer collectives and police was falsely shared as Nupur Sharma’s arrest. 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). 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 June 2022 / 6:02 pm	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/farmer-protest-in-rajsthan-churu-video-shared-as-nupur-sharma-arrested-by-police/", "author": "Abhishek Kumar" }
1,327	Video from Germany aired by Zee News as farmers preparing for ‘war’ with tractors in India - Alt News Kinjal 21st January 2021 / 6:29 pm / Last updated: 22nd January 2021 A video of a fleet of tractors adorned with twinkling lights has been making the rounds on social media. Several users are claiming that these visuals show farmers preparing for the upcoming tractor rally to be held on Republic Day. Zee News posted a clip from its January 19 broadcast on Facebook. The post was captioned, “Preparing for a war with tractors?” In this broadcast, the viral clip in question appears at the 3:52 mark. “Why use such tractors of terror in the farmer protests? Are these tractors a means of waging war with the law? Are these farmers’ tractors or terror tractors? Think for yourself what kind of protest is being held in the name of the farmer protests where a tractor is loaded with cannons?… Is this their preparation for waging war against the country on the occasion of Republic Day in Delhi?… And now look at another video that has been going viral on social media…Here, the tractors have been decorated with lights so that on Republic Day, the world can see the opposition to the new farm laws and more anti-India propaganda spreads,” narrated the Zee News anchor. (Archive link) ‘ट्रैक्टर’ से युद्ध की तैयारी ? ‘ट्रैक्टर’ से युद्ध की तैयारी ? #TractorTerror #FarmersProtest #RepublicDay Posted by Zee News on Monday, January 18, 2021 A Facebook page titled ‘IT and Social Media Cell Congress’ posted the viral clip and wrote, “Preparations for the rally on Republic Day are in full swing!” It had racked up more than 14,000 views at the time of writing. (Archive link) 26 जनवरी परेड की झांकी की तैयारी जोरों से चल रही है !! जय जवान – जय किसान #किसान_नहीं_तो_देश_नहीं Posted by I.T & Social Media Cell Congress on Monday, January 18, 2021 Pooja Chadha, associated with Congress, also shared the video and accompanying claim. (Archive link) 26 जनवरी परेड की झांकी तेयारी जोरों से चल रही है 😍👇🏻😍 Posted by Pooja Chadha on Saturday, January 16, 2021 The video has also made its way to Twitter. It was uploaded on YouTube with the caption, “Long live farmer-laborer unity!” 26 जनवरी परेड की #झांकी तैयारी जोरों से चल रही है 😍👇🏻😍@Iamarfat9 @BhagalSanju @reji_peter @IndiaAwakened_ @karnataka_inc @Devrnder18 @Haraprasad_ @SauravS_13 @abhi_mor1 pic.twitter.com/LCAvvH1WyN — λνηιδh Jλιη🇮🇳 (@AvnishJainIND) January 17, 2021 Alt News performed a reverse image search using stills from the video. We found the original clip posted on Facebook on December 15, 2020. This is a longer version of the viral video. According to this post, the video shows a tractor rally held in Ireland during Christmas. Christmas Tractor Run They know how to turn it on in Ireland. Checkout this annual Christmas Tractor Run. #santasleigh #tractor #thispartyislit #10outof10 Posted by Delta Agribusiness on Tuesday, December 15, 2020 In the video posted by Delta Agribusiness, people can be heard talking in German. Taking this as a clue led to another Facebook post by RTNTV News which said that the video was shot on December 6 and shows a rally organized in Germany where tractors were decorated. This was a charity event organised for children with cancer. Bunter Traktor-Konvoi fährt zur Kinderkrebs-Station des UKE (rtn) Für den 2020er Nikolaustag haben Bäuerinnen und Bauern aus Schleswig-Holstein eine besondere Aktion geplant und durchgeführt. Ein beleuchteter Traktor-Konvoi sollte Kinderaugen zum Strahlen zu bringen Viele der üblichen Spendenaktionen fallen dieses Jahr coronabedingt aus. Daher war es eine gute Gelegenheit für die Landwirte in Schleswig-Holstein und Hamburg, mit einem festlichen Treckerumzug die Kinderaugen der kleinen Patienten der Kinder-Krebsstation im UKE Hamburg zum Leuchten zu bringen In Stormarn konnte man die zum Teil aufwendig dekorierten Advents-Traktoren unter anderem in Eichede, Todendorf und Ahrensburg auf der Straße sehen. Zahlreich Anwohner freuten sich entlang der Strecke ebenfalls über die besondere Parade zum Nikolaustag. „ Posted by rtntvnews on Sunday, 6 December 2020 A close examination reveals that the fleet of tractors in this video are the same. A comparison video has been attached below. A car is visible towards the end in both videos. Its number plate – ‘OD JS 2525’.- can be clearly read in the RTNTV News video. OD represents Bad Oldesloei, Stormarn in northern Germany’s Schleswig-Holstein. A few local media outlets in Germany reported on the event held on December 6, 2020. Furthermore, the viral video has also been shared by several people who wrote that it was shot in Germany. AFP had published a fact-check report on the video which carries a statement of the manager of the transport company that owns the tractors seen in the clip. He confirmed that the video pertains to a charity event held on December 6, 2020 for children with cancer. [Update: An earlier version of this fact-check erroneously reported that the video was shot in Ireland. Similar charity events are held in the country. This has been rectified.] 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	21st January 2021 / 6:29 pm / Last updated: 22nd January 2021	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/farmer-protest-tractor-parade-republic-day-ireland-christmas-parade-video-false/", "author": "Kinjal" }
1,328	Clipped video viral with false claim that Indian flag was removed from Red Fort - Alt News Priyanka Jha 27th January 2021 / 7:41 pm / Last updated: 28th January 2021 The tractor rally held by protestors against the centre’s farm bills on Republic Day, January 26, led to clashes with the Delhi police. Violence was reported from certain areas after some groups veered off the agreed-upon course. The clashes have also given rise to a deluge of misinformation including the ones claiming that farmers had replaced the Indian flag atop the Red Fort with a flag of Khalistan. Alt News showed in recent fact-checks (1 and 2) that Sikh religious flags (the Nishan Sahib) were unfurled from an empty flagstaff. Farmer leaders have blamed actor Deep Sidhu and gangster-turned-activist Lakha Sidhana for hijacking the protests and sparking violence at Red Fort. “Some farmer leaders said they suspected the involvement of central government agencies in the incident,” reported Scroll. Social media handle The Squint or The Squint Neon, infamous for sharing frequent misinformation, posted another video of a protestor attaching a Sikh flag atop a dome of the Red Fort. He wrote that the clip was for those saying that the tricolour was not removed. In the 8-second video, a protestor can be seen placing the Nishan Sahib flag while handing over the Indian national flag to another demonstrator. The post attempts to portray that the Nishan Sahib was unfurled after taking down the tricolour. (Archived link) To all those who were saying Tiranga was not removed from Red fort To all those who were saying Tiranga was not removed from Red fort Posted by The Squint on Tuesday, 26 January 2021 The same video is making the rounds on Twitter. To All those kutthas who were telling Indian flag now removed.@sardesairajdeep @zoo_bear @RahulGandhi @rohini_sgh @_sabanaqvi @GulPanag @BDUTT @sagarikaghose @Facts_chek pic.twitter.com/RdGoVVTzSM — AB🚩🇮🇳 (@SavageHumour) January 27, 2021 However, it is widespread on Facebook. The video carries the logo of ‘Daily Post’ on the top right-hand corner. The Punjabi channel covered the farmers’ rally on January 26 continuously for five hours. If one carefully watches the broadcast uploaded on YouTube post the 1:49 mark, it becomes evident that the dome was empty. The protestor did not remove the tricolour and place the Nishan Sahib. The relevant portion of the 5-hour broadcast has been attached below. The crowd gathered on the Red Fort is carrying both Sikh religious flags and the Indian national flag. In the complete video, the protestor is seen attaching the Nishan Sahib on the empty dome while holding the tricolour. However, scenes before this incident have been clipped out of the viral video. The protestor who has climbed the dome is holding the Nishan Sahib. The camera then moves toward the right where we spot another protestor running toward the dome with the Indian national flag in his hand. The camera then shows the protestor atop the dome with both the Sikh flag and the tricolour. Both flags are visible for a couple of seconds until he returns the tricolour to the demonstrator standing at the foot of the dome. The broadcast then cuts to the other side. The viral clip only shows the protestor holding both flags and returning the Indian national flag to another demonstrator thus giving the impression that the tricolour was replaced. In reality, there was no flag on the dome. The Indian Express journalist Abhinav Saha has taken a photograph of the incident. This too shows that the protestor was attaching the Sikh flag on the dome and later trying to place the tricolour. He fails and hands over the Indian national flag to another demonstrator. We were also able to procure a set of images that show the sequence of events. The person circled in orange was the one who ran towards the dome with the Indian national flag. The images have been marked 1, 2 and 3, showing the flag being passed up to the protestor standing on top of the dome. In fact, a video of the incident shows the exact sequence of events in detail. Thus, five seconds were clipped from a 5-hour-long broadcast to falsely project that protestors against the farm bills replaced the Indian national flag with the Nishan Sahib. 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	27th January 2021 / 7:41 pm / Last updated: 28th January 2021	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/farmers-protest-false-claim-of-tiranga-removed-from-red-fort-on-republic-day/", "author": "Priyanka Jha" }
1,329	Farmers' protest: No, protestors did not replace tricolour with Khalistan flag at Red Fort - Alt News Pooja Chaudhuri & Priyanka Jha 26th January 2021 / 6:56 pm / Last updated: 26th January 2021 As part of the protests against the centre’s farm bills, farmers’ unions and the Delhi police had chalked out agreed-upon circular routes from Ghazipur, Singhu and Tikri borders for the Republic Day tractor parades. It was decided that the protestors will enter Delhi but remain in areas near the border from the three entry points. Several protesting groups, however, veered off the course and were met with police lathicharge and tear gas shells. They entered the iconic Red Fort and hoisted flags from some domes and from a flagstaff, on the ramparts of the fort, used to unfurl the tricolour on Independence Day. This sparked two widespread claims – 1) the protestors took down the Indian national flag and 2) replaced the tricolour with Khalistan flag. Indian Flag Removed Flag of Khalistan is waving on Red Fort. Historic Moments.#IndianRepublicBlackDay pic.twitter.com/HWsrlDvVDQ — Pakistan First (@APMLOfficial_) January 26, 2021 “What point are these farmers trying to make by replacing the tricolour with their religious flag?” questioned Sonam Mahajan. Editor-in-chief of Times Now Rahul Shivshankar also claimed that the tricolour was replaced. But he added that the one hoisted was a flag of farmers’ union or religious sect. Disquieting assault on our most visible national symbol. That too on #RepublicDay. Our Tricolour replaced at iconic flagpole at #RedFort. Was this protest always about undermining our State? \| #RDaySpiritShamed pic.twitter.com/Bfp1psRsAJ — Rahul Shivshankar (@RShivshankar) January 26, 2021 That the flag unfurled from the mast pole was the Khalistan flag is massively viral on social media. Among those who amplified the claim were BJP Delhi spokesperson Harish Khurana, parliamentary secretary of Varun Gandhi Ishita Yadav and BJP supporters Divya Kumar Soti, Vikrant Kumar, Sumit Kadel, Sumit Kadel, Sumeet Thakkar, Anurag Dixit and Shefali Vaidya. Right-wing propaganda website OpIndia also wrote in an article that protestors unfurled Khalistan flag from the Red Fort. Other pro-BJP propaganda handles @NindaTurtles, @ExSecular and @IamMayank_ made similar tweets. This fact-check has been divided into two sections that debunk both claims separately. 1. Indian flag was not replaced or taken down Protestors hoisted a flag from an empty pole mast. They neither took down the Indian flag nor replaced it with a flag of Khalistan. There are several videos that confirm the same. In the video below, the tricolour can be seen atop Lahore gate (entrance to the Red Fort) as the protestor climbs the empty flagpost. #WATCH A protestor hoists a flag from the ramparts of the Red Fort in Delhi#FarmLaws #RepublicDay pic.twitter.com/Mn6oeGLrxJ — ANI (@ANI) January 26, 2021 The Indian flag can be spotted in several pictures. The Police did not succeed in removing the flag. More and more farmers are going up to prevent bringing down of flags. (Express photos by Abhinav Saha and Praveen Khanna) pic.twitter.com/p33UZO3AXk — The Indian Express (@IndianExpress) January 26, 2021 Flags were also put up on domes from the fort. 2. The flag hoisted by protestors is not the Khalistan flag The flags hoisted by the protesting farmers are the Nishan Sahib or Sikh religious flags. “Whether yellow or saffron, triangular flags with the Khanda – two swords – are Sikh flags. They are not Khalistan flags,” said Amandeep Sandhu, author of ‘Panjab: Journeys Through Fault Lines’ in conversation with Alt News. He further added, “When a flag is hoisted as a symbol of regime change, the previous flag is brought down and the new flag is unfurled. In this case, the tricolour, the flag of India, continues to be hoisted. It has not been touched. The hoisting of the Sikh flag means that the people of the nation want to assert their identity as well. They want to be counted. They want the rulers of the nation to not take them for granted.” Journalist Hartosh Singh Bal also tweeted that the flags unfurled were Sikh religious flags, not Khalistan flag. with the tiranga visible the right wing ecosystem has picked on the nishan sahib that has also been held aloft. they have termed the nishan sahib a khalistani flag. if that were so then every gurdwara would be khalistan, every sikh a khalistani. — Hartosh Singh Bal (@HartoshSinghBal) January 26, 2021 Sikh flags are also featured on the Punjab tableau during Republic Day parades. It was displayed this year as well. The screenshot below is from Republic Day parade held last year. The widespread claim that Khalistan flag was hoisted by protestors during the tractor rally in Delhi is false. Several others further suggested that Indian national flag was replaced when, in fact, the flagstaff was empty. 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	26th January 2021 / 6:56 pm / Last updated: 26th January 2021	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/farmers-protest-no-protestors-did-not-replace-tricolour-with-khalistan-flag-at-red-fort/", "author": "Pooja Chaudhuri & Priyanka Jha" }
1,330	Farmers' protest: Old video viral as thousands of Nihang Sikhs march for Delhi from Punjab - Alt News Archit 2nd December 2020 / 4:40 pm / Last updated: 3rd December 2020 A one-minute video is viral on Facebook and Twitter with the claim that 20,000 Nihang Sikhs have departed for Delhi from Punjab on 2,000 horses to support protesting farmers. @SanjayV_INC, a Twitter user who claims be a supporter of Rahul Gandhi, posted the video on December 1. It was viewed over 35,000 times. (archived link) आज पंजाब से 2000 हजार घोड़ो के साथ 20000 निहंग सिंह किसानों के समर्थन में दिल्ली रवाना। पंजाब के शेर अपने किसान भाइयों के साथ..#IamWithFarmers pic.twitter.com/XP3AyGw2Ek — Sanjay विश्वकर्मा (@SanjayV_INC) December 1, 2020 This video has been shared by multiple Facebook users with a Hindi text. Alt News performed a reverse image search on Google using InVID, a video verification browser plugin. We found that the video was uploaded on YouTube in November 2018. The same video was uploaded on YouTube earlier this year with the title ‘Delhi Fateh Divas 2018 Budha Dal Nihang Singh’. According to Business Standard, Fateh Divas celebrates the capture of Red Fort in 1783 by the Sikh military general Sardar Baghel Singh. While Alt News could not independently verify the details of the video, it is at least two years old. The claim that 20,000 Nihang Sikhs are marching towards Delhi on 2,000 horses is false. 🙏 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	2nd December 2020 / 4:40 pm / Last updated: 3rd December 2020	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/farmers-protest-old-video-viral-as-thousands-of-nihang-sikhs-march-for-delhi-from-punjab/", "author": "Archit" }
1,331	Farmers' protest: Pak users share old video of man posing as army officer demanding for Khalistan - Alt News Pooja Chaudhuri 9th December 2020 / 7:26 pm A video of a man dressed in Indian army fatigue, claiming to be a Sikh officer, has been shared amidst the farmers’ protest. “21 sikh regiment of the indian army has refused to fight for india. A Sikh soldier vows to fight for Sikh homeland Khalistan,” was the message used to the share the video by Pakistani Twitter handle @TeamPZBofficial. Big News 21 sikh regiment of the indian army has refused to fight for india. A Sikh soldier vows to fight for Sikh homeland Khalistan.🔥#IndiaShutDown pic.twitter.com/xDm1a8KSCW — #TeamPakistanZindabad🇵🇰 (@TeamPZBofficial) December 8, 2020 The same video also found its way to Facebook. A similar message is circulating online without the video. Breaking News Just now 300 Sikh soldiers from 21 Sikh regiment of Indian Army have resigned as Modi tried to use Sikhs on Sikhs today at #IndiaShutDown pic.twitter.com/Maazh8ELQ4 — محمد اویس (@amanulla1231) December 8, 2020 The man can be heard speaking in Punjabi, condemning the incident where an auto-driver was thrashed by the Delhi police. He called the act “shameful” and claimed that Sikhs do not feel safe in India. “It’s violence such as this that prompts us to demand a separate state of Khalistan,” he says. ਪੁਲਿਸ ਸਿੱਖਾਂ ਨੂੰ ਵਾਰ ਵਾਰ ਨਿਸ਼ਾਨਾ ਬਣਾਉਣ ਤੋਂ ਗੁਰੇਜ ਕਰੇ ਇਹ ਚੰਗਾ ਨਹੀ ਹੋਵੇਗਾ Posted by Justice Fan Club on Wednesday, 19 June 2019 The video was circulated with the caption – “ਪੁਲਿਸ ਸਿੱਖਾਂ ਨੂੰ ਵਾਰ ਵਾਰ ਨਿਸ਼ਾਨਾ ਬਣਾਉਣ ਤੋਂ ਗੁਰੇਜ ਕਰੇ ਇਹ ਚੰਗਾ ਨਹੀ ਹੋਵੇਗਾ (Police should refrain from targeting Sikhs repeatedly it’ll not be good for them)” The following is a gist of his speech – “Waheguru ji ka Khalsa Waheguru ji ki Fateh. I am Satvir SIngh am an Indian army soldier, a resident of Uttar Pradesh. It’s been two days since the video of a Sikh auto-driver brutally thrashed by Delhi police was uploaded. They played with our religious sentiments. This was a shameful act. The Sikhs who have fought for this country and saved this country were beaten in the capital. Sikhs are not safe in India. This is not an isolated incident. The police have resorted to hooliganism. Stand for Sarabjit Singh and Balwant Singh. We are united. Because Sikhs don’t feel safe in this country, we want Khalistan. The atrocities will not end…You think we are only 2% so we aren’t capable of doing anything? The day this 2% loses their mind, they will stir up the entire world….The largest statue is built here, you are saying you have taken strong stands against Pakistan and China, but little girls are raped here. What has the progress been? There has been no progress in India. Elections are won on religion. This election was won on religion…I want to tell the police that if you have so much pride for your uniform, take Sikhs head-on. Then you will see what happens. I want to tell the police that if you want you can contact me, my numbers are 731***** and 941***. I will meet you wherever you want…But don’t piss off Sikhs. If we are angry, you don’t know what will happen…waheguru ji ka khalsa waheguru ji ki fateh.” While challenging the police, the man gave two mobile numbers – 731*** and 941*****. According to Truecaller, the second one belongs to ‘Fozi TV.’ Google search results of ‘Fozi TV’ throw up a bunch of links of an online video streaming platform. The number was switched off when we called. Incidentally, the first number was saved as ‘Satvir on Truecaller’. The man in the video had introduced himself as ‘Satvir’ Singh. The person who answered the phone when we called claimed to be unaware of the video. “I’ve received 5-7 calls today regarding the video,” he said. The conversation was interrupted as we forwarded the video to him. All subsequent phone calls went unanswered or were disconnected. Alt News was unable to confim if the number belonged to the man who made the video. The ADG PI of the Indian Army had tweeted from its official handle in 2019 that the man in the video is an imposter. “Imposter wearing Indian Army combat uniform in video spreading disinformation,” read the tweet. “Soldiers of IndianArmy are committed to uphold the core values of our Constitution and the rich history of Courage, Valour and Sacrifice,” it furthered. ‘Be Cautious – Be Vigilant’ ❌Imposter wearing Indian Army combat uniform in video spreading disinformation.❌ ✅Soldiers of #IndianArmy are committed to uphold the core values of our Constitution and the rich history of Courage, Valour and Sacrifice. ✅ We are at it. pic.twitter.com/GHPYtZAwnA — ADG PI – INDIAN ARMY (@adgpi) June 22, 2019 A few Pakistani social media users, therefore, shared a video of an imposter posing as a Sikh army man during farmers’ protest. Furthermore, there is no news report suggesting that Sikh regiments have resigned from the Indian army. In fact, the same message was widely circulated by Pakistani media and social media in March last year using a morphed Republic TV graphic plate. 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 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	9th December 2020 / 7:26 pm	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/farmers-protest-pak-users-share-old-video-of-man-posing-as-army-officer-demanding-for-khalistan/", "author": "Pooja Chaudhuri" }
1,332	Farmers' protest: Video of 2019 pro-CAA rally viral as people chanting in support of Delhi police - Alt News Bhavi Kapadia 30th January 2021 / 4:45 pm The farmers’ protest in Delhi took a violent turn on January 26 after a group of protestors entered the Red Fort. Farmer groups have been protesting against three farm laws, demanding a repeal for months now. A video of a rally with chants of “Modiji lath bajao hum tumhare saath hai, Delhi police lath bajao hum tumhare saath hai” (Strike them down Modiji, we are with you. Strike them down Delhi police, we are with you) has been linked to the Republic Day clashes. It is being suggested that a rally was taken out in support of the Delhi police. Twitter user @Ritutyagi30 shared the video and wrote, “Delhi citizens are no more in a mood to see fake farmers at the border who tainted the honour of this country.” 26 जनवरी को इन #नकली किसानों ने जो देश की इज्जत को दाग लगाया अब दिल्ली की जनता इनको बॉर्डर पर और देखने के मूड में नही है ।।#हमारा_बॉर्डर_खाली_करो #योगी_जी_अब_लठ_बजाओ pic.twitter.com/RIgOr4bmng — 𝗥𝗶𝘁𝘂 𝗧𝘆𝗮𝗴𝗶 🇮🇳 (@Ritutyagi30) January 28, 2021 BJP IT cell member (@anandkalra69) also tweeted the video and wrote, “People of north Delhi in support of Delhi police are chanting…’Delhi Police, strike them down. We are with you.’” @DelhiPolice के समर्थन में उतरे दिल्ली वाले….. दिल्ली पुलिस लठ बजाओ, हम तुम्हारे साथ हैं के नारे लगाये।#WelldoneDelhi pic.twitter.com/ze5y9tt5tP — आनन्द कालरा (@anandkalra69) January 27, 2021 The video received more than 47,000 views and over 1,100 shares from the account of Facebook user Anil Parmar. He claimed that the Delhi police received the support of the general public. दिल्ली पुलिस लठ बजाओ हम तुम्हारे साथ है🔥🇮🇳 दिल्ली पुलिस को मिला आम जनता का समर्थन दिल्ली पुलिस लठ बजाओ हम तुम्हारे साथ है Posted by Anil parmar on Wednesday, January 27, 2021 BJP supporter Shefali Vaidya tweeted, “Where is this? Can anyone confirm?”. It got more than 48,000 views and 1,000 retweets. Where is this? Can anyone confirm? pic.twitter.com/RScSFlHdji — Shefali Vaidya. (@ShefVaidya) January 27, 2021 Alt News performed a simple keyword search on Google and came across an article by Loknat News which dates back to December 27, 2019. The article states that the video was tweeted by BJP politician Jawahar Yadav on December 27, 2019 in the backdrop of the CAA protests. The video shows pro-CAA mob chanting slogans against protestors. हरियाणा की रैली देश की रैलियों से थोड़ी अलग होती है। 😂 “मोदी जी तुम लठ बजाओ, हम तुम्हारे साथ हैं ।” pic.twitter.com/SJ79hu72Nw — Jawahar Yadav (@jawaharyadavbjp) December 26, 2019 A keyword search on Twitter revealed that @iSinghVikash was one of the firsts to tweet the video on December 24, 2019. We also found this video posted on the Facebook account Shri Rajput Karni Sena on the same day. An old video from a 2019 rally against CAA-NRC protests is widespread with the false claim that people came out against the farmers’ movement, demanding that the Delhi police and Prime Minister Modi come down heavily upon the demonstrators. While this video is not related to farmers’ protest, it is noteworthy that a crowd had indeed gathered at Singhu border to demand that protesting farmers vacate the area. The counter-protest saw BJP workers posing as ‘locals’ and chanting ‘humara border khali karo’ (clear our border). 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 / 4:45 pm	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/farmers-protest-video-of-2019-pro-caa-rally-viral-as-people-chanting-in-support-of-delhi-police/", "author": "Bhavi Kapadia" }
1,333	Farmers' protest: Zee News falsely claims Indian flag replaced with Khalsa flag on Red Fort - Alt News Aqib Pathan & Archit 27th January 2021 / 4:45 pm / Last updated: 27th January 2021 On January 26, tractor rally by farmers protesting against the centre’s three farm laws turned violent after a mob entered the Red Fort and other groups clashed with the police at ITO and other parts of Delhi. Zee News aired a broadcast that showed a man remove a flag from one of the domes of the Red Fort. The said bulletin is available on YouTube. In the opening seconds of the video, as the man threw a flag towards the protestors, the anchor claimed, “Look at the visuals from the Red Fort where the tricolour was removed and replaced with Khalsa flag. Look how the tricolour flag was disrespected. The flag was tossed on the ground. These visuals send shivers down the spine in a democracy and are saddening, especially on Republic Day. The nation’s pride was brought down and replaced with their flag.” The same clip was shared by Pakistan-based propaganda Twitter account @ZaidZamanHamid. This handle is withheld in India hence a screenshot has been provided below. The account has been featured in multiple fact-check stories by Alt News, including false news related to Kashmir after the abrogation of Article 370. Alt News watched the video aired by Zee News and noticed that the flag isn’t India’s national flag. The flag in question appears to have white and green colours. A keyword search on Reuters threw up an image of the same scene where the flag that was tossed can be clearly spotted. It is not the Indian national flag. The photograph was clicked by Adnan Abidi on January 26. The image is captioned as, “A farmer puts a flag on top of the historic Red Fort, during a protest against farm laws introduced by the government, in Delhi, India.” Another keyword search on Getty Images shows a different photo with the same flag. The green and white flag that was tossed toward the protestors is the flag of the Bhartiya Kisan Union (BKU). Despite even a cursory look establishing that the flag is not the Indian national flag, Zee News aired misinformation to thousands of viewers. Alt News had earlier debunked the false claim that the flag hoisted on the ramparts of the Red Fort was the Khalistan flag. Protestors had unfurled Sikh religious flags on an empty flagstaff. 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 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…	news-altnews	2024-05-27T18:24:05.489452	27th January 2021 / 4:45 pm / Last updated: 27th January 2021	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/farmers-protest-zee-news-falsely-claims-indian-flag-replaced-with-khalsa-flag-on-red-fort/", "author": "Aqib Pathan & Archit" }
1,334	Video of Farooq Abdullah singing bhajan is old and unrelated to abrogation of Article 370 - Alt News Kinjal 5th January 2022 / 7:31 pm A video of former J&K chief minister and Jammu-Kashmir National Conference (NC) leader Farooq Abdullah singing a Ram bhajan is making the rounds on social media. The Hindi text superimposed on the video reads, – “The incredible transformation of Farooq Abdullah after the abrogation of Article 370”. A Twitter user shared the video and mocked that Abdullah has ‘Hindu ancestry’. It racked up more than 4,000 views at the time of writing. (Archive link) The video has been shared by a few users on Facebook. (Link 1, Link 2) It is also circulating on WhatsApp with the same claim. Alt News received several requests to fact-check the visuals on its WhatsApp helpline number. A YouTube channel named VK News had shared this video with a similar claim back in 2019. We performed a keyword search on YouTube and found the video posted on September 21, 2009. The channel that uploaded the video said that it was shot on April 28, 2001. It also said that the video was taken from a Satsang in Jammu where Farooq Abdullah performed a devotional song. [youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3y0xf3dWD3w] Article 370 was abrogated on August 5, 2019 thus, cannot be related to the video. We also found during our research that the former J&K chief minister had performed Ram bhajans on several occasions in 2013, 2017 and 2018 before the abrogation of Article 370. [youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EpbXeaYQCus] 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	5th January 2022 / 7:31 pm	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/farooq-abdullah-singing-bhajan-after-article-370-demolition-false-claim/", "author": "Kinjal" }
1,335	FB page brands Bangladeshi tourists as "infiltrators", BJP leaders amplify false claim - Alt News Archit & Arbab Ali 12th May 2022 / 7:39 pm / Last updated: 12th May 2022 A man conducting a vox-pop (short interviews with members of the public) at Shaheen Bagh with men exiting a mosque after namaz has gone viral. In this video, the interviewer is trying to determine the nationality of the people. They say that they have come from Bangladesh and the interviewer asks them leading questions in Hindi (a language they do not understand) to insinuate that the AAP government is offering free electricity and water to Bangladeshi nationals residing in Shaheen Bagh. It must be noted that most people in the video say that they have come to India for “embassy-related work” and one of them also says in the end that they will be going back to Bangladesh. In spite of this, BJP leader Ashwini Upadhyay referred to them as “Bangladeshi-Rohingya infiltrators” and wrote that their properties should be confiscated and they should be incarcerated for 10-20 years. He posted the video on both Twitter and Facebook and gained 2.5 lakh views cumulatively. रोहिंग्या-बांग्लादेशी घुसपैठियों की 100% संपत्ति जब्त करने और 10-20 वर्ष सश्रम कारावास देने के लिए कानून बनाना नितांत आवश्यक है @narendramodi pic.twitter.com/wbVKf29nLe — Ashwini Upadhyay (@AshwiniUpadhyay) May 8, 2022 Using CrowdTangle, a Facebook monitoring tool, Alt News found that over 100 accounts had shared Upadhyay’s post. Most of them are pro-BJP groups or pages. A spreadsheet that lists such accounts can be viewed here. BJP member Major Surendra Poonia (Retd) tweeted, “Rohingya-Bangladeshi infiltrators are roaming freely in Delhi! Why do they only come to Delhi? Who makes their Aadhaar/ Ration card and Voter ID? Who is in Delhi who is giving them electricity/ living space?” This video gained around 1 lakh views. [Archived link] रोहिंग्या-बांग्लादेशी घुसपैठिये आराम से दिल्ली में घूम रहे हैं ! ये दिल्ली में ही क्यों आते हैं ? कौन है यहाँ जो इनके आधार/राशन कार्ड और वोटर ID बनवा रहा है ? कौन है दिल्ली में जो इनको बिजली/रहने की जगह दे रहा है?@NIA_India @HMOIndia pic.twitter.com/VTcbBDfvyv — Major Surendra Poonia (@MajorPoonia) May 8, 2022 BJP Delhi spokesperson Sarika A Jain also tweeted this clip. She wrote, “…Hindu brothers, see how your Delhi will one day get away from your hands…” ये सब CM साहब के रिश्तेदार है शाहीन बाग में…… सभी हिन्दू भाई देखे की कैसे आपकी दिल्ली आपके ही हाथों से एक दिन चली जायेगी ।। ये होता है गलत वोट देने का नतीजा .. इनके लिए दिल्ली में सब कुछ फ्री है … ओर खास बात ये की आते ही इनके वोटर, राशन कार्ड भी बन जाते है ..@BJP4India pic.twitter.com/Dxq0V5o8vW — Sarika A Jain 🇮🇳 (@SarikaJainBJP) May 7, 2022 President BJP Mahila Morcha Yogita Singh wrote, “In a few months Shaheen Bagh of Delhi will become Bangladesh.” बधाई दिल्ली , अब आपको बांग्लादेश की सैर के लिए वीज़ा की आवश्यकता नहीं होगी कुछ महीनों में दिल्ली का शाहीन बाग़ ही बांग्लादेश बन जाएगा। याद रखिए दिल्लीवासियों आपका ग़लत वोट ही इसका ज़िम्मेदार है । pic.twitter.com/MC3OBwhvU3 — Yogita Singh (@yogitasinghbjp) May 7, 2022 Other Twitter accounts that shared this clip are @RituRathaur, @No_negativityxd, @Incognito_qfs, @RijulJK, and @mekarora. The viral video has a logo that says ‘Vartmaan Bharat’ in Hindi. Using this as a clue, Alt News performed a keyword search on Facebook and found a page by the same name. On May 7 and 8, this page uploaded two 5-minute vox-pop videos from Shaheen Bagh. ‘Vartmaan Bharat’ also posted a Facebook Live on May 8 where its “reporter” targeted Shaheen Bagh with bizarre allegations and conspiracies. The statements made by the ‘Vartmaan Bharat’ interviewer are listed below along with the timestamp. Upon viewing the videos by ‘Vartmaan Bharat’, in their entirety, the following points are clear — In an ideal world, just viewing the videos by ‘Vartmaan Bharat’ would be enough to dismiss the outlandish claims presented to the viewer. Analysis of ‘Vartmaan Bharat’ videos The video posted by ‘Vartmaan Bharat’ not only contains misinformation but also discredits the profession of journalism. The interviewer was told by multiple people that they are not fluent in Hindi. Yet, he posed cunning and tasteless questions in a language they do not understand. One such question was, “Did you visit India after crossing a fence or flight?” The interviewer asked this question multiple times. For one interviewee, the situation was so bizarre he was unable to contain his smile. To his credit, he remained calm and politely asked, “Why would we cross the fence?” The part below is a segment from the May 7 vox-pop which shows the same. Another instance where the interviewer exposed his propaganda-driven reportage was when he asked, “Are you here for paisa (money)?” after a person responded he is in Delhi for visa formalities. The word paisa sounds phonetically similar to visa. In the 20-minute Facebook Live, he made vile allegations targeting Shaheen Bagh. One such allegation was that Bangladeshis took part in anti-CAA protests in India. In 2019 and 2020, Alt News documented multiple social media claims targeting peaceful anti-CAA protests at Shaheen Bagh. One of the recurring allegations was that the protestors were “paid agents”. Thus, when the interviewer suggested that the Bangladeshi tourist is in India for paisa, he implied Bangladeshis are getting funded in Shaheen Bagh. Ground reality Alt News collaborated with Shaheen Bagh-based reporter Arbab Ali in order to identify and interview people from the ‘Vartmaan Bharat’ videos. As per our findings on the ground, the videos were shot near Masjid Al-Habeeb in Shaheen Bagh. We also learnt that several Bangladeshi tourists stay in localities near Shaheen Bagh. We managed to identify five tourists — Arif Hussain, Fahad Mahfuz Chowdhury, Saiful Islam, Akhtar Hussain, and Rashid Ul Hasan. They are staying at a facility that is less than 2 kilometres away from Masjid Al-Habeeb. Upon the request of the hotel owners, Alt News will not reveal the name of the lodging facilities. Based on our interviews with Bangladeshi citizens, Alt News can confirm most people in the viral video are in New Delhi for visa process at the Maltese embassy. Rashid Ul Hasan told Alt News over a telephonic call, “We don’t have a Maltese embassy in Bangladesh. The Bangladesh government negotiated with the Indian government so that Bangladeshi citizens can visit the country and access the Maltese embassy easily. As of today, my passport is with the Maltese embassy. I will return to Bangladesh as soon as visa formalities are over.” When we enquired about his preference of stay, he said, “As per my knowledge, at least 350 Bangladeshis are here to apply for a visa. We looked for several hotels in Delhi but there weren’t any rooms available. So when we heard about the availability of rooms in Paharganj and Sarita Vihar, we came here. The decision to stay at Sarita Vihar was not pre-planned but an outcome of various factors.” Another tourist Arif Hussain has applied for a long-term visa in Malta and has been staying in India since 40 days. He said, “That video is wrong… They only asked where I come from. That’s it. They didn’t reveal the purpose of the video.” He added, “This video is very bad for Bangladeshi citizens.” Displeased with the interview, Fahad Mahfuz Chowdhury said, “One guy took my interview. He asked where I’m living. I told him I’m living in Sarita Vihar. Despite that, he only presented two options to me — Shaheen Bagh or Madanpur Khadar.” Delhi is one of the main settlement areas for Rohingya refugees and has five large unofficial camps in areas like Jasola and other sites along the banks of the river Yamuna. Madanpur Khadar is close to the Yamuna river. On the condition of anonymity, a staff member of the lodging facility where the four Bangladeshi tourists were staying told Alt News, “We host people not just from Bangladesh but Iraq, Iran and other countries. The reason Bangladeshis stay here is because they aren’t fluent in Hindi. I’m from Assam and fluent in Bengali. They feel comfortable here because they can express their problems to me.” He added, “Most of my Bangladeshi guests visit India for visa-related formalities in the Maltese embassy. This process can take up to three to four months. On the eventuality of visa expiry, they seek documentation for an extended stay at Foreign Regional Registration Offices.” It is noteworthy that there is a Maltese consulate in Dhaka. We wrote an email to them and the Maltese and Bangladeshi embassies in India to understand the nuances of the visa process for Bangladesh citizens. The article will be updated if they respond to our email. To sum it up, since May 7 and 8, the Facebook page ‘Vartmaan Bharat’ posted multiple videos alleging that Bangladeshi tourists in New Delhi are “infiltrators” and their preferred choice of residence is Shaheen Bagh. The clipped May 7 video, which gained over 18 million views, was further amplified by BJP leaders. Our ground reportage found that most Bangladeshis seen in the video are in New Delhi for Maltese visa applications. 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 May 2022 / 7:39 pm / Last updated: 12th May 2022	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/fb-page-brands-bangladeshi-tourists-as-infiltrators-bjp-leaders-amplify-false-claim/", "author": "Archit & Arbab Ali" }
1,336	FB page India 272+ circulates year old false claim targeting journalist Ravish Kumar - Alt News Jignesh Patel 22nd September 2018 / 7:30 pm “सुना है कि ब्रह्मांड के इकलौते ईमानदार पत्रकार रविश कुमार की बहन भ्रष्टाचार मामले में नौकरी से सस्पेंड हो गई है। बेचारे का भाई पहले ही सेक्स रैकेट में आरोपी है। (Have heard that universe’s only honest journalist, Ravish Kumar’s sister got suspended in a matter of corruption. Poor brother is already an accused in sex racket case -translated)” This is the message which has been posted by India 272+, a Facebook Page which was part of the BJP’s 2014 election campaign. It has been shared more than 10,000 times and ‘liked’ more than 7,700 times since it was posted on September 20. ब्रह्मांड के इकलौते ईमानदार पत्रकार Posted by India272+ on Thursday, 20 September 2018 Many individual Facebook users have also shared the same claim. Alt News had debunked the claim about Ravish Kumar’s sister getting suspended on charges of corruption in April last year, when fake news websites like Newsloose, TrollIindianpolitics, and Dainik Bharat had circulated a fake news story. In a conversation with Alt News, Madhukar Pandey, brother of Neeta Pandey, the woman claimed to be Ravish Kumar’s sister who had been suspended for graft, asserted that the woman in this picture is his elder sister and is not in any way related to Ravish Kumar. Pandey had clarified the same on his Facebook account. Prashant Patel Umrao, who is known for peddling misinformation on social media had also tweeted the same claim, which he has not deleted yet. Nita Kumari Pandey, Sister of Ravish Kumar who was working as District Program Officer in Muzaffarpur, is suspended on Corruption charges. — प्रशान्त पटेल उमराव (@ippatel) April 1, 2017 With regard to the allegation that Ravish Kumar’s brother is involved in a sex racket, the page is probably referring to the sexual offence registered against Brajesh Kumar. An article published by Business Standard on October 30, 2017 had reported, “In December 2016, an FIR was registered by the alleged victim for outraging her modesty, criminal intimidation and various other sections of IPC, SC/ST Act and Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act (POCSO). The name of Brajesh Kumar subsequently figured during the investigation in the statements made by the complainant.” Brajesh Kumar, brother of Ravish Kumar was granted interim anticipatory bail by the Supreme court on the ground that his name had not been mentioned in the FIR. Furthermore, there was lack of material against the accused to disqualify him to the relief of anticipatory bail said the bench of Justices A K Sikri and Ashok Bhushan. The matter is currently sub-judice. Ravish Kumar has regularly been targeted by several entities who attribute false quotes to him on social media. The right-wing social media army works overtime to malign Kumar, often posting the same content intermittently, which is subsequently shared by thousands of social media users. Despite clarifications to the contrary, this activity is unceasing. 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	22nd September 2018 / 7:30 pm	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/fb-page-india-272-circulates-year-old-false-claim-targeting-journalist-ravish-kumar/", "author": "Jignesh Patel" }
1,337	Fear-mongering song targeting UP elections falsely claimed to be composed by Muslim community - Alt News Archit 19th November 2021 / 9:22 pm A 29-second video clip of a Hindi-language song that indulges in fear-mongering of a takeover by the Muslim community if Samajwadi Party [SP] forms the government in UP Elections in 2022 is being shared on social media with the claim that the song was composed by the Muslim community. The viral text being shared on social media states, “This song composed by Muslim community should be enough to open eyes of Hindus. This shows the thought process of SP. Despite that, some Hindus are foolish enough to dream of forming an SP Government along caste lines..” An approximate English translation of the song is, “If SP Government comes to power, then the construction of Ram Mandir will stop, the green flag will be flown, while the saffron flag will be lowered.” Multiple Twitter users have shared this video. (1,2,3,4) मुस्लिम समुदाय द्वारा बनाया गया ये गाना हिन्दुओ की आँखें खोलने के लिए पर्याप्त है। इससे हम देख सकते है कि सपा की क्या सोच है? फिर भी कुछ मूर्ख हिन्दू जाति के नाम पर सपा की सरकार बनने का सपना देख रहे हैं।🤬#जागो_हिन्दू_जागो pic.twitter.com/z3Jz8wfKPC — 🕉️📿क्षत्रिय विशाल रुहेला🇮🇳#प्रशासक_समिति (@VishalRuhelaIND) October 27, 2021 Alt News has received several requests to fact-check this claim on our WhatsApp helpline number (+91 76000 11160) The viral video has two logos — the one on the top left consists of an image of a man along with the text ‘Sandeep Acharya Fam’, and on the top right is the text, ‘Sandeep Acharya’ along with WhatsApp’s logo and phone number 8765547747. Using this as a clue, we performed a keyword search and found that a YouTube Channel Rudra Music had uploaded a video on September 29, a clipped version of which is now being shared on social media. As per the description, the artist is Sandeep Acharya, and the song title is ‘aai spa to mandir ka nirman rukega‘ which translates to, “If SP Government comes to power, the construction of Ram Mandir will stop”. The album name under which the song has been uploaded is ‘yogi songs‘. Sandeep Acharya has close to one lakh followers on Facebook. The WhatsApp number on the viral video and his Facebook page are identical. Sandeep told Alt News, “I have written and performed this song. I’m a BJP supporter. There is no way SP members can say something like this.” Sandeep Acharya is a staunch supporter of UP Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath. Posted by Sandeep Acharya on Saturday, 5 June 2021 To sum it up, a clipped version of a song performed by Sandeep Acharya indulging in fear-mongering, and claiming that if Samajwadi Party wins the UP election, the construction of Ram Mandir will stop, was shared with the false claim that it was made by the Muslim community. 🙏 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	19th November 2021 / 9:22 pm	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/fear-mongering-song-targeting-up-elections-falsely-claimed-to-be-composed-by-muslim-community/", "author": "Archit" }
1,338	Fearing protests, women made to part with their black dupattas at BJP Yuva Morcha event attended by Gujarat CM - Alt News Alt News Desk 30th April 2017 / 8:25 pm BJP Yuva Morcha organised a road show in Viramgam district in Gujarat today. Following the road show, a Yuva Sammelan was also organized. The Yuva Sammelan was attended by Gujarat CM Vijay Rupani and other ministers. At this event, Gujarat CM handed out job appointment letters to the youth. In his speech, Mr Rupani stated that Gujarat Government will forward all the support and create the infrastructure needed by youth in Gujarat for better career prospects. However, controversy arose when few men dressed in black clothes were disallowed entry into event. Besides these men, even women who were wearing black dupattas were made to take them off before allowing entry into the venue. When CM Vijay Rupani was questioned about this, he chose to skip the questions posed by journalists. [Video courtesy ABP Asmita] In recent times, many BJP events in Gujarat have had to face multiple protests. Youth from Patidar community have especially tried to raise slogans at multiple BJP events. The one that got most media attention was when BJP President Amit Shah had to finish his speech in a hurry and leave the venue when Patidar youth raised slogans and threw chairs at a event he attended in Surat. 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	30th April 2017 / 8:25 pm	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/fearing-protests-women-made-part-black-dupattas-bjp-yuva-morcha-event-attended-gujarat-cm/", "author": "Alt News Desk" }
1,339	February round-up: Mainstream media and their hilarious blunders - Alt News Arjun Sidharth 6th March 2018 / 4:59 pm February saw a barrage of fake news and misleading information that circulated widely on social media. This month, the lead was taken by mainstream media houses. A number of prominent news organisations in both print and television rushed to report news without basic verification and ended up committing a series of gaffes on a number of issues. Alt News has compiled these instances, and more. 1. Aaj Tak falls for parody account When the social media rage over actress Priya Prakash Varrier was at its peak, a quote by Maulana Atif Qadri was circulated widely, in which Qadri calls for a fatwa against the actress for hurting their sentiment. This quote was picked up by Aaj Tak and senior anchor Anjana Om Kashyap broadcast a show in which she attacked Qadri for his words. Qadri had never said any such thing. The tweet that was being referred to was from a parody account called TiimesHow (T-I-I-M-E-S H-O-W) and not Times Now. This minor detail somehow completely escaped the channel. 2. Zee News wrongly attributes speech starting with ‘Jai Siya Ram’ to Abu Dhabi Crown Prince On the day PM Modi landed in Abu Dhabi, Zee News reported, “As PM Narendra Modi lands in UAE, video of Abu Dhabi Crown Prince saying ‘Jai Siya Ram’ goes viral. WATCH”. Other media houses too reported this news. The person in the video was NOT Crown Prince Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, but Sultan Sooud Al Qassemi, a United Arab Emirates-based columnist and commentator on Arab affairs. By the time the false news was pulled down, it had already travelled far and wide. 3. News of Sridevi’s death due to heart attack floated by mainstream media Starting with Times of India, major news publications reported that actress Sridevi had died due to a heart attack, according to the forensic report. We traced the origin of this theory to this tweet by a Times of India journalist. Forensic report says #Sridevi died of heart attack in #Dubai. A journalist from #Hyderabad Vasudeva Rao who has been working in the Gulf for the last 14 years informed me this. He spoke to the doctors in Dubai. #sridevideath#srideviji — Sushil Rao (@sushilrTOI) February 26, 2018 This news was also reported by Hindustan Times, First post and National Herald. As it turned out, the information was false. The autopsy report conclusively stated that the actress died due to drowning. There was no mention of heart attack. Yet, major news outlets reported it without verifying. 4. Senior BJP leaders spread fake information about missing JNU student Najeeb Ahmed BJP National General Secretary Ram Madhav and BJP Spokesperson Nalin Kohli were among those who spread the information that JNU student Najeeb Ahmad who had gone missing in 2016 had joined ISIS. Rajya Sabha member and senior columnist Swapan Dasgupta too spread this fake news. It turned out the Najeeb in question who had joined ISIS was not the missing JNU student but 23-year old Najeeb, a student of VIT Vellore who went missing in Kerala in August 2017 and subsequently wrote to his mother that he had joined ISIS. Madhav and Dasgupta later untweeted the false info. 5. Sehwag gives communal colour to Kerala lynching Former India cricketer Virender Sehwag posted a tweet after the incident of the lynching of a mentally challenged tribal man in Kerala with the words, “Madhu stole 1 kg rice. A mob of Ubaid , Hussain and Abdul Kareem lynched the poor tribal man to death. This is a disgrace to a civilized society and I feel ashamed that this happens and kuch farak nahi padta”. What Sehwag did not tweet was the names of the other accused, not all of whom were Muslim. This attempt to give a communal colour to the incident was severely criticised on social media, following which Sehwag deleted the tweet and issued an apology. Interestingly, he later deleted his apology as well. 6. Serial faker Prashant P.Umrao spreads fake news about Rajdeep Sardesai’s son After senior journalist Rajdeep Sardesai filed a police complaint against lawyer Prashant Patel Umrao for spreading fake news on social media, the latter accused Sardesai of having secured a medical seat for his son at Manipal University by flouting rules. Dear @sardesairajdeep Is it true that your Son Ishan got admission at MBBS in Kasturba Medical College, Manipal University in 2013 on NRI quota w/o having merit after paying ₹ 1Cr by violating rules? — Prashant P. Umrao (@ippatel) February 7, 2018 As it turned out, this accusation was blatantly false. Rajdeep Sardesai and Sagarika Ghose produced documents that showed their son Ishan Sardesai had gained admission at Kasturba Medical College, Manipal on merit through the ‘General’ quota and not ‘NRI’ quota as alleged by Umrao. This was confirmed by Manipal University in a tweet. Ishan Sardesai, rank 1050, was admitted to the MBBS course KMC, MANIPAL in 2013 under the General category based on merit. The allegations made about his admission are malicious and totally false. The controversy is uncalled for. — Manipal Academy of Higher Education (@ManipalUni) February 12, 2018 7. MEA shares news about use of Saudi Arabian airspace which is denied by Saudi “Riyadh allows Air India to use space for Israel flights”, The official Facebook page of Ministry of External Affairs shared this news quoting Israeli daily Haaretz as its source. The news was also widely reported across Indian media and hailed as a ‘historic first’, a ‘diplomatic win’ and ‘a sign of India’s nimble diplomacy in the region’. MEA had quoted the report of the Israeli daily The Haaretz, which retracted its story four hours after it was published. The headline of the story was changed from “In a historic first, Saudi Arabia allows flights to Israel over its airspace” to “Saudi Arabia denies report of historic approval of flights to Israel using its airspace”. MEA also subsequently deleted their Facebook post. However, Reuters on March 6, 2018 reported that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had said that Saudi Arabia had allowed the use of its airspace to Air India for flights to and from Tel Aviv. Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu said that Saudi Arabia had granted Air India permission to fly over its territory on its new routes to and from Tel Aviv https://t.co/ECGttmAaJN — Reuters India (@ReutersIndia) March 6, 2018 8. Congress Twitter handle conducts poll based on fake news Will your mobile phone number have 13 digits by the end of the year? This is what the Congress party claimed on Twitter. In a Twitter poll, it asked, “The Department of Telecom (DoT) has issued a directive instructing all telecom operators in the country to start issuing 13-digit mobile numbers later this year. Are you happy with this decision? #IndiaSpeaks” with the options being yes and no. The Department of Telecom (DoT) has issued a directive instructing all telecom operators in the country to start issuing 13-digit mobile numbers later this year. Are you happy with this decision? #IndiaSpeaks — Congress (@INCIndia) February 22, 2018 The truth is that there is no change in the numbering system for retail mobile numbers. The new numbers are to be provided for SIM based Machine To Machine (M2M) communication. It will NOT extend to retail mobile phone numbers, which will continue to operate on 10 digits. 9. Kamal Haasan’s party website registered in tax haven Cayman Islands “Kamal’s party website http://Maiyam.com is registered in Cayman Island.” “Maiyam Cayman Island link, Cayman Island is a Tax Haven, How did Kamal who is fighting Corruption, get people in Tax Haven to register his domain.?” The aforementioned claims vis-a-vis the party website of Kamal Haasan’s newly floated party were made by Hari Prabhakaran who claims to be an AIADMK member. Maiyam Cayman Island link, Cayman Island is a Tax Haven, How did Kamal who is fighting Corruption, get people in Tax Haven to register his domain.? #KamalPartyLaunchpic.twitter.com/OezLXL1C7N — Hari Prabhakaran (@Hariadmk) February 22, 2018 The allegation was completely baseless as the tweet betrayed ignorance of the basics of domain registration. However, it had been shared hundreds of times on social media. 10. Communal rabble rouser ShankhNaad maligns senior Navi Mumbai police officer Serial faker and communal rabble rouser ShankhNaad tweeted that no one raised a hue and cry when a police officer in uniform openly promoted the Quran at an event by an Islamic organisation. Correction : The name of the person promoting #Quran (above) is Suresh Mengade , DCP Crime in @Navimumpolice . While commissioner of @MumbaiPolice Mr. Prabhat Ranjan (below, left) was also present in the same event as a chief guest to promote #Islam.https://t.co/5iBvcFzuGDpic.twitter.com/F1oH1EOD0l — ShankhNaad (@ShankhNaad) February 2, 2018 Contrary to what ShankhNaad was trying to portray, the event by the organisation Salaam Center had stressed on religious harmony, unity and brotherhood. It was attended by Hindu spiritual leader Swami Lakshmi Shankaracharya, among others. Shankhnaad also tried to malign Salaam Centre claiming it to be a ‘Jihadi’ organisation. As it turns out, this organisation is frequented by many politicians and celebrities of all hues. 11. ‘Chinese’ declared an official language of Pakistan On February 19, news reports emerged that Pakistan has declared Mandarin as one of its official languages. This information was first put out by the Pakistani news channel Abb Takk news. A number of Indian media houses too reported it. The news turned out to be fake. The Pakistani senate had not passed any such resolution declaring Mandarin as an official language of the country. What had transpired instead was that the Pakistani parliament had passed a motion to offer Chinese Language courses for Pakistani students in order to enhance communication, reduce communication gaps and secure jobs under the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) project. 12. Conspiracy theory on Ankit Saxena’s murder Ankit Saxena was murdered by the family of the girl he was in love with. The incident occurred in Delhi in February. Shortly thereafter, a conspiracy theory began doing the rounds of social media stating that the murder of Ankit Saxena was the handiwork of Hindutva elements, and that no Muslim family lived in the neighbourhood where the murder took place. This theory which was floated by Amaresh Misra who is a politician from U.P was reported by some publications. The post was replete with falsehoods. The claims made in the post were contradicted by reports published by The Hindustan Times, Times of India and Indian Express. Alt News had published a detailed article debunking the theory, which can be read here. 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. 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	6th March 2018 / 4:59 pm	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/february-round-mainstream-media-hilarious-blunders/", "author": "Arjun Sidharth" }
1,340	February round-up: Misinformation industry feeds off Pulwama attack and Indo-Pak tension - Alt News Arjun Sidharth 12th March 2019 / 3:28 pm / Last updated: 12th March 2019 February was characterized by an array of misinformation with regard to the developments surrounding the reported airstrike by the Indian Air Force in Balakot, Pakistan in the early hours of February 27. Since then, a deluge of misinformation took over the social media ecosystem. Mainstream media too was not immune to exaggeration. In the immediate aftermath of the IAF strike, a video began circulating on social media with the claim that it depicted the cross-border air strike by India. The video was posted by a Hindi media outlet Khabar Uttarakhand as an exclusive. At first glance, the video did not seem genuine and resembled a clip of a video game. The faint English commentary in the background raised initial doubts. Alt News searched gaming videos on YouTube with different keywords and landed on a 2015 clip of a video game ‘Arma 2’. The part of the video which is viral on social media was taken from this game. On February 26 i.e. the day of the airstrike, a video went viral claiming to be the Indian Air Force strike on terrorist camps in Pakistan. A Twitter user Ajay Kushwaha, who is followed by PM Narendra Modi on Twitter, posted the following video on his timeline. India strikes again. This is new India under Leadership of Honourable PM Shri @narendramodi ji. India’s airforce destroyed terrorist camps in Pakistan and more than 200-300 militant have been killed According to souces. @ImranKhanPTI how’s the josh ??#Balakot #SurgicalStrike2 pic.twitter.com/8FRaUK3TfK — 🇮🇳अजय कुशवाहा🇮🇳 🇮🇳Ajay🇮🇳 (@AjayKushwaha_) February 26, 2019 Several social media users had commented that the video was originally from Pakistan. Alt News used the keywords ‘Islamabad paf fly past flares’ on YouTube and looked for videos which might match the one viral on social media. Alt News found that this video was posted as early as September 2016 by a YouTube user Muhammad Zohaib. A bunch of images doing rounds on social media was circulated with the claim that they depict the devastation caused by the Indian Air Force in Pakistani territory. The caption used to share the viral images was – “पुलवामा की तो तस्वीर बहुत देखी जरा आज पाकिस्तान का भी हाल देखो!!!! (Seen enough photograph of Pulwama, now see the condition of Pakistan).” Alt News found that the above image depicts the October 2005 Kashmir earthquake. The photograph was taken in the Pakistani town of Balakot. According to a BBC report, “The earthquake had affected the northern regions of Pakistan, Afghanistan and India. An estimated 75,000 people were killed, mostly in Pakistan-administered Kashmir.” Alt News’ story on these viral images can be read here. On February 27, the Indian Air Force engaged Pakistani jets after they violated Indian air-space in which one IAF pilot was captured from PoK after his plane was shot down. Soon after, a video began floating in the Pakistani social media ecosystem. The 30-second clip attempted to portray a Pakistani fighter jet bombing an Indian aircraft. It was shared with multiple hashtags, including #PakArmyZindabad. A member of the national assembly of Pakistan, Mian Javed Latif, also shared the video. #شاہینوں_کی_پرواز نعرہ تکبیر اللہ اکبر پلٹنا پلٹ کر جھپٹنا اسی کو کہتے ہیں اسے تباہ کرتے ہیں ہم دشمن کو #PakArmyZindabad pic.twitter.com/qrmAOKF1aX — Mian javed Latif MNA (@javedlatifMNA) February 27, 2019 Alt News reverse-searched individual frames of the viral clip and found that it was created using at least two different videos. The first few seconds of the viral clip, where a pilot can be seen inside the fighter jet, were picked up from a 2015 video uploaded by a Youtube channel Pakistan Defense. The second video that we found was uploaded by RT News in 2015 and described as – “The Royal Danish Air Force participated in an exercise involving an F-16 Fighting Falcon jet shooting down a remote Banshee 600 drone using guided missiles.” A viral message on Facebook, Twitter and WhatsApp claimed that the pilot of the February 26 IAF airstrike on JeM camps at Pakistan’s Balakot is a girl named Urvisha Jariwala from Bhulka Bhavan school in Surat. A BJP leader from Rajasthan, Ritalba Solanki, was among those who made the assertion. Upon searching the keywords – “Urvisha Jariwala Indian air force” and “Urvashi Jariwala Indian air force” – Google did not throw up any results. Alt News reverse-searched the woman’s image on Google and found that she is actually IAF pilot Sneha Shekhawat. According to a 2015 Times of India report, “Sneha Shekhawat made history as the first woman pilot to lead an IAF contingent in the 63-year history of the Republic Day parades.” A video made viral by multiple Pakistani social media accounts was shared with the claims that it depicts the arrested Indian Air Force (IAF). It was shared over 18000 times alone from one Facebook page Pak Army. It was also shared widely on Twitter. 2nd Indian Pilot Arrested Alive… pic.twitter.com/TaYWNCCljY — Dr Shahid Masood (@Shahidmasooddr) February 27, 2019 Alt News looked up this video and found that it was circulated in the Pakistani social media ecosystem with a false context. The video dates back to Feb 19, 2019, a day prior to Aero Show in Bangalore, when two Surya Kiran aircrafts crashed during rehearsal. The crash had resulted in the death of one pilot and two other pilots were injured. The events were marked by aggressive reporting by mainstream news organisations in both nations. Truth was the casualty in the process. Pakistani fighter jets reportedly violated Indian air space in Jammu and Kashmir on February 27 but were pushed back by IAF. Pakistani media, however, conversely claimed that Indian fighter planes violated the country’s air space and were shot down by PAF. Pakistani media has been broadcasting the shooting down of IAF jets and local news channel ARY News flashed a photograph of a shot-down aircraft. The image flashed by ARY News dates back to 2016 when a MiG-27 fighter plane crashed into a building in Rajasthan’s Jodhpur. “PAF shoots down two Indian aircraft inside Pakistani airspace; one pilot arrested”, read the headline of an article published by the leading Pakistani daily, Dawn. A photo of crashed aircraft surrounded by people was also provided with the article. Iran’s Press TV had also published the same report with an identical photo. Alt News found that the image of the aircraft which is claimed to have crashed near the LoC in Pakistan is three years old. A simple Google search of the image showed that it pertains to an Indian Air Force fighter trainer aircraft that had crashed in Mayurbhanj district of Odisha in 2015. With India waking up to news of the Indian Air Force bombing JeM terror camps at Balakot in Pakistan in the early hours of February 26, multiple news channels broadcasted a video, purported to be of IAF jets inside Pakistani territory. India Today has claimed that this video is the first visual of India’s cross-border strike which was conducted at around 3:30 am. Other news channels have broadcasted the video as taken in the aftermath of the strike. Alt News found that this video, used by multiple news organisations reporting the attack by IAF, was first posted in 2017. In September 2017, a YouTube channel had uploaded a video titled ‘Flares at night Paf F-16’. This very video was used by news organisations as footage of IAF action. Apart from the events and developments surrounding the airstrike, the Pulwama terror attack which preceded it was another occasion for misinformation. भारतीय फौज पर हमला करने बाला नीकला राहुल गांधी का खास। क्या इस हमले के पीछे कांग्रेस का हाथ तो नहीं (The man who attacked the Indian army was close to Rahul Gandhi. Is the Congress behind the attack? -translated)” read the message posted on social media along with a photograph, which showed Congress president Rahul Gandhi with Adil Ahmed Dar, the Pulwama attack suicide bomber. Alt News found that the image which shows Pulwama suicide bomber and Rahul Gandhi is photoshopped. We found the original image posted by the photo wire agency Getty Images. The man standing next to Rahul Gandhi is not the Pulwama suicide bomber. He is in fact Jitin Prasada, a Former Minister of State in the UPA Government. Bihar CM Nitish Kumar and Prime Minister Narendra Modi were targeted on social media for supposedly sharing a laugh after the recent Pulwama terror attack. Youth Congress tweeted a collage of photographs which included an image featuring the duo. This photograph was shared widely by several social media users, claiming explicitly or implicitly that it was clicked after the Pulwama attack. Alt News did a Google reverse image search of the image and found that the image dates to back July, 2015. An article published by The Indian Express on July 26, 2015 had carried the photograph. The photo credited to PTI was captioned, “PM Narendra Modi, Nitish Kumar in Patna on Saturday.”Modi and Kumar had shared stage at the launch event of a railway project in Patna, months before the Bihar assembly election in 2015. At 1:23 PM on February 21, Twitter handle ‘Comrade Squinty’ tweeted student activist Gurmehar Kaur’s interview with BBC Urdu and claimed that it was shot in Pakistan. The handle also alleged that she “went to Pakistan just to say that an attack like Pulwama hurts minorities.” @squintneon is run by state social media in-charge of ABVP Assam, Manas Jyoti Sharma. In the 19-second slip, Kaur can be heard saying, “When an attack like this happens it hurts our minorities and many politicians bank on this polarisation within the country before the elections. What’s most important is that citizens don’t pay heed to such talks.” Alt News confirmed that the show was shot in the London studio and NOT in Pakistan. BBC Urdu uploaded its complete broadcast on Pulwama attack on its official YouTube channel. The reportage titled ‘Sairbeen Friday 15th February 2019 – BBCURDU’ is 17:37 minutes long and at the start of the broadcast, the anchor says in Hindi, “This is Shafi Naqi Jamie from our London studios.” The BBC journalist himself said that he was reporting from BBC Urdu’s London studios. Alt News also independently verified this. In a video clip of a India TV prime time broadcast shared by social media users, Major General G D Bakshi, when asked by anchor Rajat Sharma as to how an explosive laden SUV could escape checks, General Bakshi said that this was the result of an order which was passed by Mehbooba Mufti when she was the CM of J&K in 2014. The order was passed following an incident which took place in Budgam, in which two youths had been shot dead by the army after they tried to evade security barricades. Among those who shared this video clip included former IPS officer and Puducherry governor Kiran Bedi. Listen to this please. pic.twitter.com/iC8Djq1a7B — Kiran Bedi (@thekiranbedi) February 17, 2019 Alt News fact-checked this claim and found it to be false. Firstly, Mehbooba Mufti was not even the Chief Minister when the Budgam incident had occurred. Omar Abdullah was the CM. Moreover, no such order had been issued preventing checking of vehicles. Apart from the above themes, there were some other notable instances. Piyush Goyal, the Union Minister for Railways, posted a video of Vande Bharat Express with the text, “It’s a bird…It’s a plane…Watch India’s first semi-high speed train built under ‘Make in India’ initiative, Vande Bharat Express zooming past at lightening speed.“. The same video has been posted on Goyal’s official Twitter and Facebook accounts. It’s a bird…It’s a plane…Watch India’s first semi-high speed train built under ‘Make in India’ initiative, Vande Bharat Express zooming past at lightening speed. pic.twitter.com/KbbaojAdjO — Piyush Goyal (@PiyushGoyal) February 10, 2019 Alt News found that the video posted by the Railway Minister was a clipped portion of a YouTube video, which was then speeded up to twice its original speed. A photograph viral on social media was shared with the claim that it depicts Rajiv and Rahul Gandhi offering Islamic prayers at Indira Gandhi’s funeral. From the Facebook profile of a youth worker at the BJP, the photograph was circulated with the caption – “इन्दिरा की लाश के सामने राहुल और राजीव गांधी कलमा पढ रहे हैं फिर भी हमारे देश के लोगों को लगता है कि ये लोग ब्राह्मण हैं। (Even though Rahul and Rajiv Gandhi offered Islamic prayers in front of Indira Gandhi’s dead body, people say they are Brahmins.)” Upon reverse-searching the image, Alt News found a few sources which claimed that the photograph was actually shot at the funeral of Pashtun independence activist Khan Abdul Ghaffar Khan, popularly known as Bacha Khan or ‘Frontier Gandhi’. The claim viral on social media was false. Alt News’ story can be read here. Prime minister Narendra Modi took a holy dip in the Ganges in the Kumbh Mela in Prayagraj, Uttar Pradesh on February 24. Soon after, BJP IT cell head Amit Malviya tweeted that PM Modi is the “first head of state to visit Kumbh in all these years.” Alt News’ fact-check reveals that Prime Minister Narendra Modi is not the first Prime Minister of India to visit the Kumbh mela. It is Jawaharlal Nehru. 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 March 2019 / 3:28 pm / Last updated: 12th March 2019	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/february-round-up-misinformation-industry-feeds-off-pulwama-attack-and-indo-pak-tension/", "author": "Arjun Sidharth" }

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