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1,443	Hindu man allegedly murders family and kills himself in Pakistan, Indian media communalises incident - Alt News Pooja Chaudhuri & Mohammed Zubair 8th March 2021 / 7:53 pm An incident from Pakistan that made headlines in Indian media was the death of five members of a Hindu family. Times Now claimed that the family’s murder was another instance of crimes against the minority Hindu community in Pakistan. #Breaking \| 5 Hindus killed using knife, axe in Pakistan’s Punjab province. Details by Pradeep Dutta. pic.twitter.com/eatXvwI6lq — TIMES NOW (@TimesNow) March 8, 2021 “Atrocities against Hindus continue in Pakistan…This is a story of five members of a Hindu family brutally murdered in Pakistani Punjab…What is unfortunate is that no one has investigated in this regard…One thing we keep on seeing is Imran Khan giving lessons and sermons on the human rights violation in India but what exactly is happening in his backyard, he tries to hardly do anything,” said Times Now reporter Pradeep Dutta. The channel subsequently reported that the BJP has demanded that the United Nations Human Rights Commission (UNHRC) takes note of crimes against Hindus in Pakistan. ANI credited Pakistan-based The News International in its report. “Social activist Birbal Das in Rahim Yar Khan told The News International that Ram Chand was a Meghwal Hindu and he was 35-36 years old. He was running a tailoring shop for a long time. He was a peaceful man and living a happy life, and the incident was quite shocking for everyone,” read ANI’s story republished by Hindustan Times, India Today, Yahoo News, India.com, Zee5 and Hindi news outlet Hindustan. WION and Zee News English published a similar report with inputs from ANI. India.com’s report was quote tweeted by BJP member Surendra Poonia who wrote, “That’s why CAA is needed!” The incident was also reported by One India and Newstrack Among the mainstream Hindi media outlets that carried reports was ABP News. The channel claimed during its broadcast that the murder of five members of a family has sparked fear among the Hindu community in Pakistan. #BreakingNews: पाकिस्तान में हिंदुओं पर हमला, 5 लोगों की गला काटकर हत्या@AadarshJha01#Pakistan #Hindu #India #ABPNewshttps://t.co/ftwApTaMqX pic.twitter.com/jgTU96g0DV — ABP News (@ABPNews) March 7, 2021 Amar Ujala reported, “According to Pakistani newspaper The News International, throats of every member of Meghwal family were slit. Police recovered a knife and an axe from the house. It is believed that these were used by the attackers. Ram Chand Meghwal’s age is said to be 35-36. He was living peacefully with his family but this was intolerable for the attackers. Who were the attackers and why was the family murdered? This is yet to be found.” A similar report was carried by Navbharat Times. Pro-BJP propaganda website OpIndia too claimed this was a crime against minorities in Pakistan. Most reports are based on a story by Pakistan-based The News International. However, ANI and several others have selectively quoted the outlet. While The News International said that Ram Chand Meghwal and his family were found dead in their house, it also stated that “the police claimed the killer was the family head, Ram Chand, who slit throats of his wife (Lakshmi Mai), three children over suspicion that his wife had illicit relations”. The report further said, “The complainant, Terath Ram, a brother of Lakshmi Mai, lodged his complaint stating that his brother-in-law, Ram Chand, slit throats of his family members over suspicions.” The Dawn reported that Ram Chand killed his wife and three children before killing himself over unemployment. The Express Tribune also stated that this was a murder cum suicide case. “A man reportedly committed suicide after killing his wife and three children due to poverty on Friday night. Police said Ram Chand, a resident of Chak 135, committed suicide by cutting his vein after killing his wife and three children with a sharp instrument due to domestic disputes over poverty,” said its report. Regional news channel Rohi from Pakistan’s South Punjab area spoke to Ram Chand’s sister who said that he hadn’t been working for the past two years and his wife repeatedly asked him to get a job. Her statement can be heard 2:30 minutes onward in the broadcast below. The reporter also said that the dead bodies of the family members were recovered after breaking into the house. Alt News contacted Pakistani journalist Shiraz Hassan who shared the FIR filed by Ram Chand’s brother-in-law Tirath Ram. The FIR is in Urdu and it says, “My brother-in-law Ram Chand murdered his wife Lakshmi Mai and kids Prem Kumar, Anjali Mai and Aniqa Mai with an axe and dagger on 5-3-2021 because they used to complain…He has injured himself too. Upon receiving this information I went on the spot with Jeena Ram, Barad Ram and Chitra Ram and saw that my sister Lakshmi Mai, his son Prem Kumar and her daughters Anjali Mai and Aneeqa Mai were dead. There were knife marks on their necks. Ram Chand was shifted to the hospital by his brother. Ram Chand used to suspect my sister. He murdered his wife and kids with an axe and knife at night and later tried to commit suicide as well with the knife. I was later informed that Ram Chand also passed away in the hospital.” A Hindu man allegedly killed his wife and children after killing himself in Pakistan. The incident was communalised by Indian media, claiming that the incident depicts atrocities against minorities in Pakistan. 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	8th March 2021 / 7:53 pm	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/hindu-man-allegedly-murders-family-and-kills-himself-in-pakistan-indian-media-communalises-incident/", "author": "Pooja Chaudhuri & Mohammed Zubair" }
1,444	Hindu man who died in bull attack mocked assuming he was Muslim - Alt News Aqib Pathan 26th July 2021 / 5:31 pm A 30-second CCTV footage of a bull attacking an elderly man, tossing him in the air, has been shared on social media with several people mocking his death. A sarcastic caption says that a Muslim man was attacked by Hindu deity ‘Nandi’ on Bakrid. Below is a tweet by @yvs_raizada, who is followed by BJP leader Piyush Goyal. सलीम चाचा को अल्लाह के घर पहुंचाते हुए नंदी महाराज बकरा ईद स्पेशल😡😡😡 Paisa wasooool…😂🤣 #PETA @BJP4India @adeshguptabjp @sandeepfromvns @SandeepfromBJP @Neiru1 pic.twitter.com/WiDPQiBahg — Raizada YVS (@yvs_raizada) July 23, 2021 Eid al-Adha was celebrated on July 21 and a lot of Twitter users have shared this video with the Eid spin. और सलीम चच्चा अल्लाह को प्यारे हो गए बकरीद पर नंदीजी ने ली कुर्बानी 😆😆😆😆😆😆😆😆😆😆😆 pic.twitter.com/o3F5MjhCDm — 🚩🇮🇳उमा शंकर राघव 🇮🇳🚩8k (@UmaShankar2054) July 25, 2021 Most posts mock the elderly man’s death thinking he was Muslim. (1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6 and 7) People are also mocking his death in the comments. The Tribune had reported on the unfortunate incident on July 12. According to the outlet, “The deceased has been identified as Deep Chand (65) of Sondhapur village (Panipat). The incident got recorded by a CCTV camera installed at a nearby building.” ETV Bharat also reported on the elderly man’s death. The report said that he was admitted to Civil Hospital in Panipat and later shifted to PGI Rohtak. Deep Chand succumbed to his injuries. ETV has also shared a photo of the deceased. Alt News spoke to the Sarpanch of Sondhapur, Rajesh Kumar, who confirmed that Deep Chand hailed from the Hindu community. A video of an elderly man brutally attacked by a bull was shared on social media with insensitive remarks. Believed to be a Muslim, the man’s tragic death was mocked. The incident was circulated with anti-Muslim comments. Aqib is monitoring and researching mis/disinformation 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	26th July 2021 / 5:31 pm	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/hindu-man-who-died-in-bull-attack-mocked-assuming-he-was-muslim/", "author": "Aqib Pathan" }
1,445	MP mob beats up Hindu boy believing 'love jihad', video viral to further false spin - Alt News Kinjal 7th September 2021 / 7:32 pm A video of a group of people beating a boy in police presence over an alleged case of ‘love jihad’ is widespread on social media. It is being claimed that a Muslim boy had convinced a Hindu girl to elope with him in Bhopal. Facebook user Geetam Singh Chahar posted the footage with the same claim. It garnered 36,000 views at the time of writing. (Archive link) Another Facebook user shared the visuals and accompanying claim. The clip is also widely circulating on Facebook. (Link 1, Link 2) Alt News performed a keyword search and found an article by The New Indian Express dated September 4, stating that a 16-year-old boy was thrashed in Dewas, Madhya Pradesh where he had eloped with a 12-year-old girl. Locals thought that he was Muslim and had taken her under false pretences. Alleging ‘love jihad’, the mob beat him up. The police were quoted as saying that both the boy and girl were Hindus and residents of Uttar Pradesh. The report also mentioned that after this incident, both of them were handed over to the Uttar Pradesh police. Dewas police identified four people from the video and filed a complaint against 15 unidentified persons. The Quint also covered the incident, and the outlet carried a screenshot of the viral video. Jansatta wrote a story as well. Alt News contacted Dewas SP Shiv Dayal Singh for more information on the case. “There is no ‘love jihad’ angle to this incident. Both the boy and the girl were minors and Hindus. The police have begun taking action by registering a complaint against the people who beat up the boy. Both the minors were handed over to the Uttar Pradesh police.” he explained. To sum it up, a Hindu minor was thrashed by a mob in Madhya Pradesh that mistakenly believed he was a Muslim who abducted a Hindu girl. A video of this entire incident was also shared on social media with the same false ‘love jihad’ angle. 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	7th September 2021 / 7:32 pm	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/hindu-minor-boy-beaten-up-by-mob-in-mp-dewas-on-suspicion-of-love-jihad-video-viral-with-false-claim/", "author": "Kinjal" }
1,446	The Hindu 'unfiltered' by Twitter after Alt News raises the issue - Alt News Alt News Desk 14th November 2017 / 9:19 pm Alt News had stumbled upon a startling discovery yesterday. Tweets from the newspaper, The Hindu, were not appearing in Twitter search results. Although the @the_hindu account was active on Twitter, search results for its tweets draw a blank. Who doesn't want you to read ‘The Hindu’? @TwitterIndia, why is @the_hindu not appearing in search results? pic.twitter.com/ILybNLKWd8 — SamSays (@samjawed65) November 13, 2017 If you search for the tweets of any user, for example Alt News, all the tweets show up when you type “from:@altnews” in the Twitter search box. This functionality also allows users to search for certain key words. For example you can type “from:@altnews fake news” and you will get all the tweets from Alt News that contain the key words “fake news” in them. In the case of The Hindu, you had to go to their Twitter profile to view their tweets. Not appearing in search results limits the reach of the tweets and does not allow users to search for keywords. Screenshot pic.twitter.com/940eww4dGu — Pratik Sinha (@free_thinker) November 13, 2017 After we raised this issue on Twitter and sent across an email to Twitter, Deputy Web Editor of Hindu, PJ George, responded on Twitter by claiming that this issue has been plaguing them for a while. We have got this query before also. Some of our smaller handles come up in search but not the main one. The only explanation I could find was that Twitter blocks search for some handles. — P.J. George (@peejaygeorge) November 13, 2017 When we contacted Hindu, they stated that they have reached out to Twitter regarding the same and there is no reason why they should be eliminated from the Twitter search results, “The Hindu’s main Twitter handle is verified with over 4.5 million followers, and it focuses on current news and analysis. There is no apparent reason that it should be eliminated from search results. We have reached out to Twitter on this issue.” However, a few hours after we raised this issue, @the_hindu started appearing on Twitter search results and the same was confirmed to us by the Deputy Web Editor of The Hindu. In September this year, twitter was abuzz with the news of a possible “shadow banning” of the account of James Wilson, a vocal critic of Indian Government’s Demonetisation move. Twitter did not confirm or deny Wilson’s account was shadow banned. Both Telegraph and Newslaundry reported the response from twitter: “We do not comment on individual accounts for privacy and security reasons.” The software components on platforms such as Twitter and Facebook which deal with features such as suspending/spam detection etc are largely software driven and their algorithms often get triggered by various factors. Many people in the past have complained about being unfairly censored by these platforms. At the same time, fake videos/images/news stay viral for ever without the platforms taking any action. It is high time that these platforms at-least have a dedicated support system where individual users can report such issues. Follow @free_thinker Following Saudi Arabia’s 2-1 win against Argentina in the ongoing FIFA World Cup, speculation about… Trigger Warning: The following story contains graphic imagery. Several users have shared images of the… The brutal murder of Shraddha Walker has been widely covered across news media over the… A 1:34-minute-long CCTV camera clip is being widely circulated on social media in which viewers… The teaser of a movie titled ‘The Kerala Story’ is being widely shared on social…	news-altnews	2024-05-27T18:24:05.489452	14th November 2017 / 9:19 pm	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/hindu-unfiltered-twitter-alt-news-raises-issue/", "author": "Alt News Desk" }
1,447	Woman saying she has 18 children does not hail from the Muslim community - Alt News Kinjal 27th August 2021 / 2:00 pm A video of a woman’s interview where she reveals she has given birth to 18 children is circulating widely on social media platforms. The woman tells the interviewer that her children have a right to food and education. Several people have identified the woman as ‘Razia’. A user named Kiran Jain shared the clip on Twitter. (Archive link) रज़िया बानो ने 18 बच्चे कितने सालों में पैदा किये होंगे भक्तों.?? सही जवाब देने वाले को हमारा फोलो मिलेगा 🤔😊😯 pic.twitter.com/wW0OWGRcs6 — किरन जैन ( देशभक्त ) 🇮🇳 🚩 (@JainKiran6) August 12, 2021 Facebook user ‘Baba Bhakt’ also posted the footage, where it amassed more than 1,800 views at the time of writing. (Archive link) 😜 सिर्फ 18 बच्चे (11लड़के +7 लड़कियां) पैदा किये हैं इस जिहादन ने! और खाना, कपड़ा, शिक्षा मोदी जी से मांग रही है!😜 Posted by बाबा भक्त on Saturday, August 7, 2021 Facebook page ’24 hours today news’ shared the clip with a communal spin as well. (Archive link) 😜 सिर्फ 18 बच्चे (11लड़के +7 लड़कियां) पैदा किये हैं इस जिहादन ने! और खाना, कपड़ा, शिक्षा मोदी जी से मांग रही 😜 सिर्फ 18 बच्चे (11लड़के +7 लड़कियां) पैदा किये हैं इस जिहादन ने! और खाना, कपड़ा, शिक्षा मोदी जी से मांग रही है!😜👆🤪 Posted by 24 hours today news on Monday, August 9, 2021 Twitter handle ‘@humlogindia‘ also promoted the video. Replying to their own post, this user pointed out that people with more family members take a greater share of ration home. आप किसी करीबी राशन दुकान पर जाकर जरुर देखिए जहां हमारे लोग राशन थैलियों में भरकर ले जाते दिखाई देंगे वहीं विशेष समुदाय के लोग क्विंटलों अनाज की बोरी ठेलों पर लादकर .. मोदीजी का मुफ्त राशन — हम लोग We The People (@humlogindia) August 7, 2021 The visuals are widespread on Facebook and Twitter. VHP spokesperson Vinod Bansal tweeted the video sans the claim that the woman is Muslim. Fake News website Postcard News founder Mahesh Vikram Hegde also promoted the clip. Most viewers have believed the woman hails from the Muslim community. In the top right corner of the video, the acronym ‘FT’ can be spotted. Alt News performed a keyword search on YouTube and found a video posted by Fire TV on July 27, 2021. This is a longer version of the viral clip. In the beginning of the footage, at the 0:22 mark, the woman tells the interviewer that her name is Ramshree. Further, at the 2:35 mark, she describes herself as a Kurmi, which is a Hindu caste. The Kurmi community has a large population in Uttar Pradesh. [youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=838TQCAwo0A] To sum it up, a video of a woman saying she has 18 children was shared on social media with a false communal angle. False claims suggested the woman’s name is ‘Razia’. Tasteless comments called her a ‘Jihadan’. 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 / 2:00 pm	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/hindu-woman-has-18-children-video-viral-with-muslim-angle/", "author": "Kinjal" }
1,448	Hindustan misreports, no ISIS flags waved at protest rally in Meerut - Alt News Arjun Sidharth 1st July 2019 / 6:15 pm On June 30, a protest rally was taken out in Meerut, Uttar Pradesh over the recent incident of lynching of Tabrez Ansari in Jharkhand. The next day i.e. on July 1, the Hindi publication Hindustan, which belongs to the Hindustan Times group, published an article in its Meerut edition headlined, “आईएसआईएस के झंडे भी लहराए गए !” (ISIS flags were also waved!- translation). There are two photographs published along with the article. In one of the photos, a black and white striped banner can be seen. In the other photo can be seen two black coloured flags. Hindustan (Meerut Edition) July 1, 2019 The article meanwhile states, “BJP leaders have complained to the police alleging ISIS flags were waved during the peace rally. A video has also been released and a complaint has been filed with the intelligence bureau. It has been alleged that the flag is of an organisation involved in anti-national activities. It has also been alleged that such organisations were behind the rally. The matter should be investigated. On the other hand, the organisers of the rally claimed that they were the flags of the Jamiat Ulema” (translated from Hindi). Interestingly, the online version of this article has qualified this statement about ISIS flags with a question mark, unlike the e-paper version. It may be noted that the write-up exclusively states that BJP leaders have made this allegation of ISIS banners being waved at the rally. However, the headline of the article explicitly states that ISIS flags were waved. Interestingly, Alt News found that the Lucknow edition of the newspaper has a different title, with no mention of ISIS flags. Instead, it has been reported with the narrative that the BJP has alleged that ISIS flags were waved at the rally. Hindustan (Lucknow Edition) July 1, 2019 According to reports, police resorted to lathicharge after the crowd turned unruly and pelted stones at police personnel present at the spot. Further, it has been reported that the organisers of the rally had not taken prior permission. Expectedly, this claim that ISIS flags were present at the rally in Meerut found its way on to social media. यही देखना शेष रह गया था… उत्तर प्रदेश के मेरठ जिले में कल जिहादियों ने लहराए आईएसआईएस(isis) के झण्डे… और साहब इनका विश्वास जीतना चाहते है….. इसे कहते हैं हिन्दुओ के साथ विश्वासघात…. pic.twitter.com/6axkVPUz8e — अनामिका (@NeelKam99232900) July 1, 2019 The same has been asserted in an article on the website BreakingTube. The website has published communally charged misinformation in the past. Alt News spoke to Akhilesh N Singh, SP City Meerut, who categorically stated that there is no information about ISIS flags being waved at the rally. “We have not seen (ISIS flags at the rally)” (translated). When asked about the report by Hindustan that BJP leaders have lodged a complaint with the police regarding the supposed presence of ISIS flags, Singh said, “We have not received any such complaint. Perhaps Hindustan would be able to clarify on this.” (translated). He however added, “They (protesters) pelted stones and did not allow an ambulance to pass. They did not have permission for the rally. A notice had been issued to them regarding this.” (translated). In one of the photographs published by Hindustan (right), two black-coloured flags can be seen. Black flags are commonly used in protest rallies and marches. In the other photo, a black and white striped banner can be seen (left). Alt News found that it is the banner of the Jamiat Ulema-e-Hind, an organisation of Islamic theologians and scholars. Moreover, there are significant differences between the banner of the Jamiat Ulema-e-Hind and the ISIS. A juxtaposed comparison is posted below for reference. It may be reiterated that UP police has confirmed that no ISIS flags were seen at the rally in Meerut. The report by Hindustan is an example of misinformation. 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 July 2019 / 6:15 pm	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/hindustan-misreports-no-isis-flags-waved-at-protest-rally-in-meerut/", "author": "Arjun Sidharth" }
1,449	Media outlet Hindustan shares 9-year-old image from Bangladesh as Bihar floods - Alt News Priyanka Jha 3rd August 2020 / 1:49 pm Conditions in northern Bihar remain grim due to the recent floods. Photos and videos of the flooding are being widely shared across social media. A Twitter user posted an image published on the Hindi daily Hindustan. “This is a picture of Bandra’s Sakri-Chandpura area. This family has been living like this for a week in this village-turned-island,” read the tweet. Another user shared the image claiming it depicted the recent Bihar floods. Due to flood, the family has been living like this for a week. #Bihar pic.twitter.com/ni29j1ORNU — زماں (@Delhiite_) July 30, 2020 The image was published on the third page of the Muzaffarpur edition of Hindustan dated July 30, 2020, with the headline, “Flood threatens SKMCH.” We noticed that apart from the image caption, the family finds no mention in the article. A reverse image search led to various links, including a 2015 Global Citizen article suggesting that the photo was from Bangladesh. Therefore, an image that has been on the internet since at least 2015 was published in the newspaper as the recent Bihar floods. The image was also published in 2014 on a website called ‘Permaculturenews.org’ which wrote an article on sandbar cropping in Bangladesh. The picture is credited to Shiree (Stimulating Household Improvements Resulting in Economic Empowerment), an organisation working with Practical Action in Bangladesh. Practical Action is an international NGO working to uplift the poor in developing countries. It has worked extensively in Bangladesh as well. Shiree is a government organisation in Bangladesh. Based on this information, we searched for the image on Shiree’s website. Its ‘Media’ section carried a Flickr link with all the images of Shiree’s work. Here, we found an album titled ‘Practical Action, Bangladesh (PAB)’ with 272 photos. This album also contained the image in question. We found that it was taken on September 22, 2011. Practical Action has provided financial support to poor families in the coastal areas of Bangladesh. According to its website, this was done in two phases – from April 2009 to March 2012, then between April 2015 and December 2015. Hindustan published an image from Bangladesh that was at least nine years old as a flooded village in Bihar. Several reports state that houses in Bandra submerged due to the flooding in Bagmati and Burhi Gandak rivers. ETV Bharat reported that many families in Gopalganj’s Bagheji village were forced to take shelter on higher ground and roofs due to lack of administrative assistance. 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	3rd August 2020 / 1:49 pm	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/hindustan-newspaper-shared-a-9-year-old-image-from-bangladesh-to-show-a-family-got-stuck-for-a-week-in-bihar-flood/", "author": "Priyanka Jha" }
1,450	Hindustan Times publishes unverified claim about ‘60,000’ rioters in Bengaluru violence - Alt News Pooja Chaudhuri 12th August 2020 / 10:39 pm / Last updated: 13th August 2020 Three people lost their lives in violence that erupted in Bengaluru on Tuesday night after a mob attacked the residence of Congress MLA Akhanda Srinivasa Murthy over a defamatory Facebook post allegedly made by his nephew against a religion. The riots saw arson, vandalism and stone-pelting targetting the politician’s house and police stations at DJ Halli and KG Halli. Reporting on the events from last night, Hindustan Times (HT) cited an ‘eyewitness’ account and published an article claiming “60,000-strong mob” had pelted stones at the police. “An eyewitness said on Wednesday there was a strong mob of 50,000 to 60,000, which pelted stones at police personnel and damaged property at a police station during the violence on Tuesday night in Bengaluru,” reported HT identifying the eyewitness as Sharif, who was part of the civil defence team aiding the police to pacify the crowd. HT has now altered its report, however, without stating any reason for the same. But the outlet seems to have overlooked its Bangla report which continues to put the strength of the mob at 60,000 as of this writing. Another Bangla website Kolkata Tribune also claimed that Bengaluru violence witnessed a mob of 60,000. Similar reports were carried by Swarajya, The Free Press Journal (FPJ) and OpIndia. All of them cited Hindustan Times as the source but none of them updated their reports as of this writing. The eyewitness who was cited by the above-mentioned reports was questioned by the press on Wednesday morning. “Who all were involved?” a reporter asked Sharif who is a part of a civil defence team at DG Halli police station. “We can’t name the people involved,” he responded. “How much [large] was the crowd?” he was questioned next. “Somewhere around 50,000-60,000,” he claimed adding that the “police department has suffered many losses…We are from the police department, we have to support them. I am from DG Halli so this is like my temple, my masjid.” This can be watched starting 28 seconds in the video below. #WATCH Bengaluru: Sharif, belonging to Civil Defence & an eye-witness to DJ Halli Police Station’s vandalisation, comes to record his statement; says, “We’re from Civil Defence & had come to protect Police. It was public’s fault. This (Police Station) is like my temple,my masjid” pic.twitter.com/XeVyaK5Z1O — ANI (@ANI) August 12, 2020 MLA Akhanda Srinivas Murthy claimed that a mob of 4,000 attacked his residence, as per a report in Deccan Herald which also says that a crowd of 600 attacked KG Halli police station. Mirror Now, however, puts the strength of the crowd outside Murthy’s residence at 1,500. None of the reports that Alt News came across put the strength of the crowd even close to 60,000. “There were basically two attacks. One at DG Halli which spilt over to KG Halli and the second on the residences of Congress MLA Murthy and his nephew Naveen who made the Facebook post. Their houses are about 800 metres apart,” Arun Dev, Karnataka Bureau Chief at The Quint, told Alt News. Dev gave a chronological account of Tuesday night’s violence in his report published by The Quint the next day. According to his report, Social Democratic Party of India (SDPI) leader Muzammil Pasha visited DG Halli police station at around 7:45 PM to file a complaint against Naveen. Pasha was accompanied by a crowd of 150. The police filed an FIR but Naveen was yet to be arrested. This agitated the crowd, leading to violence. The mob, which had sprouted to at least 800 by 10:30 PM, attacked DG Halli police station. “This is according to the police’s account. The residents’ accounts claim about 1,000 people had gathered in the area,” said Dev. The outnumbered cops retaliated with tear gas shells. At around midnight, they fired in the air and also open fired at the crowd. One person was killed on the spot and two others were injured who later succumbed to death. A section of the crowd outside DG Halli police station moved toward KG Halli police station and was joined by others. According to The Quint report, around the same time as the attack outside DJ Halli police station, another mob moved towards the Congress MLA’s house in the same locality. Naveen’s father, T Pavan Kumar, claimed that a mob of 500-800 passed by his house at 8:30 PM. Within minutes, Naveen’s house was also vandalised. In an effort to locate him, the crowd then moved to other houses in the area and also burnt down a local bar. “The strength of the crowd that I got from Naveen’s father who was in the house when the attack happened was close to 500-800,” said Dev. Dev added that as per his understanding the total strength of the crowd was 2,000-2,500. Prajwal Bhat from The News Minute, who was reporting from the area during the violence, gave a similar account to Alt News. He too said that the total strength of the mob was around 2,000, and so did CNN News18 journalist DP Satish. A report published by The News Minute on August 12, penned by Bhat, says that the police account claims there were more than 1,500 rioters outside DG Halli police station. The report adds that over 200 rioters had gathered outside Naveen’s residence. An inaccurate account was, therefore, carried by Hindustan Times. While the outlet subsequently altered its report, the figure was picked up by several other organisations. Reports were published in English, Hindi and Bangla without verifying or corroborating the figure. At a time when social media posts lead to violence, unverified media reports can have worse ramifications. [Update: Hindustan Times altered its Bangla report after this fact-check was published. However, the report does not carry any clarification for removing the ‘60,000’ figure.] Pooja Chaudhuri is a senior editor at Alt News. Inter-faith relationships between Hindu women and Muslim men have been a sore point for the… 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 August 2020 / 10:39 pm / Last updated: 13th August 2020	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/hindustan-times-publishes-unverified-claim-about-60000-rioters-in-bengaluru-violence/", "author": "Pooja Chaudhuri" }
1,451	Hindutva FB page publishes list of 100+ couples in inter-faith marriages, calls for violence - Alt News Alt News Desk 4th February 2018 / 8:54 pm / Last updated: 5th May 2018 “यह एक सूची है उन हिन्दू लड़कियों के फेसबुक प्रोफाइल की जो लव जिहाद का शिकार हो चुकी है या हो रही है… हर हिन्दू शेर से आग्रह है, इनमे जो लड़के है, उनको खोज के शिकार करे” (This is a list of Facebook profiles of those Hindu girls who are either victims of love-jihad or are in the process of becoming one. Every Hindu lion is urged to track and hunt the boys from this list) A Facebook page by the name of “Hindutva Varta” (Hindutva Talk) posted a list of 102 couples – Hindu girls in relationships with Muslim boys – and called for Hindus to come forward and attack the boys. The page that has a gun as its profile picture has shared a database and made this open call for violence. Fanned by sections of the media and members of the ruling Hindu nationalist party, the bogie of “love-jihad” is now out of hand. The situation is alarming with a radical group inciting targeted violence against a list of individuals. The offensive post of the “Hindutva Varta” page has now been deleted after it caused uproar on social media. Alt News has archived the information but will not reproduce it here in the interest of safety of the couples involved. A glance through the page reveals its violent agenda. In one incendiary post, it urges parents to teach girls to use guns to save themselves from Jihad. In another post a group of men is seen beating up a person. “Along with the cow, the person who slaughtered it will also be dead”, says the accompanying message. The list shared by “Hindutva Varta” was also shared in November, 2017 by a page called “Justice for Hindus”. Unlike “Hindutva Varta”, there was no call for violence and the long list was shared as a wake-up call. The message accompanying the list said, “Hindu girls are converting to Islam by love jihad (Love Jihad, also called Romeo Jihad, is an alleged activity under which young Muslim boys and men are said to reportedly target young girls belonging to non-Muslim communities for conversion to Islam by feigning love. Wake up Hindus otherwise you will lose your homeland India. Here is a long list of love jihad with their Facebook ID link”. The page gave credit to a certain Riddhiman Kunti for the list. The “Hindutva Varta” page routinely posts inflammatory messages that have a very obvious objective to polarize communities and radicalize Hindu youth. The content talks openly of Hindu supremacy and violence against Muslims. There are many Hindutva pages on social media that post provocative content but this page has gone a step further in calling for an attack. This threat should not be taken lightly. While the particular post has been deleted, the page is still available on Facebook. We hope the home ministry and local police authorities will investigate it further before it carries out its threats against the 102 couples named in its post. Follow @free_thinker In the wake of the alleged murder of Shraddha Walkar by his partner Aftab Amin… The CCTV footage of a man violently flinging a child on the ground has created… A minute-long video clip of a woman being physically assaulted is viral on social media…. Trigger Warning: The following story contains graphic imagery. Several users have shared images of the… The brutal murder of Shraddha Walker has been widely covered across news media over the…	news-altnews	2024-05-27T18:24:05.489452	4th February 2018 / 8:54 pm / Last updated: 5th May 2018	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/hindutva-fb-page-publishes-list-100-couples-inter-faith-marriages-calls-violence/", "author": "Alt News Desk" }
1,452	Spot the photoshop - Is there any similarity between the images of PM Modi and Hitler? - Alt News Pooja Chaudhuri 25th July 2018 / 9:28 pm Captioned “spot the difference”, an image of Nazi leader Adolf Hitler posing with a child, is placed contiguous with an image of Prime Minister Modi, also with a child, and posted on social media. It was shared by IPS officer Sanjiv Bhatt on both Twitter and Facebook, drawing a combined share count of over 1,400. Spot the difference. pic.twitter.com/yI1fyIOdos — Sanjiv Bhatt (IPS) (@sanjivbhatt) July 25, 2018 Although the image is not widely circulated on social media, it has been shared by a few users. Ad filmmaker Ram Subramanian also Tweeted the image but without Modi’s photograph. However, he later called it “incredible photoshop” work after the same was pointed out to him. Incredible photoshop work… love it. Killer propaganda piece. — Ram Subramanian (@VORdotcom) July 25, 2018 A reverse image search on Google reveals that Hitler’s image used in the post is photoshopped. In the original image, he is not holding the child’s ears but resting his hands on her shoulders. An article in The Sun has published the original image which was apparently clicked to portray the Nazi leader as “personal friend and guardian of the German youth”. Moreover, if one looks closely, PM Modi’s left hand has been photoshopped as Hitler’s right and his right hand as Hitler’s left. Falling for morphed images on social media is a common affair. Earlier, an image of Rahul Gandhi was photoshopped with a portrait of Aurangzeb in the background. Another image was morphed to portray PM Modi surrounded by world leaders. It is advisable that images and videos circulating on social media are examined before sharing. 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	25th July 2018 / 9:28 pm	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/hitker-modi-photoshopped-image-child/", "author": "Pooja Chaudhuri" }
1,453	From 'Hitler with a Tilak' meme to a Bengali poem critical of hardline Hinduism, Facebook is on a take-down spree - Alt News Pratik Sinha 27th March 2017 / 7:50 pm / Last updated: 27th March 2017 The aforementioned quote is from a post that Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg had posted on his timeline while championing freedom of speech and extending support to the victims of the terrorist attack on Charlie Hebdo’s office. However, Facebook’s community standards are usually found to be in complete contrast to Zuckerberg’s commitment of “building a service where you can speak freely”. I have personally been at the receiving end of Facebook’s dreaded community standards when I was banned 4 times by Facebook in the space of 4 months for the most innocuous posts. The four bans were for a period of 1 day, 3 days, 7 days and 1 month. Thankfully, the 1-month ban was revoked the day after Facebook banned me. While my personal profile has been spared for the past year or so, many people on Facebook continue to face the wrath of Facebook’s community standards. In response to Rahul Kanwal’s tweet regarding giving Yogi Adityanath a chance, people created several memes. One of the memes showed Hitler with a Tilak/Tika with the text “Give him a chance”. A popular Facebook page called India Resists had posted the meme. Facebook took down their post citing community standards. Back in January 2017, a Facebook user Amana Begam Ansari, who routinely speaks against fanaticism in Islam, was banned for 3 days. In February 2017, Facebook banned a page called Liberal Indian for the following post: On March 17th, 2017, Roopa D Moudgil, a senior IPS officer from Karnataka, wrote a post debunking the claims made by BJP MP Pratap Simha, who had contended that IPS officers are ‘migrating’ from the State, as some officers were not given a post of their liking. Facebook took down this 650-word post and never restored it. The latest victim of Facebook’s anarchic community standards is Bengali poet Srijato Bandyopadhyay. Following the appointment of Yogi Adityanath as the Chief Minister of UP, Srijato had written a poem critical of the present state of politics. This had led to an FIR being filed against him. As if that was not enough, Facebook also got into the act of censorship and took down his poem. After this take-down was reported by media, Facebook restored his post with an apology. There are countless other Facebook take-downs which go unnoticed. While some of these posts get restored due to public outrage if the victim is popular enough on the platform and a selected few get an apology, a majority of users find themselves in a helpless situation as Facebook does not have any organised redressal mechanism for such issues. Co-Founder Alt News, I can be reached via E-mail at [email protected] and on Facebook at https://fb.com/freethinker. Follow @free_thinker Trigger Warning: Violent Content. Viewer discretion is advised. Over the past few months, rumours of… A video of a young boy cleaning the windshield of a car is making the… On November 9, Yati Narsinghanad disciple Suresh Rajput uploaded a video on Facebook about AIMIM… A video clip of a fighter jet landing on a dam is being widely circulated… In the backdrop of NASA’s Perseverance Rover landing on Mars on February 19 (IST), a…	news-altnews	2024-05-27T18:24:05.489452	27th March 2017 / 7:50 pm / Last updated: 27th March 2017	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/hitler-tilak-bengali-poem-critical-hardline-hinduism-facebook-take-spree/", "author": "Pratik Sinha" }
1,454	Did Hizbul Mujahideen commander Zakir Musa give Barkha Dutt a scooter ride? - Alt News Pratik Sinha 15th May 2017 / 2:47 pm / Last updated: 28th May 2019 A rumour that has been making rounds since last year has reappeared on social media. A twitter user @beingsandeep posted a pixelated picture of journalist Barkha Dutt riding pillion with a young man driving a scooter. That picture was juxtaposed with a face shot of Hizbul Mujahideen commander Zakir Musa and a question was raised “Is it true @BDUTT that you were seen with Hizbul mujhaddin Commander Zakir Musa? What have you got to do with terrorists?” This rumour was first floated by pro-BJP social media users in August 2016, with multiple accounts and websites spreading the same image. This same tweet was carried by multiple right-wing fake news sites such as Postcard.news and Hindutva.info. Recently, we had exposed Hindutva.info as to who runs that patently fake news site and how much money they make. The picture of Barkha Dutt on the scooter was posted by Dutt herself on her Twitter account on August 18th, 2016. This was during the phase when there was massive unrest in the valley after former Hizbul Mujahideen commander Burhan Wani was killed in an encounter in July 2016, and curfew was imposed for long periods of time. The snapshot of Hizbul Mujahideen commander Zakir Musa that has been juxtaposed with Dutt’s picture was taken from a video that the Hizbul Mujahideen militants had made just a day before, i.e. on August 17th, 2016. The video was posted by many media outlets on their YouTube channels. Here’s one by Hindustan Times. One can compare the items behind Zakir Musa in the screenshot below from Hindustan Times YouTube channel to the items behind Zakir Musa in the picture that has been put alongside Dutt’s. It’ll be apparent that the snapshot that’s been put alongside Barkha has been taken from this video which was made public on August 17th, 2016. . If we cut out just the faces of Zakir Musa from the August 17th video posted by Hindustan Times and put it next to a face cut-out of the person driving the scooter on August 18th, this is what we get. The above comparison makes it pretty evident that they are not the same people. One would have to go through quite a make over in the space of 24 hours, from August 17th to August 18th, for the two people to be the same. The hairstyle, the amount of facial hair etc clearly indicate that the two people are different. In conclusion, a photograph posted by Barkha Dutt herself on her Twitter account was mischievously portrayed as Dutt riding pillion with dreaded terrorist Zakir Musa. It may be reiterated that the person seen with Dutt is not the Hizbul Mujahideen commander. Co-Founder Alt News, I can be reached via E-mail at [email protected] and on Facebook at https://fb.com/freethinker. Follow @free_thinker Rahul and Priyanka Gandhi recently performed aarti at the Narmada Ghat in Madhya Pradesh’s Omkareshwar… In the wake of the alleged murder of Shraddha Walkar by his partner Aftab Amin… The video of a group of people stopping an e-rickshaw with BJP flags attached to… Last week during the G20 summit in Bali, world leaders were informed of a missile… Recently, several prominent BJP leaders claimed that Prime Minister Narendra Modi had intervened to stop…	news-altnews	2024-05-27T18:24:05.489452	15th May 2017 / 2:47 pm / Last updated: 28th May 2019	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/hizbul-mujahideen-commander-give-barkha-dutta-scooter-ride-right-wing-caught-lying/", "author": "Pratik Sinha" }
1,455	Hoardings and Facebook post warning to Kashmiris to leave Uttar Pradesh - Alt News Sam Jawed 22nd April 2017 / 8:23 pm / Last updated: 22nd April 2017 “Kashimiris, leave Uttar Pradesh, or else…” Hoardings with an ominous warning to Kashmiris in Uttar Pradesh have been spotted in Meerut. The hoarding calls for a “boycott of Kashmiris who throw stones at the Indian army.” Put up by Uttar Pradesh Navnirman Sena (UPNS), they carry a photograph of their leader, Amit Jani. Amit Jani, the national president of UPNS, on his Facebook page has posted pictures of the hoardings repeating the message that a warning has been given. He also claimed on his Facebook account that this campaign to oust Kashmiris is a 3 month campaign where in all businesses of Kashmiris will be shut down in a ‘democratic’ manner. A quick glance at the comments shows many of his followers appreciating the move. “Wherever you see a Kashmiri, start bashing him up”, says a FB user in a comment. Amit Jani was in the news in May last year when he was arrested for threatening to kill JNU’s Kanhaiyya Kumar and Umar Khalid. Jani shot to fame in 2012, when he vandalised Mayawati’s statue in Lucknow. A Samajwadi Party activist in those days, Jani faced criminal cases and was jailed for six months. However, by 2016, he had made up with Mayawati and celebrated her 60th birthday with great enthusiasm. He also contested the Muzzafarnagar by-election in 2016 as an independent candidate. Amit Jani’s Facebook page shows him to be close to politicians across different parties. He has several pictures with SP leaders and more recently with BJP leaders. As the outrage against these posters built up, Amit Jani has already posted his statement to CNN News18 on his Facebook page clarifying that “we are boycotting Kashmiris in Uttar Pradesh. This is a notice, we are not threatening them”. However, the damage is already done. The message to Kashmiris to leave Uttar Pradesh is not only up in Meerut city as a hoarding, it has also been circulated widely on social media. Soon after the Photos went viral, Twitter used Anurag Tripathi who is a former journalist from Tehelka and News Laundry tagged UP Police and requested for action. UP Police promptly replied and a case was registered against Amit Jani, the leader of the organisation, for spreading communal hatred. Though the case was registered on 21st Early Morning. He continued to post news links covering his story until Evening. We now wait to see what action, if any will be taken against him by Uttar Pradesh authorities for these provocative posters targeting Kashmiris. 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	22nd April 2017 / 8:23 pm / Last updated: 22nd April 2017	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/hoardings-facebook-post-warning-kashmiris-leave-uttar-pradesh/", "author": "Sam Jawed" }
1,456	Hoardings with fake quotes attributed to prominent Muslims appear in UP's Pratapgarh - Alt News Archit 15th August 2021 / 12:53 pm A video of hoardings attributing communal statements to prominent Muslim names recently emerged on social media. They were installed on the boundary wall of Uttar Pradesh-based TP Inter College in Kunda, Pratapgarh. According to a media report, the banners were installed on the night of August 12. The hoardings show images of AIMIM leader and MLA Akbaruddin Owaisi, Syed Ahmed Bukhari, 13th Shahi Imam of the Jama Masjid, Azam Khan, founding member of the Samajwadi Party, Noor ur Rahman Barkati, former Shahi Imam in Kolkata and Zakir Naik, controversial Islamic cleric. A user posted a video of police surrounding the banners and alleged that these were installed by Muslims. ईद के पहले साम्प्रदायिक सौहार्द बिगाड़ने का प्रयासउत्तरप्रदेश जिला प्रतापगढ़ कुंडा मुस्लिमो ने लगाए आपत्तिजनक पोस्टरजागो हिन्दुओ जागो*देखलो अब इन लोगो को योगी बाबा का भी ख़ौफ़ नही रहा🤔🤔 pic.twitter.com/wGJRZiO4Hp — योगी योगेश अग्रवाल (धर्मसेना) (@yogeshDharmSena) August 13, 2021 A cropped photo of the banners attributing quotes to Naik, Barkarti and Bukhari is being circulated on WhatsApp. Alt News received over a dozen requests on its WhatsApp helpline number (76000 11160). On August 12, Pratapgarh police tweeted a video and stated that objectionable hoardings were installed by “mischievous elements” in the Kunda area. जनपद प्रतापगढ़ के थाना क्षेत्र कुण्डा अन्तर्गत कस्बा कुण्डा में कुछ शरारती तत्वों द्वारा आपत्तिजनक होर्डिंग लगाए जाने के प्रकरण में की जा रही कार्यवाही के संबंध में पुलिस अधीक्षक प्रतापगढ़ द्वारा दी गई बाइट। pic.twitter.com/YKzUjFTAN5 — PRATAPGARH POLICE (@pratapgarhpol) August 12, 2021 Alt News spoke with SP Pratapgarh Satpal regarding the incident. He said, “There have been no arrests and the investigations are ongoing. However, FIR has been filed against unknown persons under the Indian Penal Code section 153 A [Promoting enmity between different groups] and other relevant sections.” Thus, the claim that members of the Muslim community installed the banners is baseless. It must also be pointed out that the banners carry statements such as “Hindu festivals should be prohibited”, “Muslims will demolish temples”, “Hindus should evacuate areas where Muslims are in majority”. It is improbable that Muslims will install such banners to draw negative attention to the community. Alt News analysed the quote attribute to each individual and found these were shared on right-wing pages and BJP supporters on Facebook in the past. But more crucially, there aren’t any reports that corroborate any of the provocative statements. AIMIM leader and MLA Akbaruddin Owaisi The hoarding alleges that Akbaruddin Owaisi said that since the Muslim population in Hyderabad city has crossed over 50%, Hindu festivals should be prohibited. As per the 2011 census, the percentage of Hindu and Muslim population in Hyderabad city is 64.93 % and 30.13 % respectively. Thus, the statement itself carries disinformation. Alt News performed a keyword search and found that similar posts were shared by at least two Facebook users in 2014. (1, 2) Incidentally, the same quote was attributed to Asaduddin Owaisi, President of the AIMIM and brother of Akbarudin Owaisi, in 2016 on Facebook. Alt News reached out to Asaduddin Owaisi. He said that the statement is “completely false and a load of white lies”. He also said that a complaint will be filed with the cyber cell. Syed Ahmed Bukhari, 13th Shahi Imam of the Jama Masjid According to the hoarding, Bukhari said that Hindus should leave UP, Bengal, Kerala, Assam and Hyderabad because the Muslim population is in majority in these states. He is portrayed as warning Hindus of the fate of Kashmiri Pandits if they do not leave. However, none of the mentioned states have Muslims in the majority according to the 2011 census. The table below shows the population of Hindus and Muslims in UP, Bengal, Kerala, Assam and Hyderabad as per census 2011. Alt News spoke with Shaban Bukhari, son of Syed Ahmed Bukhari. “My father has not made this statement. In the past, many false quotes have been attributed to him. We plan to file a police complaint after August 15,” he said. Posts from 2017, attributing a similar quote to Syed Ahmed Bukhari, was found on Facebook. Azam Khan, founding member of the Samajwadi Party In February 2020, Khan was sent to jail along with his wife and son for allegedly forging a PAN card to show his son’s false date of birth to enable him to contest the 2017 assembly elections from the Suar constituency in Rampur. Bail was granted to his wife and son in December 2020 and August 2021 respectively. The hoarding claims that Khan said Muslims will boycott Vande Mataram because in Islam secularism and nationalism are prohibited. Just like the previous posts, we found these quotes on right-wing pages on Facebook. They date as far back as 2013. Noor ur Rahman Barkati, former Shahi Imam in Kolkata Barkati is one of the more controversial individuals on the list. As per the hoarding, he said that Muslims will continue to slaughter cows and that Muslims aren’t fearful of any authority because the community’s population has increased. “We don’t argue like Hindus, we just kill,” the quote further states. After a keyword search on Facebook, we found that the quote was shared multiple times and dates back to 2012. Readers should note that in 2010, Barkati indeed said that Muslims will continue to sacrifice cows. However, the banner has exaggerated his statement. He did not suggest that opposing Hindus will be murdered. Zakir Naik, controversial Islamic cleric Naik is the most controversial individual on the list who is currently in exile from India. There are two quotes attributed to him. As per one of them, Naik allegedly said that Hindus chant of Hindi-Muslim unity due to fear of Muslims who ruled India for 1100 years. The other claims that Naik said India can easily be converted into an Islamic nation. The first quote was posted on Facebook multiple times and dates back to 2014. The other quote was found on multiple Facebook posts from 2020 with the same text and image as seen on the hoarding. While plenty of controversial statements made by Zakir Naik have been reported in the media, Alt News did not find the statements adorning the banner. To sum it up, six hoardings with false, provocative statements were installed in UP’s Pratapgarh and attributed to Muslim leaders and controversial figures. UP police are yet to identify the individuals behind the act, but premature remarks blame the Muslim community. As per Alt News’s research, the quotes were found to be circulating on right-wing pages and profiles of BJP supporters on Facebook years before they made it to the boundary wall of TP Inter College. [This article will be updated if and when UP police makes arrests in the matter.] 🙏 Blessed to have worked as a fact-checking journalist from November 2019 to February 2023. Rahul and Priyanka Gandhi recently performed aarti at the Narmada Ghat in Madhya Pradesh’s Omkareshwar… In the wake of the alleged murder of Shraddha Walkar by his partner Aftab Amin… The CCTV footage of a man violently flinging a child on the ground has created… The video of a group of people stopping an e-rickshaw with BJP flags attached to… A minute-long video clip of a woman being physically assaulted is viral on social media….	news-altnews	2024-05-27T18:24:05.489452	15th August 2021 / 12:53 pm	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/hoardings-with-fake-quotes-attributed-to-prominent-muslims-appear-in-ups-pratapgarh/", "author": "Archit" }
1,457	No, BJP MLAs in Punjab have not joined Congress - Alt News Archit 16th March 2021 / 3:46 pm / Last updated: 16th March 2021 Twitter user @impressionsAS claimed that all BJP MLAs of Punjab have joined the Congress but the media has not reported the development. All of MLAs of BJP joined @INCIndia in Punjab today. But not even a squeak in Media. Had it been other way round it would have been full day news in loop. This goes to show why INC volunteers are not going to a free pass to anyone in Indian Media. Enough of their BS now — Ankit Srivastava ✋ (@impressionsAS) March 14, 2021 A similar claim has been made in Hindi on Twitter and Facebook. One Mohan Murari Yadawa posted this claim on an Akhilesh Yadav fan page on Facebook with over one lakh members. It gained over 1,000 reactions. It was also shared by Facebook page हमारा हिंदुस्तान प्यारा सा हिन्दुस्तान. (Hindi text: पंजाब BJP के तीनों विधायक कांग्रेस में शामिल BJP विधायक संख्या 00000000 भाजपा मुक्त पंजाबबधाई हो) According to the claim, Punjab doesn’t have a single representative from the BJP since they have joined Congress. If this was true, it would have been extensively reported in the media. But there are no reports. More importantly, there are currently two BJP MLAs in the Punjab Legislative Assembly. Alt News spoke with the two BJP representatives in Punjab Arun Narang and Dinesh Singh. They categorically refuted the claims. Sujanpur MLA Dinesh Singh said, “This is fake news. I have never expressed such sentiments. I heard the same was said about Som Prakash and Arun Narang. Prakash is no longer an MLA. I spoke with Arun Narang. We aren’t leaving BJP.” Abohar MLA Arun Narang confirmed the same to Alt News. Social media users falsely claimed that BJP MLAs in Punjab have joined Congress however, as per the Punjab Legislative Assembly website, BJP has two MLAs in the state. 🙏 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	16th March 2021 / 3:46 pm / Last updated: 16th March 2021	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/hoax-claim-of-bjp-mlas-in-punjab-joining-congress-viral/", "author": "Archit" }
1,458	HOAX: Filling petrol tank to maximum limit in summers could cause explosion - Alt News Arjun Sidharth 15th June 2019 / 5:22 pm “इंडियन ऑइल ने दी चेतावनी आने वाले दिनों में तापमान में वृद्धि होना तय है , इसलिए अपने वाहन में पेट्रोल अधिकतम सीमा तक न भरवायें। यह ईंधन टैंक में विस्फोट का कारण बन सकता है। कृपया आप अपने वाहन में आधा टैंक ही ईंधन भरवायें और एयर के लिए जगह रखें। इस हफ्ते 5 विस्फोट दुर्घटनाओं की वजह , अधिकतम पेट्रोल भरने से हुआ है। कृपया पेट्रोल टंकी को दिन में एक बार खोलकर अंदर बन रही गैस को बाहर निकलने दे। नोट : इस मैसेज को आप अपने परिवार सदस्यों व अन्य सभी को भेजें , जिससे लोग इस दुर्घटना से बच सकें धन्यवाद” Translation: “Warning by Indian Oil Temperature increase in coming days is certain, hence do not fill petrol in your vehicle to the brim. This could become a cause for explosion. Please fill only half talk and leave some room for air. This week, 5 such incidents took place due to excessive filling of petrol. Kindly open the petrol tank once a day to release the built up gas inside. Note: Send this message to your family members and others, so that they may be saved from such disaster.” The above message in Hindi has been circulating on WhatsApp, warning citizens not to fill the fuel tanks of their vehicles to the maximum limit, as it may lead to explosion due to rising heat. The message has been attributed to Indian Oil Corporation Ltd. Some followers had requested verification of this information. Alt News found that this message in Hindi had circulated in 2016 on Facebook, along with a video which showed a bike at a petrol pump catching fire, before it is extinguished. The same claim had been shared in 2018 as well, along with another video. 🚫 इंडियन ऑयल ने दी चेतावनी 🚫 आने वाले दिनों में तापमान में वृद्धि होना तय है, इसलिए अपने वाहन में पेट्रोल अधिकतम सीमा तक ना भरवायें । यह ईंधन टैंक में विस्फोट का कारण बन सकता है । कृपया आप अपने वाहन में आधा टैंक ही ईंधन भरवायें और एयर के लिए जगह रखें । इस हफ्ते 5 विस्फोट दुर्घटनाओं की वजह, अधिकतम पेट्रोल भरने से हुआ है । कृपया पेट्रोल टंकी को दिन मे एक बार खोल कर अंदर बन रही गेस को बाहर निकल दे । #नोट : इस मैसेज को आप अपने परिवार के सदस्यों व अन्य सभी को भेजें, जिससे लोग इस गलती से बच सकें.. #धन्यवाद Posted by Aman Saran Makrana on Thursday, May 19, 2016 It had appeared on Twitter as well in 2016. The state-owned oil and gas company had issued a clarification on Twitter in June 2018, disowning the statement attributed to it. It further added that it is absolutely safe to fill the fuel tank to the maximum limit. Important announcement from #IndianOil. @PetroleumMin @dpradhanbjp @ChairmanIOCL @AshutoshJindalS @RK_Mohapatra pic.twitter.com/v2ZSgruJm2 — Indian Oil Corp Ltd (@IndianOilcl) June 10, 2018 It may be noted that Indian Oil had issued the same clarification in 2017 as well. Alt News found that this rumour has been circulating in India at least since 2015. The claim that filling up the fuel tank in the vehicle to the maximum limit will trigger an explosion, makes little scientific sense. This is because the auto-ignition temperature (the minimum temperature required to ignite a gas or vapour in air without a spark or flame being present) for petrol is 495°F or 257°C. This is way higher than the temperature that an insulated tank can attain in summers with the highest recorded temperature on earth being 56.7°C (134°F), which was measured on 10 July 1913 at Greenland Ranch, Death Valley, California, USA. The claim that a full tank in searing heat will lead to explosion, is not restricted to India. In May 2018, Pakistan State Oil had clarified via a Facebook post that it had not issued any such warning to customers. Pakistan State Oil (PSO) has announced that filling fuel tank to its full capacity poses no threat of any kind to the… Posted by Pakistan State Oil on Saturday, May 19, 2018 In UAE, the rumour had gone viral as early as 2012, through a spate of email warning customers against filling up their fuel tanks. Indian Oil Corp Ltd. has issued no such warning asking customers to refrain from filling up their fuel tanks. This is a rumour which has been shared primarily on WhatsApp. 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	15th June 2019 / 5:22 pm	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/hoax-filling-petrol-tank-to-maximum-limit-in-summers-could-cause-explosion/", "author": "Arjun Sidharth" }
1,459	Hoax letter claims Donald Trump wrote "Joe, You know I won" to Joe Biden - Alt News Archit 21st January 2021 / 6:49 pm Joe Biden’s inauguration as the 46th US President took place on January 20. While outgoing President Donald Trump did not attend the inauguration ceremony, White House spokesperson Judd Deere told AFP that he left a letter for his successor before leaving office. An image of a letter allegedly from Trump to President Biden began circulating on the internet. The one-line letter reads, “Joe, You know I won.” It also appears that the letter has been signed by Trump. Grant Stinchfield of Newsmax tweeted the image and wrote, “I got a copy of the letter President Trump left behind for @JoeBiden.” It gained close to 1,000 retweets. (archived link) I got a copy of the letter President Trump left behind for @JoeBiden pic.twitter.com/1hVbstPQuj — Grant Stinchfield (@stinchfield1776) January 20, 2021 Sharjah-based Hend bint Faisal Al Qasimi, Emirati princess of Al Qasimi family, also tweeted the image. President Trump left a letter at the White House for President-elect Joe Biden. pic.twitter.com/lA1ZNzNQAv — Hend F Q (@LadyVelvet_HFQ) January 20, 2021 So did Padma Shri awardee Adnan Sami. Trumps letter to President Joe Biden !!! pic.twitter.com/f8rjyquYD9 — Adnan Sami (@AdnanSamiLive) January 20, 2021 This image has been shared by multiple users on Twitter and Facebook. Along with English, the image has been shared in Vietnamese, Thai, Spanish and Japanese. Alt News received several requests on our WhatsApp helpline number (+917600011160) and official Android application to authenticate the letter. As per The Washington Post, the tradition of Presidential letters to successors started in 1989 when Ronald Reagan was passing the Presidential baton to his Vice President, George HW Bush. According to CNN, these letters are handwritten. Trump has shirked several Presidential traditions including conceding election in a congratulatory phone call, welcoming the President-elect and the incoming First Lady to the White House and attending the successor’s inauguration. There was uncertainty around Trump upholding the norm of writing a letter to President Biden. From the last sitting President to lose reelection. George HW Bush was a true American and gentleman. Will Trump leave a letter to @JoeBiden? “You will be our President when you read this note. … Your success now is our country’s success. I am rooting hard for you.” pic.twitter.com/JvZKy1VJE1 — John Anzalone (@JohnAnzo) January 18, 2021 On January 20, President Biden was asked if Trump had offered him a letter at the Oval Office. He responded, “The president wrote a very generous letter,” referring to Trump. “Because it was private, I won’t talk about it until I talk to him. But it was generous.” Thus, Trump indeed wrote a letter to Biden but we do not know its contents. Since the controversy around the letter, several versions have been shared satirically. (1,2,3,4) BREAKING NEWS: I found the letter that Trump left for Biden… pic.twitter.com/F8NAwL6MIU — Brian O’Sullivan (@osullivanauthor) January 20, 2021 Alt News compared an official letter by former president Trump to Nancy Pelosi, Speaker of the House of Representative in 2019. This letter was fact-checked by The New York Times. After a comparison with the viral image, we noticed that the date format [red] and the POTUS seal [green] in both letters are different. A hoax letter was used to falsely claim that former US President Trump wrote a one-line letter to his successor President Biden that read, “Joe, You know I won.” 🙏 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	21st January 2021 / 6:49 pm	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/hoax-letter-claims-donald-trump-wrote-joe-you-know-i-won-to-joe-biden/", "author": "Archit" }
1,460	Hoax message that birds are dying due to 'Jio 5G trials' viral amid bird flu in India - Alt News Pooja Chaudhuri 15th January 2021 / 1:56 pm / Last updated: 15th January 2021 Several states including Rajasthan, Maharashtra, Delhi and Himachal Pradesh are struggling to tackle bird flu cases after a recent outbreak. Many on social media, however, believe that the birds are not dying due to the viral infection but Reliance Jio’s 5G trials. Congress leader Chunni Lal Sahu, Gaon Dastak journalist Mahendra Kudiya and Samajwadi Party leader Rachna Singh were among the prominent individuals who amplified the claim. खबर फैल रही है कि Jio के 5G टेस्टिंग से पक्षी मर रहे हैं और बर्ड फ्लू का नाम दिया जा रहा है ? — Chunni Lal Sahu (@Chunni_lal_sahu) January 12, 2021 खबर फैल रही है कि Jio के 5G टेस्टिंग से पक्षी मर रहे हैं और बर्ड फ्लू का नाम दिया जा रहा है। — Mahendra Kudiya (@GaonDastak) January 12, 2021 Alt News has also received multiple fact-check requests on its WhatsApp helpline number (+917600011160). This fact-check has been divided into sections that discuss: 1) Has 5G spectrum been allocated in India? and 2) Can birds die due to radiation from cellular towers? 5G is yet to be rolled out in India. According to a Bloomberg report, “The high-speed technology was first commercially launched in South Korea in April 2019. Since then, it has been rolled out in more than 26 countries and added close to 190 million subscribers, a bulk of them coming from China, which launched 5G in October 2019.” Business Standard reported that the 5G spectrum has been kept out of the telecom spectrum auction in India slated to be held in March 2021. The 4G bands that have been put on offer are – 700 MHz, 800 MHz, 900 MHz, 1,800 MHz, 2,100 MHz, 2,300 MHz and 2,500 MHz. “The 3,300 MHz to 3,600 MHz bands – or the 5G spectrum bands – didn’t make the cut. The base price for the 5G spectrum is around Rs 3.63 trillion,” the report adds. A report in The Economics Times explains the reason behind 5G services in India hanging by a thread – “One, the pricing of spectrum for auction has been an issue of contention by telcos; second, the amount of spectrum that would be offered for bidding; and thirdly, whether or not to conduct 5G auctions this fiscal year.” 5G trials in India may commence in the first half of 2021. IT and telecom minister Ravi Shankar Prasad said last month that the trials are expected to start soon but the minister did not give a date. Reliance chairman Mukesh Ambani had said that “Jio will pioneer the 5G revolution in India in the second half of 2021”. “Jio will pioneer the 5G revolution in India in the second half of 2021.” – Mukesh D. Ambani One more reason to look forward to the new year 😊. #JioAtIMC #Jio5GInternet #IMC2020Virtual #DigitalIndia #JioDigitalLife #5G @exploreIMC — Reliance Jio (@reliancejio) December 10, 2020 Mobile phones operate in the high frequency (HF) range of the electromagnetic spectrum – from 100 kHz (0.1 MHz) to 300 GHz (3 lakh MHz), per the International Commission on Non-Ionizing Radiation Protection (ICNIRP). India follows ICNIRP guidelines and has one of the most stringent standards on EMF radiations. Airtel and Vodafone currently offer 4G in the 1800MHz and 2100MHz bands, while Jio uses a lower band of 800 MHz. The 2021 auction includes band range till 2,500MHz. The Department of Telecommunications (DoT) is in talks to open up new spectrum bands for 5G in the 3300-3600 MHz frequency range. All the above-mentioned frequency ranges are well within the permissible limit. An article in the BBC says, “The radio waves involved in 5G and other mobile phone technology sit on the low-frequency end of the electromagnetic spectrum. Less powerful than visible light, they are not strong enough to damage cells – unlike radiation at the higher frequency end of the spectrum which includes the sun’s rays and medical x-rays.” American fact-checking website Snopes spoke to Dr Eric van Rongen, a member of the Health Council of The Netherlands and the Chairman of ICNIRP, after the rumour was viral in the country. Several hundred birds and sparrows died in The Hague between October 8 and November 3, 2018, which gave birth to the rumour. “The only way one could imagine the death of birds as a result of exposure to electromagnetic fields is with very high-level exposure that results in considerable heating…But the levels that are used by mobile telecom antennas are not strong enough for this to happen. There are maybe millions of such antennas around the world and this has never been reported. Even if there would have been 5G exposure, it is very unlikely that that could cause the [bird] mortality,” Dr Rongen informed. The conspiracy theory that radiation from cellular towers cause birds to die was also circulating after 2G spectrum allocation. Birds, however, are known to die of collision with communication towers. Migratory birds sometimes run into tall towers that go up to the altitudes they travel. The steady red light on top of towers also confuses birds during navigation. The claim that birds in India are dying due to 5G trials and not bird flu is not backed by evidence. The hoax was also viral after the release of the Tamil science fiction movie ‘2.0’ in 2018 that showed the effects of electromagnetic field radiation on birds. 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… 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	15th January 2021 / 1:56 pm / Last updated: 15th January 2021	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/hoax-message-that-birds-are-dying-due-to-jio-5g-trials-viral-amid-bird-flu-in-india/", "author": "Pooja Chaudhuri" }
1,461	Hoax: MHA has not asked citizens to avoid purchasing products made in China - Alt News Jignesh Patel 18th August 2019 / 1:02 pm A message alerting the citizens of India to abstain from buying products made in China due to a conspiratorial attack planned by the Pakistani government against Indians with cooperation from the Chinese is circulating on social media. It is being claimed that the message was issued by the Senior Investigation officer of Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA). The message reads as follows, “A Serious Alert … According to intelligence reports A distraught and frustrated Pakistan, since it is incapable of attacking India in a direct war, is seeking Chinese help to cause the following damage,/ disturbance in India … Please read this carefully and take proper care to safeguard your family from any kind of health or other problems. 1.A different kind of crackers that produce smoke to cause Asthma in people who inhale that smoke. 2.Besides these crackers are also designed to produce Carbon Monoxide to cause breathing difficulty in people. further, China is reportedly producing decorative coloured electric bulbs and serial bulbs with a high content of Mercury. The light produced / emitted by these bulbs can be highly injurious and cause vision -related disturrbances in persons exposed to the light, especially children. China is planning to flood the Indian market with these dangerous products considering the festive season ahead from Janmashtami till Diwali and Christmas. The public are advised to consider the above mentioned information seriously in their own interest and totally avoid purchasing any and all such products Made in China. This measure is very essential for the well being of all Indians … The Citizens are hereby requested to forward and propagate this serious alert to the maximum extent possible among contacts, friends and relatives to safeguard the people as well as the economy of the country … Jai Hind From : Biswajit Mukherjee, Senior Investigation Officer, The Home Ministry ( Ministry of Home affairs) Government of India” A few more people on Facebook and Twitter have shared the message. We found that the same message has been circulating on social media at least since October 2017. A Facebook page FIND FAKE NEWS posted a similar message attributed to ‘Senior Investigation Officer, Home Ministry’. The message posted by the page debunks the viral post. Another fake news spreading on whatsapp and Facebook “According to Intelligence, Pakistan can not attack India… Posted by FIND FAKE News on Friday, 13 October 2017 Alt News contacted the Ministry of Home Affairs regarding the viral message circulating on social media. An official in MHA, who spoke on condition of anonymity, has described the message as, “completely false and a hoax”. A search on MHA’s website and official Twitter handle with relevant keywords bore no results. It was also found that there is no such post called, “Senior Investigation officer“, at the Ministry of Home Affairs. Moreover, no person with the name “Biswajit Mukherjee” was found on the MHA’s website. In conclusion, an unsubstantiated message asking Indian citizens to boycott Chinese products was shared on social media with a false attribution to the Ministry of Home Affairs. 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	18th August 2019 / 1:02 pm	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/hoax-mha-has-not-asked-citizens-to-avoid-purchasing-products-made-in-china/", "author": "Jignesh Patel" }
1,462	Hoax: WhatsApp will be "off" between 11:30 pm-6 am and become chargeable - Alt News Pooja Chaudhuri 4th July 2019 / 3:21 pm / Last updated: 4th July 2019 A message viral on WhatsApp claims that the central government has made the messaging application unavailable for use everyday between 11:30 pm and 6 am. The message warns people to become “active” WhatsApp users by forwarding the news to their contacts or else their accounts will be deemed “invalid” within 48 hours. In case an account is “deleted”, a user would need to pay a monthly bill of Rs 499 to reuse the services, claims the message while further stating that once a person has become an “active” WhatsApp user (by chatting with at least 50 people), they will get access to a new version of the app which has a blue logo. In case a user’s WhatsApp does not turn blue, the application will be chargeable 0.01€ per message. What’s app 📲 will b off 🚫 From 11.30pm 🌃 to 6:00 am 🌄 daily 😱 Declared 🗣️ by central govt. 🏛️ Message 🗨️from narendra… Posted by Sneha Sutradhar on Wednesday, 3 July 2019 The complete message is given below: What’s app will b off from 11.30pm to 6:00 am daily. Declared by central govt. Message from narendra modi (PM) we have had an over usage of user names on whatsapp Messenger. We are requesting all users to forward this message to their entire contact list. If you do not forward this message, we will take it as your account is invalid and it will be deleted within the next 48 hours. DO NOT ignore my words or whatsapp will no longer recognise your activation. If you wish to re-activate your account after it has been deleted, a charge of 499.00 will be added to your monthly bill. We are also aware of the issue involving the pictures updates not showing. We are working diligently at fixing this problem and it will be up and running as soon as possible. Thank you for your cooperation from the modi team. WhatsApp is going to cost you money soon. The only way that it will stay free is if you are a frequent user i.e. you have at least 50 people you are chatting with. To become a frequent user send this message to 10 people who receive it (2 ticks) and your WhatsApp logo will change color. Send this to 8 people to activate the new whatsapp. Saturday morning whatsapp will become chargeable. If you have at least 10 contacts send them this message. In this way we will see that you are an avid user and your logo will become blue (🔵) and will remain free. (As discussed in the paper today. Whatsapp will cost 0.01€ per message. Send this message to 10 people. When you do the light will turn blue otherwise whatsapp will activate billing. ITS TRUE …… U get blue TICKS In a conversation with Alt News, a spokesperson of WhatsApp termed the viral message a “known hoax”. Moreover, policy changes by WhatsApp are announced on its blog and no such warning was issued by the messaging application. The same fake warning has been floating on the internet at least since 2015. Furthermore, similar hoaxes were circulated and debunked in different parts of the world in 2012, 2013 and 2014. Facebook and Facebook-owned social networking applications, WhatsApp and Instagram, were globally down for approximately 9-10 hours on July 3. The glitch may have sparked the rumours. Facebook, however, tweeted in the early hours of July 4 that the issue has been resolved. Earlier today, some people and businesses experienced trouble uploading or sending images, videos and other files on our apps and platforms. The issue has since been resolved and we should be back at 100% for everyone. We’re sorry for any inconvenience. — Facebook (@facebook) July 4, 2019 Earlier in February this year, another false message was circulated in the name of WhatsApp, claiming that government surveillance and ISIS hackers were misusing WhatsApp profile pictures. 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	4th July 2019 / 3:21 pm / Last updated: 4th July 2019	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/hoax-whatsapp-will-be-off-between-1130-pm-6-am-and-become-chargeable/", "author": "Pooja Chaudhuri" }
1,463	Home - Alt News	news-altnews	2024-05-27T18:24:05.489452	null	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/home-2/", "author": null }
1,464	Home Ministry annual report uses picture of Spain-Morocco border to show Indian border floodlighting - Alt News Sam Jawed 14th June 2017 / 3:03 pm / Last updated: 28th July 2017 The headline was striking, the picture was spectacular and the achievement was presented as incredible. “मोदी सरकार ने बॉर्डर पर जो काम किया है वो देखोगे तो गर्व भी होगा और वाह वाह भी करोगे” (Translation:If you see the work done by Modi Govt on Indian border, you’ll be proud and highly appreciative), said the chest-thumping headline on hindutva.info. As the headline promised, the article presented a spectacular photograph for the readers to feel proud of the 647 km of floodlighting that Modi Sarkar had accomplished on the border. I was struck by the beauty of the picture. It was indeed a “अद्भुत तस्वीर” (incredible picture) as the website had said. However, there was only one slight problem with it. The landscape didn’t look like an Indian border and at a short distance away, you could even see the sea. I was sure that fake image cottage industry was at work here. The image aside, I had a nagging question in my mind about the status of floodlights on the border before 2014. Was nothing achieved before 2014 that which makes this a unique achievement? So I decided to dig deeper. It turned out that barring from confusion about whether this was a one year or three year achievement, the information reported was accurate and was also shared at a recent press release that highlighted the achievements and initiatives of the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) in the last three years. Installation of floodlights along 647 km stretch of the border to check infiltration attempts was one of the many achievements listed in the release. The floodlights along the border were also reported in NDTV and Indian Express. Though the MHA press release mentioned it as a three year achievement, both publications quoted a MHA official and called it a one year achievement. From both headlines and stories it again appeared to be a first of its kind achievement as there was no mention of the past status of border floodlighting I decided check the original source, the MHA annual report and found the data I was looking for. I also came across the same photograph that had earlier caught my eye with the title, “floodlighting along the border” on page 45 of the annual report. If MHA says it is floodlighting along our border, then it must be correct. I thought it was silly of me to be always so suspicious of sites like hindutva.info. But somehow the picture continued to bother me, particularly the water body in it. So I decided to research it further. To my utter shock, I found that the picture is actually that of the Spain-Morocco border. Spain and Morocco have a sea between them but there are Spanish conclaves on the north coast of Africa that have a fenced and floodlit border with Morocco. The picture was taken in 2006 by a Spanish photographer, Javier Moyano. It is not unusual to find fake pictures on propaganda sites and Whatsapp forwards but to find it on a MHA annual report is beyond shocking and completely unacceptable. The photograph was also used by another right-wing propaganda site The Fearless Indian. Incidentally, the first reference of this photograph being of India-Pakistan border by an Indian media organisation is by Dainik Bhaskar in 2016. Coming to the details for which I had gone to the MHA site. The data is clear and transparent but no publication bothered to highlight facts while reporting the achievement of floodlighting along the border. As per MHA, floodlighting of the border started in 2003. The MHA annual report of 2013-14 states that “the entire stretch of the Indo-Pakistan border has been completed except for a small part of pending work in the Gujarat sector of Indo-Pak border”. While the India-Pakistan border was nearly fully floodlit in 2013, only 1763 km out of the sanctioned 2840 km (62%) of the India-Bangladesh border was floodlit at the end of 2013. Out of the 647 km floodlit in the three years by Modi Sarkar, around 45 km was on the India -Pakistan border and the balance was on the India-Bangladesh border. Around 496km of the sanctioned length of India-Bangladesh border still remains to be floodlit. The fact that floodlighting of the India-Pakistan border was nearly complete even by 2011 can also be seen from the space in this famous 2011 photograph of the border by NASA. Around 1,861 km of the border had already been floodlit when the picture was taken. When genuine pictures of our border are available, what is the need for MHA to lift pictures from other countries? Apart from it being misleading, was any consideration given to copyright issues? Such fakery is expected from fake news and propaganda sites but if official reports of the government also start using fake pictures to illustrate their achievements, how do we tell the difference? Nobody's cheerleader, I tweet at @samjawed65 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 June 2017 / 3:03 pm / Last updated: 28th July 2017	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/home-ministry-annual-report-uses-picture-spain-morocco-border-show-indian-border-floodlighting/", "author": "Sam Jawed" }
1,465	Home remedies by Ayurved Parameshwar Arora: Are they effective in curing coronavirus? - Alt News Dr Sharfaroz Satani & Dr. Sumaiya Shaikh 26th June 2020 / 10:00 pm / Last updated: 26th June 2020 A person called Dheeraj Sharma posted a viral video on Facebook of Dr Parameshwar Arora MD (Ayurveda), a senior consultant at Sir Gangaram hospital, New Delhi addressing passersby on the street. Arora can be seen claiming in the video that he has five tips to prevent coronavirus. He even offers personal treatment to anyone who, despite following his tips with conviction, gets the viral infection. On Dheeraj Sharma’s account, the video had 12 million views and over 3 lakh shares at the time of writing this article. Baat Manoge to corona nhi hoga \| DR Parmeshwar Arora ,Ganga Raam Hospital क्या बीतेगी अगर आपके ghar में corona हो gaya तो dhyaan से सुनिए Dr. Saab की बात अगर मानें तो corona नहीं होगा \| DR Parmeshwar Arora ,Ganga Raam Hospital Posted by Dheeraj Sharma on Wednesday, 3 June 2020 ABP News also shared this video clip on their YouTube channel along with their interview with Arora. The channel has promoted and given Arora a platform during several broadcasts. In the viral video, Arora appeals to the people of Hindu faith to include home ‘remedies’ like clove, black pepper, caraway (ajwain) and hot water in daily religious activities to fight against coronavirus infection. However, Arora isn’t the only individual promoting such ‘home remedies’ to prevent or cure Covid-19. #चाय और बड़ों की #राय समय-समय पर लेते रहना चाहिए !! ☕️☕️ कोरोना वायरस के संक्रमण से बचाव के लिए शरीर का इम्यून सिस्टम मजबूत होना जरूरी है।तुलसी,लौंग,काली मिर्च,इलायची,अदरक,और सौंफ वाली चाय से आपका इम्यून सिस्टम भी मजबूत होगा। #जयश्रीराम pic.twitter.com/BU0B8wUvIr — Sangeeta Bhandari (@sbhandari16) June 25, 2020 Since the virus outbreak, the government has been advising people to drink kadha. This was also amplified by the media. Clove and black pepper are some of the ingredients used to make this Ayurvedic recipe. कोरोना के खिलाफ़ जंग में योग के बाद आयुर्वेदिक काढ़ा भी उतर गया है, अब सैशे में भी मिलेगा काढ़ा पाउडर। ज़्यादा जानकारी के लिए देखिए @mewatisanjoo की रिपोर्ट अन्य #ReporterDiary के लिए क्लिक करें: https://t.co/mf6keLW7vJ#IndiaFightsCorona #COVID19 #Ayurveda pic.twitter.com/8hu5uo1nql — AajTak (@aajtak) June 5, 2020 Consumption of or gargling with warm salted water is also widespread claim. Posted by Jay Monroe on Friday, 13 March 2020 This article contains scientific research to prove the efficacy behind these claims as a coronavirus treatment. In the absence of evidence against the COVID-19, we reviewed the research for these remedies against the symptoms of COVID-19 or against the treatment for any other viral infectious diseases of the upper respiratory system. CLAIM: Alt News Science dissected this video and other social media claims to list three distinct advises on prevention/ cure of coronavirus. The Hindi audio in Arora’s video has been translated. 1. Claims against the coronavirus infection by treating the upper respiratory tract with home remedies “On day 1 of infection, the virus is weakly attached in our oral cavity (mouth and throat). By slow consumption of hot water, the virus will travel through and reach the stomach where it will be destroyed by the stomach’s acidic environment.” “The consumption of clove, black pepper, or caraway with a pinch of salt thrice a day will protect against the virus while the infection is still in the oral cavity.” “Gargling with a pinch of turmeric and equal amounts of rock salt with hot water before bedtime will destroy the virus if it is in the upper respiratory tract or the throat.” “Steaming from the water with turmeric and rock salt will clear the virus from the nasal activity (inside the nose).” 2. Claims regarding immunity and coronavirus infection “Consumption of dry grapes with milk or water will boost one’s immunity.” “Consumption of cashew and almonds during summer can cause indigestion.” “Consume large amounts of paitha (winter melon or wax gourd) for immunity.” 3. Claims of using a herbal mix when the infection becomes systemic (reaches the blood) “Consuming a mixture of garlic, black pepper, big cardamom, clove, cinnamon, holy basil (tulsi), liquorice, long pepper in any combination with water will help, if the infection has reached the circulatory system (via blood).” VERDICT: False FACT-CHECK: 1. Claims against the coronavirus infection by treating the upper respiratory tract with home remedies. Let us first briefly discuss the way the virus establishes infection in our body. The novel coronavirus (SARS-COV2) is transmitted predominantly by respiratory droplets, contact, and potentially by the faecal-oral route. After the virus enters the nasal cavity and pharynx (upper respiratory tract), it attaches to the outermost layer of the cells lining the respiratory tract called the ‘epithelial cells’ (see figure). The SARS-COV2 attaches to these cells via a protein called ‘Spike protein’ that attaches to a receptor molecule called ACE2 located on the epithelial cell surface. Once the virus enters these cells, it multiplies by invading further down the respiratory tract, lungs, digestive tract lining, blood, and from there on to the other vital organs of the body. Thus, throughout this process, the virus is multiplying inside a number of cells in many important organs of the body and the blood. Therefore, by drinking hot water, washing it down, gargling or steaming with any other substances will not destroy the virus since it is not limited to the respiratory tract. Also, if Arora meant the tips are only applicable to day 1, many symptoms are not visible on day 1. There is a strong possibility that infected people will not know whether they have been infected. Thus, since the virus infects many organs of the body, and unlike the loosely attached inert dust particles in the respiratory tract, it cannot be ‘washed down’ or ‘cleaned’ with liquids in the upper respiratory tract. Also, the virus is present in the epithelial lining of the stomach, which has a high acidic content. Exposing the virus to the acid in the stomach would have no effect on the virus or against the infection. Therefore, drinking, gargling or steaming hot water, even if the water is mixed with herbs such as turmeric or salt, will not destroy the virus. Such home remedies may provide temporary symptomatic relief from a sore throat, but it doesn’t affect the virus or treat the infection. It is a complementary measure for common cold, akin to cold water sponges for fevers. Alt News Science had debunked the claim of gargling with hot water while countering another viral claim here. 2. Claims regarding immunity and coronavirus infection Dry grapes or raisins Raisins have been quoted due to their plant-based flavonoid called ‘Quercetin’ (a plant pigment) found in grapes that have been implicated as an immune-modulatory compound (Yao et al 2016). However, a randomised clinical trial in 1002 participants that consumed 500-1000 mg/day pure quercetin did not have any influence on the infection of the respiratory tract as compared to a placebo drug (Heinz et al. 2010). Furthermore, the amount of quercetin in red grapes is found to be 3.54 mg/100 gm (www.quercetin.com). Even if we assume that consumption of quercetin is effective, one would have to consume 1.4-2.8 kgs of grapes daily to reach the 500-1000 per day requirement of the aforementioned study. This may be nearly impossible for most people. Paitha (winter melon, wax gourd or Benincasa hispida) There is no literature that suggests that consumption of melon gourd or raisins will help with coronavirus or any other upper respiratory tract infections. 3. Claims of using a herbal mix when the infection becomes systemic (reaches the blood) Arora claimed that a mixture of garlic, black pepper, big cardamom, clove, cinnamon, holy basil, liquorice and long pepper with water will help fight COVID-19 if the infection has become systemic. We will discuss each of the herbs below and evaluate their efficacy against coronavirus of any other upper respiratory tract infections. Pepper The claim of using pepper against COVID-19 has been previously debunked WHO (see infographic). Garlic Despite garlic having some antibacterial effects, there is no evidence that it will prevent COVID-19 (see infographic). Cardamom Several in-vitro (lab) studies and studies in mice demonstrate the antibiotic and antifungal activity of the cardamom extracts (Ashokkumar, K. et al 2020). However, there are no clinical studies done for cardamom extracts against any infection. Clove There are no clinical studies done for clove extracts against any infection. A similar claim regarding the ability of clove to cure COVID-19 has been debunked by Poynter, a fact-checking platform. Cinnamon Despite some studies suggesting antibacterial activity of cinnamon against bacteria like Streptococcus mutans and Lactobacillus plantarum and inhibition of fungal infections such as candidiasis, the evidence needed more validation since it is based on flakey preliminary data (Ulbricht, C. et al 2011). However, there are no clinical studies for cinnamon extracts against viral infections. Liquorice The active compound of liquorice is Glycyrrhizin which has shown antiviral activity against different viruses including herpes simplex, Varicella zoster, Japanese encephalitis, influenza, and vesicular stomatitis virus (L. Wang, Yang, et al., 2015). In a 2003 in-vitro study (in a culture of cells), glycyrrhizin was shown to inhibit the previous SARS-COV1 virus (Cinatl J et al 2003). However, until there is a peer-reviewed randomized clinical trial in humans evaluating liquorice for the novel coronavirus (SARS-COV2), its efficacy cannot be considered. Holy basil There have been 2 clinical studies of holy basil against viral infections and both have very poor methodological quality. The first study by Rajalakshmi et al (1986) did not have a control group, The second study by Das et al (1983) has a similar drawback of a very small sample size of 14 cases of viral encephalitis. Large sample sizes ensure that the chance variations are minimized or cancelled out. With low sample sizes, random events (e.g. recovery by chance) in a small number of subjects greatly impact the results. When a drug is administered to a group of patients and some of them recover, it cannot be known whether they improved due to placebo effect or due to their innate immunity or as a natural course of the disease. To minimise the impact of all such factors, studies are controlled, i.e, there is a control group of patients with similar characteristics and who have the same disease but who do not get the drug being tested. Hence, the results of uncontrolled studies with small sample size are considered unreliable. Thus, there is no evidence that consumption of pepper, garlic, clove, cinnamon, cardamom, liquorice, holy basil will cure the novel coronavirus. Further, consumption of these herbs in excess may develop unwanted side effects due to the toxicity of its active ingredients in high doses. CONCLUSION: While Indian hospitals struggle to handle the increasing number of novel coronavirus cases, it is a greatly appealing idea for the masses that they can prevent the infection or treat it on their own with home remedies. However, except the general commentary on masks and social distancing, none of the remedies claimed by Arora has any merit. Furthermore, he does not give any consideration to the amount of consumption, which may add to negative side effects due to toxicity of some herbs, and in fact, encourages people to use these spices as much as possible. This is a dangerous myth that ayurvedic remedies do not have side effects. The AYUSH ministry has already been promoting various herbs that have not been scientifically tested. In addition, viral videos, WhatsApp messages containing quick-fix home remedies overwhelm people who may be willing to try these untested cures to prevent and treat the disease on their own. REFERENCES: Li, Y., Yao, J., Han, C., Yang, J., Chaudhry, M. T., Wang, S., … & Yin, Y. (2016). Quercetin, inflammation and immunity. Nutrients, 8(3), 167. Heinz, S. A., Henson, D. A., Austin, M. D., Jin, F., & Nieman, D. C. (2010). Quercetin supplementation and upper respiratory tract infection: A randomized community clinical trial. Pharmacological research, 62(3), 237-242. Suneetha, W. J., & Krishnakantha, T. P. (2005). Cardamom extract as inhibitor of human platelet aggregation. Phytotherapy Research: An International Journal Devoted to Pharmacological and Toxicological Evaluation of Natural Product Derivatives, 19(5), 437-440. Haji Monfared Nejad, M., Ostovar, M., Raee, M. J., Hashempur, M. H., Mayer, J. G., & Heydari, M. (2019). Cinnamon: a systematic review of adverse events. Clinical Nutrition, 38(2), 594-602. Nazari, S., Rameshrad, M., & Hosseinzadeh, H. (2017). Toxicological effects of Glycyrrhiza glabra (licorice): a review. Phytotherapy research, 31(11), 1635-1650. Ashokkumar, K., Murugan, M., Dhanya, M. K., & Warkentin, T. D. (2020). Botany, traditional uses, phytochemistry and biological activities of cardamom [Elettaria cardamomum (L.) Maton]–A critical review. Journal of ethnopharmacology, 246, 112244. Ulbricht, C., Seamon, E., Windsor, R. C., Armbruester, N., Bryan, J. K., Costa, D., … & Grimes Serrano, J. M. (2011). An evidence-based systematic review of cinnamon (Cinnamomum spp.) by the Natural Standard Research Collaboration. Journal of dietary supplements, 8(4), 378-454. Cinatl, J., Morgenstern, B., Bauer, G., Chandra, P., Rabenau, H., & Doerr, H. W. (2003). Glycyrrhizin, an active component of liquorice roots, and replication of SARS-associated coronavirus. The Lancet, 361(9374), 2045-2046. Wang, L., Yang, R., Yuan, B., Liu, Y., & Liu, C. (2015). The antiviral and antimicrobial activities of licorice, a widely-used Chinese herb. Acta Pharmaceutica Sinica B, 5(4), 310-315. Jamshidi, N., & Cohen, M. M. (2017). The clinical efficacy and safety of Tulsi in humans: a systematic review of the literature. Evidence-Based Complementary and Alternative Medicine, 2017. LiverTox: Clinical and Research Information on Drug-Induced Liver Injury [Internet]. Bethesda (MD): National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases; 2012-. Eugenol (Clove Oil) [Updated 2019 Oct 28]. Available from: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK551727/ Rajalakshmi, S., Sivanandam, G., & Veluchamy, G. (1986). Role of Tulsi (Ocimum sanctum Linn.) in the management of Manjal Kamalai (viral hepatitis). Journal of Research in Ayurveda and Siddha, 9(3-4), 118-123. Das, S., Chandra, A., Agarwal, S., & Singh, N. (1983). Ocimum sanctum (tulsi) in the treatment of viral encephalitis (A preliminary clinical trial). Antiseptic, 80, 323-327. In a 2-minute video, a man recommends a “technique” to prevent infection from Omicron, the… A video of a set of iron nails that appear to melt after being placed… Several social media users have shared an image that shows two columns — ‘Cepa/variante’ (Spanish… A 90-second video of a man dissecting a banana has been shared on the internet…. The Taliban has formed an all-male government after taking over control in Afghanistan. On September…	news-altnews	2024-05-27T18:24:05.489452	26th June 2020 / 10:00 pm / Last updated: 26th June 2020	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/home-remedies-by-ayurved-parameshwar-arora-are-they-effective-in-treating-coronavirus/", "author": "Dr Sharfaroz Satani & Dr. Sumaiya Shaikh" }
1,467	Homeopathic drugs such as Arsenicum Album 30, promoted by AYUSH, do not boost immunity against COVID - Alt News Dr. Sumaiya Shaikh 30th June 2020 / 8:40 pm / Last updated: 2nd September 2020 Despite the order from the Ministry of AYUSH to prevent the public advertisement of AYUSH-related claims for COVID-19, many Indian states, particularly larger cities such as Pune, Vadodara, Mumbai have been found distributing homeopathy drugs such as Arsenicum album 30 by both public and private means. The distribution of Arsenicum Album 30 was done according to the previous AYUSH guidelines on COVID-19. In addition, state authorities in Kerala, Andhra Pradesh, Rajasthan, and even Mumbai BMC has suggested the use of homeopathy prophylactically to increase immunity. Further, due to the lack of effective treatment and the growing number of COVID positive cases even during the lockdown period, Prime Minister Modi had emphasised to follow the AYUSH guidelines with homeopathy and Ayurveda for protection against COVID-19. These AYUSH guidelines released in January 2020 can be found on the PIB website (link to the release here). After facing criticism in India and internationally, the ministry of AYUSH released Annexure I & Annexure II, that quoted an Italian research review (Bellavite et al. 2015) to stand behind the statements made earlier and to give proof of a mechanistic understanding of Arsenicum Album 30 in ‘boosting immunity’ against COVID-19. As a result, many now believe that homeopathic pills called Arsenicum album 30 increase the body’s natural defence mechanism. Since none of the homeopathic drugs has been scientifically demonstrated to produce proven action on cells and its receptors, the Central Council of Homeopathy (CCRH) uses “a wide-range mechanism of action review article” (Bellavite et al. 2015) to prove that the homeopathy drugs indeed work in the claimed manner. This paper regularly quoted by CCRH claims to ‘review’ the hypotheses about homeopathic drug action at the cellular and molecular levels. We sci-checked this review paper’s relevant arguments about the drug Arsenicum album 30 that claims its ‘mechanism of action’. Homoeopathy drugs protect from the coronavirus by increasing the body’s innate immunity. False Our body’s immune system is of two types: 1. Inherent or innate immunity This is our body’s own natural response to an external pathogen invasion. It is the kind of immunity which we are born with and does not deteriorate unless our body is subjected to immune altering drugs, diseases or process, a few examples of these could be – an HIV infection, a corticosteroid drug administration for immunosuppression or chronic insomnia. 2. Adaptive immunity This is the immunity that can be altered using natural or artificial factors. It could be acquired in a child through the mother during pregnancy, or via a later infection such as chickenpox; or, it could be through artificial means such as vaccination, and in some cases, antibody transfer from an immune positive individual to a non-infected person. How does homeopathy claim to interact with the immunity using Arsenicum album 30? Homeopathy has allegedly considered a method to activate or ‘boost’ the inherent or innate immunity of the person by consuming Arsenicum album 30 pills, which may incur the strength to our bodies to fight against external pathogens such as the coronavirus. These claims of homeopathy treatment were made on the basis of studies conducted in the human population that claimed to show a change in the expression of proteins such as inflammatory mediators and cytokines. The proteins are released in the body, and largely measured in the blood. The quantity of these proteins in the blood shows the extent of an existing infection or inflammation. Their release also shows a functional immune system and a reduced release during an active infection could show some immune-suppression because of disease or external drugs. The research quoted by CCRH on Arsenicum album 30 Below, we will review all the studies quoted in Bellavite et al. 2015 that suggest that Arsenicum album 30 helps to ‘boost’ our immune system by causing a change in the release of immune-proteins. 1. Claim of the Arsenicum album 30 as a protective compound for cellular damage against arsenic and UV induced toxicity via controlling genetic modulation. Studies De et al. 2012, Das et al. 2012 & Das et al. 2011 were referenced to suggest that Arsenicum album 30 may reduce the toxicity of Arsenite in two bacterias E. coli and S. Cerevisae. Since these three referenced research studies were conducted on bacteria, and not conducted in infected humans or even in lab animals, they cannot be used as a proof of mechanism of action. Further, a study (Marotti et al. 2014) conducted in wheat seedlings was used as proof of protection against genetic modulation by using Arsenicum. Firstly, they extracted RNA and conducted gene expression analysis from seeds of wheat. Gene expression is a method by which the information in the genes is used to instruct protein manufacturing in the body. Despite the results in this study, it cannot be applied to animal cells, or even live animals and humans. Secondly, a change in expression of the gene, i.e. the change in instructions for protein design, does not determine protective or toxic effects of a compound. Genes can be expressed in both scenarios, i.e. for the manufacturing proteins causing detriment, or, manufacturing proteins for the benefit of a living system. Thus, the research does not have sufficient data to prove that Arsenicum album 30 can modulate genetic expression to provide protection from cellular damage. 2. Claim of change in expression of specific immune-related proteins in such a way that “important genes (turn) on or off, initiating a cascade of gene actions to correct the gene expression that has gone wrong and produced the disorder or disease”- Bellavite et al. 2015 This claim means that, allegedly, a homeopathy drug will change the expression of immunity-related genes in our DNA, i.e. change the information that codes the protein design. It is claimed that the change due to the drug will be in such a way that the new protein manufactured (linked to immunity) will eventually ‘correct’ the initial gene expression. This initial gene expression, which will be corrected by this protein, is also allegedly the process which has caused the disease. This means that all diseases are caused by their corresponding gene expression and its protein manufacturing, and all cures can be initiated by changing the expression of immunity-related genes. This is a highly canonical argument as many diseases or disorders are unrelated to the genetic factors – environmental and other pathophysiologies play a huge role in treating diseases. This is the most widely quoted and accepted claim of homeopathy. Also, the discovery of homeopathy by Hanemann was in 1796 and did not come out in print until 1807. However, the first experiment in inheritable units, now we call them genes, was not conducted by Gregor Mendel until 1857-1864, nearly 50 years after the discovery of homeopathy. The founder of homeopathy had died in 1843. So, the mechanism with which homeopathy works in the above research paper does not match on a timeline. Perhaps, Hanemann did not understand the modern mechanisms proposed for homeopathy, which have not been proven till date by homeopaths. The paper elaborated that (Bellavite et al. 2015), “Mother tinctures and highly diluted drugs were tested in human tumour cell lines or cells challenged with carcinogens; they affected the modulation of the expression of specific mRNA markers (NF-κB, Akt, p53, Bax, Blc-2, caspase 3, Cyt-c) and increased tumour cell death (Sunila et al. 2009, Hofbauer et al. 2010, Sikdar et al. 2014 & Mukherjee et al. 2013).” Protein markers such as NF-κB can be important in the regulation of innate or the body’s own immunity. However, referenced studies quoted to make such claims do not reflect the strength required to assert such a claim since the studies are not specific to Arsenicum album 30, and most of them in fact do not even refer to the said drug. For example, Sunila et al. 2009 does not have any mention of Arsenicum album 30 and the research was conducted in cultivated cell lines in the lab. Hofbauer et al. 2010 also did not mention arsenicum, while the effect was studied in bacteria. Further, the research in Sikdar et al. 2014 was conducted in cell lines as well as laboratory rats with lung cancer models, but did not mention homeopathic formulations or Arsenicum or infectious diseases. Finally, the study Mukherjee et al. 2013 mentions the use of another homeopathic drug called ‘Thuja’ in cancer cell lines acquired from the lungs of mice, while no mention of Arsenicum occurs. Thus, one of the most cited papers in homeopathy, specifically by the CCRH to prove that there is a mechanism of action with Arsenicum drugs, even though the testing hasn’t been conducted in COVID-19 patients, has no mention of Arsenicum album 30 in any of the quoted studies and have not been conducted in humans or in lab animals with infectious diseases. 3. Claim of highly toxic substances used in low doses as therapeutic formulations in homeopathy In the final claim, studies Betti et al. 1997, Bode & Dong 2002 & Khuda-Bukhsh et al. 2011, were referenced in the article (Bellavite et al. 2015). Amongst the three referenced studies, Bode & Dong 2002 discussed undiluted arsenic which can either cause cancer as well as be therapeutic in cancer, the study Betti et al. 1997 was again a study of toxicity in wheat seedlings. And the final study Khuda-Bukhsh et al. 2011, was the only one conducted in humans, but it was to determine the impact of Arsenicum album 30 on arsenic toxicity. Thus, no study in the review paper given in the ‘Annexure’ by AYUSH proves that low doses of arsenic or any other drug can be therapeutic. Further, it is evident from years of pharmacological research that the right amount of dose is imperative for the drug to have an effect. None of the studies mentioned in the Bellavite et al. 2015 review article proves that Arsenicum album 30 will boost immunity in humans or in animals to protect against infectious diseases. In fact, the claims of cell protection, genetic modulation or the high potency of low doses, has not been conducted systematically in any infectious disease models. Thus, homeopathy as an immune booster against COVID-19 remains heavily marketed and the most dangerous pseudoscience that the AYUSH ministry has produced during this pandemic. Our previous sci-check at Alt News Science reviewing and questioning the scientific literature on the mechanisms of homeopathy drugs can be found on this link. Further, we have also found that the claimed Arsenicum album 30 has never been tested in human infections in clinical trials (link here) to yield the results that the CCRH claims. The CCRH scientific advisory board had also confirmed that the medicine advised for recent coronavirus crisis (Arsenicum album 30) had been advised previously for the prevention of Influenza-like Illness (Mathie et al. 2009, Chakraborty et al. 2013, Varanasi, Gupta, et al. 2019). Thus, the drug has neither been specifically developed for the current or previous coronavirus epidemics nor has been tested systematically for efficacy against any coronavirus infections. Besides the government and media’s dispersal of unchecked science on homeopathy, corporators have been buying the drug at a mass scale to protect themselves, their families and their communities to form ‘herd immunity’ via the administration of Arsenicum album 30. A corporate giant Rajiv Bajaj, Bajaj Auto suggested that Homeopathy and herd immunity, not lockdown, are the best strategy to fight the coronavirus pandemic. Although it may be possible to increase immunity via lifestyle changes, vitamin D, sleeping efficiently, etc. so far, no drugs have shown the evidence to ‘boost the immunity’ to protect against the COVID-19 pandemic. The most reliable method to protect against the infection is suggested hygiene, physical distancing from humans and fomites as well as using protective gear when required. Consumption of such untested drugs on such a large scale gives false protection and increases the spread of coronavirus, especially when the country has not been able to control the spread despite the enforcement of physical distancing. References: Alt News Science is no longer edited by Dr. Sumaiya Shaikh From 2017-2021, Dr. Shaikh was the Founding-Editor for Alt News Science. Her main role is as a neuroscientist researching violent extremism and psychiatry. Follow @Neurophsyik In a 2-minute video, a man recommends a “technique” to prevent infection from Omicron, the… A video of a set of iron nails that appear to melt after being placed… Several social media users have shared an image that shows two columns — ‘Cepa/variante’ (Spanish… A 90-second video of a man dissecting a banana has been shared on the internet…. The Taliban has formed an all-male government after taking over control in Afghanistan. On September…	news-altnews	2024-05-27T18:24:05.489452	30th June 2020 / 8:40 pm / Last updated: 2nd September 2020	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/homeopathic-drugs-such-as-arsenicum-album-30-promoted-by-ayush-do-not-boost-immunity-against-covid/", "author": "Dr. Sumaiya Shaikh" }
1,468	Old case of Muslim woman's 'honour' killing revived as Hindu girl killed in 'love Jihad' - Alt News Kinjal 14th September 2020 / 6:22 pm / Last updated: 30th September 2021 A picture of a woman’s corpse along with a wedding card from an interfaith marriage has been shared on both Twitter and Facebook. A woman’s photo also accompanies the posts, alleging that she is the one who died. Ab kya kahen inko, Rona bhi nahin aata. Lekin parivaar waalo ka soch kar dukhi hoti hun. This incident is from Jodhpur, Rajasthan. pic.twitter.com/P1BkpLcRIF — Prisha (@MeetPrisha) September 29, 2021 It has been claimed that one ‘Prerna Vyas’ from Rajasthan’s Jodhpur was a victim of ‘love jihad’ after she happily married a Muslim man. The images, barring the photo of the woman, were also shared last year. The wedding card has the name of the couple allegedly involved in this incident, Prerna Vyas and Sameer Khan. Netizens had shared the photos and claimed, “Love Jihad’s last stop… Death.” Twitter user @Aapki_Lekhika had shared these photos on her account with this message on September 11, 2020. Her tweet garnered more than 6,000 likes and had been retweeted 3,700 times before it was deleted. (Archived link to the tweet) These pictures were shared with the same claim by another Twitter account with ‘Hindu Jagran Manch Bareilly Braj Prant’ as its display name. A Facebook page titled ‘His Highness Copy-Pastia Baba’ had also posted these pictures with this claim. Image 1: Corpse When we did a reverse image search of the photograph of the dead woman, we came across a report by DNA from September 12, 2018. According to this report, a young woman’s body had been recovered in the Burdwan district of West Bengal on August 31, 2018. The girl’s face had been crushed with a stone. During the post-mortem, two phone numbers written in henna were found on the victim’s body. Tracing these numbers led the police to a person named Karan Singh, a resident of Mumbai. When he was shown a picture of the corpse, Singh told the police that the girl’s name was Jahana Khatoon and she was from Muzaffarpur, Bihar. He and Jahana were in love with each other. However, her family was unhappy with their relationship. Singh said that Jahana’s father made her end her relationship with him and tried to force her to come back home with them to Muzaffarpur. After getting this information, the police reached Jahana’s house in Muzaffarpur. There they came to know that she had been taken to Kolkata by her father and brother a few days earlier. Singh had also told the police that Jahana’s father Md Mushtaque and brother Md Jahid lived in Kolkata’s Park Circus area where they both worked as drivers. The police then arrested the father-son duo from Park Circus on September 9, 2018. During the interrogation, Md Mushtaque broke down and confessed that he was the one who had killed Jahana. Md Jahid was quoted as saying in the report, “We brought her to Kolkata and we had also made up our mind to get Karan and Jahana married. While we were on the way back with Jahana, my father said that we should kill her. While I was driving, my father took a rope that was inside the car and strangulated her. Later he asked me to stop the car and he dumped the body off the road and mutilated her head with a stone.” A few other media outlets, including News18, NDTV, Business Standard, and Zee News, had published reports on the incident. Image 2: Wedding card The image of the wedding card clearly shows the date of Sameer Khan and Prerna Vyas’s wedding as October 22, 2019. Therefore, it cannot be linked in any way to the West Bengal incident from 2018. The picture of this wedding card has, in fact, been circulating on social media since October 2019. Image 3: Photo of a woman The woman is Telugu actress Summiyya Mohammed. Her picture, publicly available on the internet (1 and 2), was misused to weave the fictional story. To sum it up, a case of ‘honour’ killing in 2018 is being shared on social media with false claims that a Hindu woman was murdered as a result of ‘love jihad’. The woman who was killed hailed from the Muslim community. This 2018 incident has nothing to do with an interfaith marriage that was held in October 2019. The wedding card is unrelated to the incident. Furthermore, Telugu actress Summiyya Mohammed’s picture was misused to claim she was the Hindu woman who succumbed to ‘love jihad’. 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	14th September 2020 / 6:22 pm / Last updated: 30th September 2021	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/honor-killing-case-of-2018-and-an-unrelated-wedding-card-of-inter-faith-couple-shared-with-false-love-jihad-angle/", "author": "Kinjal" }
1,469	Horrific road accident video from Zimbabwe circulating as Ajmer, Rajasthan - Alt News Jignesh Patel 6th August 2019 / 8:52 pm A video capturing the aftermath of a road accident involving several buses is being circulated on social media. Multiple dead bodies are seen lying on the road while a person shoots the video of the surrounding. A Facebook user Nakki Mogi posted the video claiming to be of an accident that took place on Ajmer Highway. “अजमेर रोड , हाईवे पर खतरनाक एक्सीडेंट जिसमें 22 लोगों की मौत हो गई है और करीब 10 घायल हो गए हैं तो इसलिए आपसे विनम्र निवेदन है कि इस पोस्ट को ज्यादा से ज्यादा शेयर करें की जिनका परिवार इंतजार कर रहे हैं उन्हें पता चल जाएँ धन्यवाद जी (In a road accident which took place at Ajmer Highway, 22 people died and around 10 were injured. Hence you are humbly requested to share this post as much as possible so that the families of these people are informed -translated)”, reads the text posted along with the video. अजमेर रोड , हाईवे पर खतरनाक एक्सीडेंट जिसमें 22 लोगों की मौत हो गई है और करीब 10 घायल हो गए हैं तो इसलिए आपसे विनम्र निवेदन है कि इस पोस्ट को ज्यादा से ज्यादा शेयर करें की जिनका परिवार इंतजार कर रहे हैं उन्हें पता चल जाएँ धन्यवाद जी Posted by Nakki Mogi on Sunday, 28 July 2019 Twitter user Rajeev Pandey posted the video with the identical narrative. The video is also circulating on WhatsApp. Watching the video frame-by-frame, Alt News found a plate, in one of the frames, which suggested that it could be from Harare, Zimbabwe. With a keyword search on Google, we found that a collision between two buses took the lives of nearly 50 people in Zimbabwe in November 2018. According to a report published by News 24, two buses traveling in the opposite direction collided near Rusape, which is located about 170 km east of the capital Harare. Moreover, we also found a video news report by Africanews, published on November 9, 2018. In the comparison below, we have juxtaposed an image published in a report of the said incident in Daily Mail in 2018 with a screenshot of the destroyed bus from the viral video. This comparison further corroborates that the video is from Zimbabwe and is of the same incident as reported by several international media outlets. In conclusion, an old video depicting the aftermath of a road accident in Zimbabwe was falsely shared on social media with the narrative that the said incident took place at Ajmer Highway in Rajasthan. 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	6th August 2019 / 8:52 pm	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/horrific-road-accident-video-from-zimbabwe-circulating-as-ajmer-rajasthan/", "author": "Jignesh Patel" }
1,470	Hostage rescue drill video at Senegal airport viral with coronavirus spin - Alt News Archit 21st March 2020 / 4:24 pm A 15-second video of people at an airport has gone viral. In the video, people sitting or lying on the ground and getting assistance from a team presumably of emergency workers. At the four-second mark, we can hear a woman cough. The video is circulating with the text “The Ethiopian Airlines flight 🛬✈from Italy this evening to Addis Ababa airport. Most of the passengers are infected with the virus, and there is no strength except in God.” A Twitter user uploaded the viral video on March 18. #Information The Ethiopian Airlines flight 🛬✈from Italy this evening to Addis Ababa airport. Most of the passengers are infected with the virus, and there is no strength except in God. pic.twitter.com/ccAvKzi6jq — Azmath sultan 🇮🇳INC (@sultan_azmath) March 18, 2020 Alt News also noticed that the viral video has been shared on Facebook and WhatsApp. We have received several requests to fact-check the video on WhatsApp (+917600011160) and on our official Android application. Alt News found the viral video on a November 2019 article by Dakaractu, a French TV channel. According to the article, the video is from Blaise Diagne International Airport in Senegal. It is 43 kilometres from Dakar. The video shows a hostage-taking scenario drill. The 15-second viral video has been made from editing the first 43 seconds of the video uploaded by Dakaractu. Alt News analysed the viral video using InVid, a video verification tool and performed a reverse image search on Google. This led us to a March 13 fact-check report by France 24 which in turn led us to the video uploaded by Dakaractu. France 24 reported, “It turns out that this video actually shows a training exercise carried out in November 2019 at Blaise Diagne Airport in Dakar where police, gendarmes and members of staff had to practise what they’d do in case of a hostage-taking scenario, according to site Thiès Info. The actors taking part in the simulation are all wearing red armbands.” Therefore, the claim made that video shows people suffering from coronavirus after an “Ethiopian Airlines flight landed from Italy this evening to Addis Ababa” is false and misleading. As world-wide coronavirus pandemic continues, Alt News has been debunking misinformation related to it circulating online. To check these stories out, click here. 🙏 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	21st March 2020 / 4:24 pm	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/hostage-rescue-drill-video-at-senegal-airport-viral-with-coronavirus-spin/", "author": "Archit" }
1,471	Hotelier allegedly attacked in the name of beef in Jaipur - Alt News Pratik Sinha 20th March 2017 / 9:01 am / Last updated: 20th March 2017 At around 6 p.m on Sunday, a hotelier was allegedly attacked in the name of beef at Hotel Hayat Rabbani, Polo Victory, Jaipur. Reportedly, on the basis of a hoax call that beef was being served at Hayat Rabbani Hotel, a crowd gathered demanding that the owner Naeem Rabbani come out. When he did not, they allegedly beat up his staff. Kavita Srivastava who is the National Secretary of PUCL (People’s Union for Civil Liberties) was called upon to visit the place. This is the narrative she wrote about the incident on her Facebook account. Co-Founder Alt News, I can be reached via E-mail at [email protected] and on Facebook at https://fb.com/freethinker. Follow @free_thinker Following Saudi Arabia’s 2-1 win against Argentina in the ongoing FIFA World Cup, speculation about… Trigger Warning: The following story contains graphic imagery. Several users have shared images of the… The brutal murder of Shraddha Walker has been widely covered across news media over the… A 1:34-minute-long CCTV camera clip is being widely circulated on social media in which viewers… The teaser of a movie titled ‘The Kerala Story’ is being widely shared on social…	news-altnews	2024-05-27T18:24:05.489452	20th March 2017 / 9:01 am / Last updated: 20th March 2017	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/hotelier-attacked-name-beef-jaipur/", "author": "Pratik Sinha" }
1,472	Housing scheme poster tweeted by Amit Shah features Saroo Brierley, man who traced back his family after 25 yrs - Alt News Mahaprajna Nayak 2nd November 2022 / 10:01 pm The Prime Minister is set to inaugurate 3024 newly-built houses for the economically weaker section (EWS) in Delhi to rehabilitate people living in slums as part of a slum rehabilitation programme. Several prominent BJP leaders posted the announcement on Twitter and shared a poster on the event. The poster has three components – 1) an image of a high-rise building; 2) an image of family and 3) a text in Hind, which translates in English to: ‘Now, a concrete house instead of a slum hut… A huge gift to the people of Delhi from the central government. 3024 newly-constructed EWS houses will be inaugurated and keys handed over to beneficiaries.’ Union home minister Amit Shah, tweeted the poster with a caption in Hindi, which roughly translated to English as ‘The Modi government does not make empty promises. It delivers. Prime Minister Narendra Modi will handover keys to happiness to the slum-dwellers in Delhi. 3024 EWS flats to be handed over by Modiji in Delhi.’ सिर्फ घोषणाएँ नहीं बल्कि जनता से किए अपने वादों को पूरा करती है मोदी सरकार। प्रधानमंत्री श्री @NarendraModi जी आज दिल्ली में झुग्गी-झोपड़ी में रहने वाले लोगों को देंगे उनकी ख़ुशियों की चाबी। मोदी जी द्वारा दिल्ली में 3024 EWS Flats लोगों को दिए जाएँगे। pic.twitter.com/rLre6zWNlb — Amit Shah (@AmitShah) November 2, 2022 The official account of BJP Delhi State also shared the same poster in a tweet, which roughly translates to English as ‘Thousands of landless slum dwellers in Delhi to receive the gift of a concrete home. Today, as the Prime Minister Narendra Modi hands over the keys to 3024 EWS houses to beneficiaries, it will be a dream come true for them.’ दिल्ली के भूमिहीन कैंप में झुग्गी-झोपड़ी में रहने वाले हजारों गरीबों को मिल रहा पक्के घर का उपहार। आज प्रधानमंत्री श्री @narendramodi 3024 EWS फ्लैट्स की चाबी लाभार्थियों को देकर करेंगे उनका सपना साकार। pic.twitter.com/nDNmKWdLZz — BJP Delhi (@BJP4Delhi) November 2, 2022 Member of Parliament Hardwar Dubey, BJP Rajasthan state vice-president Chandrakanta Meghwal, former chief minister of Uttarakhand Dr Ramesh Pokhriyal Nishank replicated Amit Shah’s post in their tweets. Here are the screenshots of the tweets carrying the poster. A reverse image search using Google shows that the image used in the poster is not that of slum dwellers in Delhi but of Saroo Brierley and his family. Saroo was born in Khandwa, Madhya Pradesh. At the age of five, he lost contact with his family and was adopted by an Australian family. He spent the next 25 years in Hobart before the traced his birthplace using Google Maps and travelled to India, and in 2012, got reunited with his mother. We found a report by LiveMint which was carried the image of the family seen in the poster. The photo was credited to ‘Penguin Books India’. Brierley’s story got known world over after an Australian movie, ‘Lion‘, starring Dev Patel was made on him. Several stories on Brierley, including an autobiographical account ‘A Long Way Home’, has been written over the years [1, 2, 3, 4, 5 ]. On that fateful day in 1986, Saroo, then 5, was waiting for his brother, Guddu, at the Khandwa railway station. When he could not find him, Saroo boarded a train and reached Howrah station in West Bengal. After spending three weeks on the streets of Calcutta, he was taken to an adoption centre and finally adopted by an Australian family. In 2012, more than two decades later, using Google Maps, Saroo tracked down the same railway station, and eventually his birthplace, Khandwa. He then came to India in search of his lost family and was reunited with them. The picture in the posters was clicked after he met his biological family. In the picture, Saroo is seen with his mother Kamla, brother Kallu’s family, his sister Shekila and her son. The picture was has also been shared by a parody account of the same name. Words can not describe how happy I am today. So many sleepless nights lost in thought. I’ve finally found my purpose, my life have been fulfilled. pic.twitter.com/jqQuAX11EQ — Saroo Brierley (@saroobrierley5) April 16, 2019 Twitter user Pradeep Pandey, a journalist, pointed out that the picture of Saroo and his family was improperly used in the poster. Thus, we can say that the poster on the housing project for slum dwellers in Delhi carries a misplaced picture of Saroo Brierly and his biological family. Rahul and Priyanka Gandhi recently performed aarti at the Narmada Ghat in Madhya Pradesh’s Omkareshwar… In the wake of the alleged murder of Shraddha Walkar by his partner Aftab Amin… The video of a group of people stopping an e-rickshaw with BJP flags attached to… Last week during the G20 summit in Bali, world leaders were informed of a missile… Recently, several prominent BJP leaders claimed that Prime Minister Narendra Modi had intervened to stop…	news-altnews	2024-05-27T18:24:05.489452	2nd November 2022 / 10:01 pm	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/housing-scheme-poster-tweeted-by-amit-shah-features-saroo-brierley-man-who-traced-back-his-family-after-25-yrs/", "author": "Mahaprajna Nayak" }
1,473	How an unidentified family photo first became Kalam's, then Modi's childhood picture - Alt News Jignesh Patel 19th June 2019 / 3:05 pm A photograph of a young boy and a woman was shared on social media with the narrative that it was the childhood photograph of Prime Minister Narendra Modi with his mother, Hiraben. A Facebook user posted this photograph with a caption, “Jai Dev, Childhood photo graph of Narendra Modi ji with her mother”. The text inscribed in the image said, “यही है वो बच्चा , जिससने 132 करोड लोगोंको हिलाकर रखदिया नरेन्द्र मोदी अपनी माँ हिराबेन के साथ (This is the child, who shook 132 crores, Narendra Modi with his mother -translated)”. Several individuals users on Twitter and WhatsApp had shared the image with the same claim. Upon reverse searching the image on Google, Alt News found that the child seen in the photograph is not Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Several media outlets published the image as a still from Kalam’s childhood. An article published by India Today on May 8, 2016, had captioned the photograph as, “Ashiamma Jainulabiddin, mother of APJ Abdul Kalam”. We also found that the image was cropped out of a bigger family photograph. Your Story had captioned it as, “Kalam as a toddler with his Family in Tamil Nadu”. This claim was earlier fact-checked by BBC Hindi who arrived at the conclusion that the photograph was APJ Abdul Kalam’s childhood photograph. We found that one of the earliest instances, when the image had appeared on the Internet, was a blog post published in August 2013. The image was published with an article by Jagran Josh, an education portal of Jagran group, in July 2018, on Kalam’s death anniversary. Alt News contacted A.P.J.M.J Sheikh Saleem, the grand nephew of Kalam and managing trustee of Abdul Kalam International Foundation (AKIF) to check whether the image is genuine. He said, “That is not Dr Kalam and his mother. That’s a fake photograph. We don’t have any photographs of Dr Kalam’s childhood so far. Those days, Dr Kalam’s mother would not take any photograph. So, it’s not possible. There are also no photographs of Kalam’s father.” We were told that the youngest picture of APJ Abdul Kalam available with the ‘House of Kalam’ is from his college days. Moreover, Alt News was also told that there are no photographs of Kalam’s father. However, we were able to access a painting of Kalam’s father, which is available at the ‘House of Kalam’, the former president’s ancestral house in Rameshwaram, where his 102-year-old elder brother A.P.J. Mohamed Muthu Meera Maraikayar lives with the family. In conclusion, a photograph of an unidentified family was initially shared as former President APJ Abdul Kalam’s childhood photograph and later as of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s picture with his mother. 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	19th June 2019 / 3:05 pm	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/how-an-unidentified-family-photo-first-became-kalams-then-modis-childhood-picture/", "author": "Jignesh Patel" }
1,474	How BJP MP Tejasvi Surya communalised BBMP bed scam with misinformation - Alt News Archit 7th May 2021 / 10:48 pm / Last updated: 8th May 2021 On May 4, BJP MP from South Bangalore constituency Tejasvi Surya entered the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) South zone COVID war room during work hours (around 3 pm) and alleged that 16 of its workers were involved in a bed-for-bribe scam. Every person he accused hailed from the Muslim community. Surya claimed that he has evidence of their involvement in the scam. On May 5, The Hindu reported that most of these workers were fired. The entire fiasco was live-streamed on the BJP leader’s social media account. He was accompanied by his uncle and Basavanagudi MLA Ravi Subramanya, Chickpet MLA Uday Garudachar, and Bommanahalli MLA Satish Reddy. Starting from the 11:59 minute mark of Surya’s press conference, a two-minute clip has been widely circulated on WhatsApp. It shows Surya reading out 16 names and asking Special Commissioner Thulasi Maddineni, “Are you appointing for Madrasa or Corporation?… Who are they? Which agency?” A WhatsApp text was circulated with the names listed by Surya and the BBMP employees were labelled as ‘terrorists’ in a matter of a few hours. (Viral text: ಆಸ್ಪತ್ರೆಗಳಲ್ಲಿ ರಾತ್ರೋರಾತ್ರಿ ಬಿಬಿಎಂಪಿಯಿಂದ ಬೆಡ್ ಬುಕ್ಕಿಂಗ್ ದಂದೆ: ಇದು ಭ್ರಷ್ಟಾಚಾರ ಅಲ್ಲ, ಸೋಂಕಿತರ ಹತ್ಯೆ ಏನು ಮಾಫಿಯಾ ಇದು. Helpline ಗೆ appoint ಆಗಿರುವ 17 ಜನರ ಹೆಸರು ಕೇಳಿ,,, ಇವರ್ಯಾರೂ MLA, MP ಗಳ ಫೋನ್ ಎತ್ತಲೂ ಸಮಯ ಇಲ್ಲದವರು..ಕಾನೂನು ವ್ಯವಸ್ಥೆ ಅಂತ ಏನಾದ್ರೂ ಇದೆಯಾ?? List of terrorists working in BBMP WAR ROOM killing thousands of Bengalurians.) In response to the pandemic, several states have set up round-the-clock call centres that provide end-to-end support for citizens – from giving medical advice on a symptom to booking hospital beds. Last week, The Hindu reported that the BBMP COVID-19 helpline (1912) has 400 lines and receives about 3,000 calls from citizens across the city every day. BBMP Chief Commissioner Gaurav Gupta told The Hindu that the helplines are connected to the zonal war rooms. Alt News gained access to the employee list of the South BBMP COVID war room. The list names 205 employees along with their employment ID, designation, mobile number, shift category, date of joining, and team name. The 16 names mentioned in the WhatsApp text are listed in the same chronology as heard in Surya’s video. All names mentioned in this text were in the BBMP employee list except for one person. Most of them joined in the last week of April and they’ve been allocated specific shifts. Special Commissioner Thulasi Maddineni told Alt News, “Just like everyone, the 16 members were hired based on their qualifications via a third-party recruiting agency. BBMP wasn’t involved in the recruitment directly.” On May 6, The News Minute (TNM) reported that the recruiting agency in question was Crystal Infosystems. Shivu Naik, project manager at Crystal Infosystems, informed Alt News, “Out of the 16 names, 11 were detained on the night of May 4. They were kept at the police station until the wee hours of May 5.” Naik also clarified that one of the persons whose name isn’t on the employee list is a former employee at South BBPM COVID war room. DCP Harish Pandey denied that the 16 men were detained. “The 16 names were not relevant at the current stage of the investigation. Hereon, the case has been transferred to the city crime branch. None of the people mentioned by MP Tejasvi Surya was detained,” he said speaking with Alt News. The News Minute, however, reported that the outlet met the group while they were being released from the Jayanagar police station on May 5. “Yet, Sandip Patil, Joint Commissioner of Police (Crime) flatly denied that they had been summoned or detained.” Alt News reached out to all 16 individuals named by Surya. However, only one of them agreed to speak with us on the condition of anonymity. “Soon after Mr Surya’s press conference, we were fired. When I asked for an explanation from my manager, he said there is pressure from the MP. I can’t believe this happening to me. I am the only bread earner of the family,” he said. We reached out to the concerned manager but he refused to comment. However, Crystal Infosystems project manager Shivu Naik claimed that the 16 employees haven’t been fired. “They are suspended until the police investigation is complete,” he said. Furthermore, contradictory to the DCP’s claim, our source said, “Some of the people who were working in the night shift were detained at Jayanagar police station on May 5. The rest of us went to the police station and requested them to check our call logs and bank transactions to prove our innocence. We also tried to raise an issue about the WhatsApp text that labelled us as terrorists but no one took us seriously. Around 3 pm we learned that a protest was being held at our workplace. So we headed there.” “Once we reached the protest site, journalists took our statements. However, as we approached to join the protest, BBPM officials and police warned us to not get involved else we might be put in jail,” he added. When we asked him if there is any update from BBMP about his job he said, “There has been no update. Moreover, after the way we were treated I don’t feel like working there anymore. I’m looking for a new job.” After his press conference on May 4, Surya tweeted that his ‘outrage’ reformed the system as the BBMP website, which earlier showed zero beds available under the government quota, now showed 1504 beds available. This afternoon BBMP website showed zero beds available in Bengaluru under Govt Quota. Right now, it is showing 1504 beds as available. System is reforming. pic.twitter.com/j59Q8Cuk8X — Tejasvi Surya (@Tejasvi_Surya) May 4, 2021 Readers should note that the 1504 beds were the subtotal beds available in government medical colleges, government hospitals, private medical colleges and private hospitals. Archived pages of the BBMP website show that the beds in the subtotal section on April 28, April 29, May 2, and May 3 were 1716, 1837, 1180, and 1506. Surya’s claim that there were zero beds available before he visited the BBMP COVID war room is false. In fact, before his press conference was held, BBMP Commissioner Gaurav Gupta had tweeted that some 2,000 beds were available around 11 am. ಹಾಸಿಗೆ ಲಭ್ಯತೆ ಮತ್ತಿತರ ನೆರವಿಗಾಗಿ ದಯವಿಟ್ಟು ಬಿಬಿಎಂಪಿಯ 1912 ಸಹಾಯವಾಣಿಗೆ ಕರೆ ಮಾಡಿ. For assistance on beds, please reach out to the helpline at 1912 #BBMPCovidBedStatus pic.twitter.com/yNeuVtYBsV — Gaurav Gupta,IAS (@BBMPCOMM) May 4, 2021 Alt News studied the number of beds listed on BBMP and noticed that they are categorised into General, High Dependency Units (HDU), Intensive Care Units (ICU), and ICU + Ventilators. Over 80% of beds are in the General category and the remaining are for specialised needs which have been in high demand particularly in the second wave. Surya’s stunt had no impact on the availability of beds in the non-general category. The following screenshots show that the number of beds in HDC, ICU, ICU + Ventilator category as of May 7 on BBMP’s website is zero. A possible explanation behind this is the excess demand for the non-general category beds. On May 1, Bengaluru Mirror published two reports (Agent 420, Khadi is earning its bed & butter) which revealed harrowing experiences faced by patients who reached out to BBMP for help. Several patients were allotted beds in private hospitals or charged heavy fees for the same. A senior civic official told The Hindu, “From what has come out now, clearly there has been bed blocking and some have tried to make money out of the scarcity of oxygenated beds and ICU beds. But it may not be very widespread [as sought out by Surya].” On May 5, Joint Commissioner of Police (Crime) Sandeep Patil told TNM that the four accused in the case are Rihan, Shashi, Rohith and Nethravathy. The police started the investigation following Tejasvi Surya’s allegations. Patil said that they were able to trace payments to two people. The Hindu reported that Nethravathy, 40, and Rohith Kumar, 22, were caught after the police conducted a sting operation. A team, posing as relatives of a COVID-19 patient, approached them for beds. Harish Pandey, South Bengaluru DCP told the media outlet, “They would charge anywhere between ₹20,000 and ₹40,000 depending upon the financial status of the person asking for a bed.” The message made viral on WhatsApp after Surya’s communal accusations stated that BBMP Joint Commissioner Sarfaraz Khan should be held accountable for the recruitment of the 16 Muslim men. Khan made a passionate post on Facebook where he clarified that his role in BBMP is related to waste management and not COVID war rooms. TNM reported that Khan has filed a complaint with the Bengaluru Police Commissioner against his name being linked to the bed scam. Several media outlets — NewsX, Republic TV and Times Now — lauded Surya for unearthing the BBMP bed scam. But they failed to ask the lawmaker to present evidence for the allegations against the 16 Muslim men. Tejasvi Surya revisited the Bengaluru South COVID war room on the evening of May 5. BBMP staff said that he apologised to the employees working there and said that he was just ‘reading out a list’ that he was given. Surya’s office has denied that he apologised. But apology or not, the damage was already done. A report by The Hindu quotes a war room employee admitting that it has become difficult to answer emergency calls. “If we say there is no ICU bed, people ask our names to find out which community we belong to. Some offer us money for a bed, others abuse us,” he said. A senior civic official overseeing the war rooms also said several employees have stopped coming, while others have quit. The South zone war room saw a 40% absenteeism. “The police have not harassed anyone, but these youngsters and their parents are scared,” the official said. A report in Times Now further says that Surya’s stunt may have been a diversion from MLA Satish Reddy who has been allegedly using his influence to get beds blocked by Bommanahalli zone war room for patients who do not need them. Reddy was one of the politicians who accompanied Surya in his ‘raid’. He has denied all allegations. 🙏 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	7th May 2021 / 10:48 pm / Last updated: 8th May 2021	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/how-bjp-mp-tejasvi-surya-communalised-bbmp-bed-scam-with-misinformation/", "author": "Archit" }
1,475	How Chowkidar Govind Saroj became actor Janhvi Kapoor and endorsed PM Modi - Alt News Pratik Sinha 17th April 2019 / 8:41 pm / Last updated: 17th April 2019 “I do not understand politics but know that the country needs Modi ji,” read a tweet from a Twitter account ‘realjanhvi’. At the time of writing, the tweet was retweeted over 3,000 times and liked over 12,000. The account’s bio claims that it is the official account of Janhvi Kapoor, the actor of a 2018 Hindi film ‘Dhadak’. The handle does not have a blue tick-mark which signifies that the identity of the person running an account has not been verified by Twitter. Moreover, the account was created in June 2017 but has only 19 tweets. This is atypical behaviour as actors are usually active social media users who promote their upcoming events, films etc via their accounts. The above indicators suggested that the account may not be genuine, hence Alt News decided to investigate it further. Every Twitter account has a unique numeric id. Websites such as gettwitterid.com can be used to find the same. In the case of the Twitter account ‘realjanhvi,’ the numeric Twitter id is ‘871660301371924481’. Upon looking up the said id on Google, we came across an account called ‘govinddeshpremi’. Further, on searching for old tweets where ‘govinddeshpremi’ was tagged, and upon hovering the mouse over the account username, the Twitter pop-up suggested that the account ‘govinddeshpremi’ has been renamed to ‘realjanhvi’. Watch the video below for an illustration of the same. We were also able to locate the Google cache of ‘govinddeshpremi’ account. We looked up the HTML source code of the page to ascertain whether it has the same numeric Twitter id as the ‘realjanhvi’ handle. The screenshot below of a section of the source code (underlined) confirms that the two accounts indeed have the same Twitter id, thus confirming that ‘govinddeshpremi’ was renamed to ‘realjanhvi’ to issue an endorsement for PM Modi. We found screenshots of the account shared by other Twitter users when it used to go by the account ‘govinddeshpremi’. The name associated with the account before the id was changed to ‘realjanhvi’ was ‘Chowkidar Govind Saroj’. पेल दिया करो!! 🤣🤣😂 pic.twitter.com/xHaIW6UEnz — Chowkidar Alok Kumar Dubey #AWarrior🇮🇳 (@alokdubey1408) March 27, 2019 We were also able to located Govind Saroj’s (govinddeshpremi) Facebook page where a similar pattern was observed – a page called Shobha Devi was merged to create the said person’s Facebook page. Presently, Saroj uses the Twitter id ‘govindnamo‘. With elections in full swing, attempts to mislead voters using a variety of tactics will often be used. While unmasking all misinformation might not be feasible for social media users, they can tread carefully to look out for signs. In this case, the account impersonating actor Janhvi Kapoor’s official handle was not verified and has very few tweets, a behaviour atypical of actors. Co-Founder Alt News, I can be reached via E-mail at [email protected] and on Facebook at https://fb.com/freethinker. Follow @free_thinker Following Saudi Arabia’s 2-1 win against Argentina in the ongoing FIFA World Cup, speculation about… Trigger Warning: The following story contains graphic imagery. Several users have shared images of the… The brutal murder of Shraddha Walker has been widely covered across news media over the… A 1:34-minute-long CCTV camera clip is being widely circulated on social media in which viewers… The teaser of a movie titled ‘The Kerala Story’ is being widely shared on social…	news-altnews	2024-05-27T18:24:05.489452	17th April 2019 / 8:41 pm / Last updated: 17th April 2019	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/how-chowkidar-govind-saroj-became-actor-janhvi-kapoor-and-endorsed-pm-modi/", "author": "Pratik Sinha" }
1,476	How disinformation led to the attack on missionary school in MP by right-wing groups - Alt News Archit & Mohammed Zubair 9th December 2021 / 5:23 pm / Last updated: 9th December 2021 On December 6, members of Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) and Bajrang Dal vandalised St Joseph Senior Higher Secondary in Madhya Pradesh’s Ganj Basoda, claiming that the school “converted” Hindu students to Christianity. As per a Hindustan Times report, MP police registered a case against four identified VHP members and 50 unidentified members of Bajrang Dal. BB Sharma, sub-divisional officer of police (SDOP), Ganj Basoda, told HT that cases under IPC sections 147 (rioting), 148 (rioting armed with a deadly weapon) and 427 (causing damage to the amount more than ₹50) were registered. Hindutva goons on the rampage today at St Joseph’s school in Ganjbasoda, Vidisha in Madhya Pradesh. pic.twitter.com/N88Rm4zhPT — Anand Kochukudy (@AnandKochukudy) December 6, 2021 The HT report also said that the Hindu groups were inspired by a YouTube video that alleged that eight Hindu children were converted to Christianity in the school premises. Reporting on the same incident, The Indian Express wrote, “The incident occurred at around 12:10 pm, when around 300 people gathered outside St Joseph High School to protest — while the school was conducting exams for Class 12 students. The mob soon turned violent and broke into the school premises, damaging property. School principal Brother Anthony Tynumkal told The Indian Express that the mob was armed with iron rods and stones, and chanted ‘Jai Shri Ram’ while damaging school property.” The YouTube channel in question goes by the name “Aayudh”. It uploaded an “exposé” video insinuating that eight students who worship Hindu gods were made to partake in a sacrament, a Christian religious ritual. The channel implied “forced religious conversion”. This video was presented by Sourabh Kumar. He alleged a religious conspiracy for mass conversions in the school. At the 1:39 mark, a clipping of a publication titled “Sagar Voice” is displayed. The headline of one of the articles in the publication reads “First Holy Communion at Ganj Basoda”. The article carries a photo of a group, including the eight children, dressed in white. It says that the priest of Ganj Basoda, Parish Fr Jose Lee Cyrakkove, was present during the sacrament. Alt News spoke with Fr Jose Lee. “Sagar Voice is a publication that shares updates related to Church-related activities in MP’s Sagar diocese. As mentioned in the article, eight children participated in Holy Communion and it took place at St Joseph Church Ganj Basoda in Vidisha district of MP on October 31. Holy Communion is a sacrament that is given only to Christians and takes place in the presence of the children’s parents. It’s worth noting that none of the children who participated in the sacrament attend the school that was vandalised. While I’m still trying to understand why the violence took place, I hope the authorities will take cognisance of the incident.” The video ends with an excerpt from a Hindi poem titled “Power and Forgiveness”, by the renowned Hindi-language poet Ramdhari Singh Dinkar. Its English translation can be read here. The poem was recited to advise Hindus to “not tolerate atrocities”. On December 4, a day after the YouTube video was uploaded, Ganj Basoda-based right-wing outfit Ahirwar Samaj wrote a letter to the Vidisha district collector, informing him of the alleged conversions. The letter also claims that eight Hindu children were converted to Christianity in St Joseph Senior Higher Secondary. The letter threatens that “violent protests” will be carried out by Hindu groups if FIR is not filed against the “accused” and strict action is not taken within seven days. YouTube’s policy on hate speech does not allow targeting individuals or groups based on a plethora of identities, including religion. While Aayudh’s video does not use racial slurs, abuse or openly incite violence, context matters. And YouTube also believes so. “Consider the intention of your video — is it to inform and educate or to shock and incite?” is a question on the “do’s and don’ts” on the “importance of context” page of YouTube guidelines. Under “what you shouldn’t do”, YouTube says that content creators should not try to “shock or disgust” their viewers. Since no social media platform has a policy against disinformation, one can only analyse disinformation shared with the intent to spread hate or fan hate/ violence from the lens of the platforms’ existing policies. There was no purpose of the video other than targeting the minority Christian community in India using disinformation. On December 6, the day the violence took place, Aayudh uploaded a “ground report” where its reporter took credit for the channel’s reportage on the alleged conversions that led the Hindu community to take to the streets. In another video uploaded the next day, the channel again accused the school of running an “illegal conversion racket”. Several other right-wing channels have also amplified the false “conversion narrative”, including Sudarshan News. The disinformation led to violence when Class XII students were giving a mathematics exam and barely escaped the attack. “Ek dhakka aur do, St Joseph tod do” (Give it another push, bring down the Babri mosque) was one of the slogans raised during the attack. This was also a signature tune used to egg the mob in the run-up to the demolition of the Babri Masjid. “एक धक्का और दो , #StJoseph तोड़ दो” ये तस्वीर और ये नारा ख़ौफ़नाक है मोदी का नया भारत ख़तरनाक रफ़्तार से तालिबान के रास्ते पर जा रहा है। मस्जिद, मुसलमान, चर्च के बाद इन आतंकियों के निशाने पर अब स्कूल हैं पर @narendramodi @ChouhanShivraj चुप बैठे हैं pic.twitter.com/6hyC2BP09y — Vinod Kapri (@vinodkapri) December 7, 2021 Alt News has emailed YouTube about Aayudh and if the channel will be suspended. This article will be updated with YouTube’s response. Rahul and Priyanka Gandhi recently performed aarti at the Narmada Ghat in Madhya Pradesh’s Omkareshwar… In the wake of the alleged murder of Shraddha Walkar by his partner Aftab Amin… The video of a group of people stopping an e-rickshaw with BJP flags attached to… Last week during the G20 summit in Bali, world leaders were informed of a missile… Recently, several prominent BJP leaders claimed that Prime Minister Narendra Modi had intervened to stop…	news-altnews	2024-05-27T18:24:05.489452	9th December 2021 / 5:23 pm / Last updated: 9th December 2021	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/how-disinformation-led-to-the-attack-on-missionary-school-in-mp-by-right-wing-groups/", "author": "Archit & Mohammed Zubair" }
1,477	How Hyderabad vet's rape-murder was communalised by right-wing handles and outlets on social media - Alt News Pooja Chaudhuri 30th November 2019 / 12:03 pm / Last updated: 30th November 2019 A 26-year-old veterinary doctor went missing on November 27 near Hyderabad. A day later, her charred body was found at the underpass of a National Highway in Chatanpally village. The victim was gang-raped and subsequently murdered and burnt by four. The accused, Mohammed Pasha, Naveen, Keshavulu and Shiva, were identified by the police after scanning CCTV footage installed near a toll plaza where the victim had parked her two-wheeler. In a press briefing, Hyderabad CP police said that Pasha is a 26-year-old lorry driver, Shiva and Naveen are both 20-year-old lorry cleaners and Keshavulu is a 20-year-old lorry driver. Pasha, accompanied with the others, had parked his lorry at a toll plaza in Shamshabad when they spotted the victim park her scooty. She came back to the toll plaza around 9 pm to collect her vehicle. “By this time the accused had already consumed alcohol and planned how to trap this lady,” said the police. Naveen had removed air from the back tire of the scooty. In the pretext of offering help, Shiva took the vehicle to a nearby repair shop while the others forcefully took the victim to a compound and committed rape. Shiva joined in later. “All these people while they were doing this offence had closed the mouth and the nose of the victim because of which she died on the spot. These people immediately moved back the vehicle, loaded the dead body into the cabin…they bought petrol and took diesel from their own vehicle and burned the dead body in Chatanpally village,” the police added. The press release by the police also gives similar details with the exception that all the accused raped her one by one and Mohammed Pasha aka Areef was the one who suffocated her to death. Sharing the press release because it’s easier to share the detaiils this way with all those who’ve been anxious and worried about what exactly happened. It was a case of brutal gang-rape and murder following which they set the body on fire to destroy all evidence. #HangTheBrutes pic.twitter.com/8vP4tAswoV — Paul Oommen (@Paul_Oommen) November 29, 2019 A report in The Hindu says that the accused confessed to the crime. The names of the four accused were revealed hours before the police held a press conference. The rape, however, was heavily communalised by members of the BJP, supporters of the party and a section of the media. BJP MLA T Raja Singh only highlighted the name of the rapist with the Muslim identity, So did Amitava Chakraborty, State Joint General Secretary (Organisation) of BJP Odisha, and Khemchand Sharma of BJP IT and Social Media Campaign Committee. IAS officer Sanjay Dixit, who has often been featured on Alt News for sharing misinformation, incidentally shared a report that carried the names of all the four accused. Dixit, however, wrote only Mohammed Pasha’s name in his tweet. After the news of the rape and murder came to light, one of the top trends on Twitter was #Balatkari_Mohammed_Nikala. A popular name in the disinformation ecosystem, Parshant Patel Umrao tweeted, “Mohammad Pasha with his Gang, raped Hyderabad doctor & burned alive. They have become denger to survival of Humanity & every Hindu Woman is on target on them.” He also wrote, “Why are you feeling shame in taking name of Mohammad Pasha,” to a tweet where ANI reported that the accused persons have been arrested by the police. Why are you feeling shame in taking name of Mohammad Pasha.#ANI https://t.co/4qhprP020Q — प्रशान्त पटेल उमराव (@ippatel) November 29, 2019 Other usual suspects who communalised the rape were Rishi Bagree, Mahesh Vikram Hegde, Payal Rohatgi, Koena Mitra and Madhu KIshwar. “हैवान मोहम्मद पाशा ने दोस्तों के साथ प्लान बनाकर किया था डॉ. *** का बलात्कार, फिर ह्त्या कर जला दिया था लाश को (Devil Mohammed Pasha raped * after making a plan with his friends, then burnt her after the murder.)” – reads the headline of a report by Sudarshan News. But the fuel was added to the fire by Suresh Chavhanke, the channel’s CMD and editor-in-chief. “Hyderabad police has arrested two Hindus for the murder of ***. This is not a balance exercise under the pressure of Owaisi brothers, right? I demand this to be investigated,” he said in a video. Swarajya and Opindia too communalised the rape and murder. Both platforms highlighted the name of only the Muslim accused. Other media outlets that did irresponsible reporting were ETV Andhra Pradesh, TV9 Telugu, Orissa Post and Free Press Journal. It is noteworthy that Andhra Pradesh Mahila Congress had also posted a communally-charged tweet which was later taken down. Andhra MC claimed that the tweet was a “mischief of a volunteer who acted on her own volition…The said person has been fired from her position with immediate effect.” A disturbing phenomenon is observed in recent times where crimes as heinous as rape are communalised. The trend is not only true in the case of social media but for also prominent individuals in the government and media outlets capable of shaping public opinion. Since the brutal incident was reported, the police had identified all the four accused. But a social media campaign attempted to paint a communal picture. Irresponsible media reports, with clickbaity headlines, furthered the misleading narrative instead of dousing the hate. 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… 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 November 2019 / 12:03 pm / Last updated: 30th November 2019	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/how-hyderabad-vets-rape-murder-was-communalised-by-right-wing-handles-and-outlets-on-social-media/", "author": "Pooja Chaudhuri" }
1,478	How Indian media fooled the nation about a massive discovery of gold reserves - Alt News Sam Jawed 23rd February 2020 / 6:15 pm / Last updated: 25th February 2020 The news of discovery of gold mines with 3,500 tonnes of gold reserve in Uttar Pradesh’s Sonbhadra district first broke on the Feb 20th in regional papers. By February 22nd, 2020, the entire Indian media was abuzz with the news that Sonbhadra gold mines had gold deposits estimated to be around 3,350 tonnes and worth Rs 12 lakh crore, which is almost five times India’s current gold reserve. The reports quoted a District Mining Officer and estimated that with this find, India’s current gold reserve of 626 tonnes, would jump to second place in the world behind US which holds 8,133.5 tonnes of gold. Even though the reports mentioned ‘gold deposits’, they equated it to actual gold mined and added the entire 3350 tonnes to India’s current gold reserve. Such exuberant reporting continued till later in the day when Geological Survey of India intervened and denied making any such discovery. In this article Alt News will trace how the Indian media fell for unverified news. The coverage in Jagran news specified that it is a discovery of gold ore and it quoted Dr Rohtash, professor of Geology of BHU, who explained that the amount of gold that can be extracted from it depends on the grading of the deposit. However, this is not how it was interpreted by the time the news reached English media. One of the earliest tweets on Feb 20th interpreting 3,350 tonnes of gold ore as 3,350 tonnes of actual gold mined was Mahesh Hegde, founder of the dubious website, Postcard News. Hegde linked the finding to India’s gold reserves implying that the entire 3,350 tonnes will be added to India’s gold reserves. This line of thinking was subsequently parroted by several mainstream media outlets. 3500 tonnes of GOLD found in Sonbhadra, UP Extraction work will soon begin Credit goes to Geological Survey of India for working behind this since 2005 Prior to this India’s Gold reserves in world was 618.2 tonnes Once again India will be called Golden Bird (Sone Ki Chidiya) — Mahesh Vikram Hegde (@mvmeet) February 20, 2020 On Feb 21st, the news was published by ANI. Curiously the ANI story quoted the District Mining Officer, KK Rai who claimed that Gold deposits were 2700 ‘million’ tonnes in Son Pahadi and 650 ‘million’ tonnes in Hardi field. State broadcaster Doordarshan also tweeted the news and the statement of the mining officer. The tweet is now deleted. A widely quoted story by Times of India and Economic Times researched the value of gold reserves of different countries and estimated that with this discovery, India’s gold reserve would jump to second place behind the US. It is noteworthy that almost all the media outlets took the line of thinking that gold ore is the same as gold extracted. A Money Control report was a little more specific about the discovery being ‘gold ore’ which gave a clue that the actual gold extracted would only be a fraction of the amount. However, like the others, the story here also stated that the discovery was five times India’s current reserve. Oblivious to the distinction between gold ore and actual gold mined, there was massive celebration on media as well as social media. Predictably, soon enough, the ruling party in the state was given credit for the discovery. “Yogi Adityanath strikes gold”, read a Financial Express headline which was extensively shared on social media crediting the Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister for the find. Yogi Adityanath strikes gold! 3,500-tonne goldmine found in Uttar Pradesh’s #Sonbhadra district https://t.co/8tIB01tdvL pic.twitter.com/Em4Zqh9z1d — Financial Express (@FinancialXpress) February 21, 2020 Ironically, it was a Financial Express article that had earlier accurately reported on Feb 21st that the deposits had estimated gold reserves of 52,806 tonne and the inferred grade as 3.04 gram/tonne. The news made it to TV news shows in the most entertaining manner, devoid of any fact-check. From Aaj Tak calling India ‘phir sonay ki chidiya’ to ABP News describing the hillock that will change India’s fortunes forever, the TV channels went over the top in describing the find. Even though by that time, there was no tweet confirming the news from either the Ministry of Mines or the Geological Survey of India, Hardeep Singh Puri, Union Minister for Housing & Urban Affairs and Civil Aviation acknowledged the news and tweeted that India will now have the world’s 2nd largest gold reserves after the massive Gold discovery in Sonbhadra. UP Deputy CM KP Maurya went on to give media byte that the discovery will help in making India financially strong. UP Deputy CM KP Maurya on gold deposits found in Sonbhadra: This will help in making India financially strong. The state government is happy with this news. pic.twitter.com/MyERmHE5Qi — ANI UP (@ANINewsUP) February 22, 2020 RBI Director, S. Gurumurthy, tweeted about the possibility of India controlling the world gold market. Yogi Adityanath strikes gold! 3,500-tonne goldmine found in Uttar Pradesh’s Sonbhadra district-https://t.co/ybcFnhQutU If this were true it is my 30 year dream come true. If India has 3500 tons of gold it will control the world gold market, decide the world gold prices too. — S Gurumurthy (@sgurumurthy) February 21, 2020 However, it turned out that there was no such discovery of gold. “GSI has not estimated such kind of vast resource of gold deposits in Sonbhadra district”, GSI Director General (DG) M Sridhar told PTI. Geological Survey of India issued a press release, clarifying that the exploration was carried out in field season 1998-99 and 1999-2000 and stating that “the mineralised zone having an average grade of 3.03 grams per tonne of gold is tentative in nature and the total gold which can be extracted from the total resource of 52,806.25 tonnes of ore is approximately 160 kg and not 3,350 tonnes as mentioned in the media.” Since the exploration was carried out in 1998-2000, there is in fact no new discovery as reported by the media outlets. Alt News found that even an October 2011 report of the Ministry of Mines contained reference to this ‘discovery’ . The image below shows a reference to .053mt (million tonnes) which is the same as 53,000 tonnes and matches with 52,806.25 tonnes of ore in the GSI press release. It was amply clear that both media and social media users were confused between gold ore and actual gold mined. The proportion of gold contained in the ore of a particular mine is represented in grams per metric ton (g/t). According to the World Gold Council, better-quality underground mines contain around 8 to 10 g/t gold, marginal underground mines average around 4 to 6 g/t gold and open-pit mines range from 1 to 4 g/t gold. This means that even if the Sonbhadra gold deposit was of a high 10g/t grade, 3500 tonnes of gold ore would translate into 35 kgs of gold. The number however as clarified by GSI is actually 52,806.25 tonnes of ore which for the average grade of 3.03 g/t would potentially translate into 160kg of gold. It turns out that media outlets amplified the misinformation without even a basic fact check. They did not verify the gold ore quantity with past reports or any official GSI source. As a result, they not only got the number wrong but also considered gold extracted to be equal to the gold ore deposit. Using the same line of thinking as Postcard News founder, they added the entire amount to India’s gold reserves and declared that India would jump to second place in the world. They did not even question why such a massive discovery that would impact India’s gold reserves was made by a district mining officer and not the Head of GSI or the Minister of Mines himself. Nobody's cheerleader, I tweet at @samjawed65 Following Saudi Arabia’s 2-1 win against Argentina in the ongoing FIFA World Cup, speculation about… Trigger Warning: The following story contains graphic imagery. Several users have shared images of the… The brutal murder of Shraddha Walker has been widely covered across news media over the… A 1:34-minute-long CCTV camera clip is being widely circulated on social media in which viewers… The teaser of a movie titled ‘The Kerala Story’ is being widely shared on social…	news-altnews	2024-05-27T18:24:05.489452	23rd February 2020 / 6:15 pm / Last updated: 25th February 2020	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/how-indian-media-fooled-the-nation-about-a-massive-discovery-of-gold-reserves/", "author": "Sam Jawed" }
1,479	How misinformation is being used to undermine JNU students' protest: Alt News compilation - Alt News Arjun Sidharth 21st November 2019 / 7:04 pm / Last updated: 21st November 2019 Protests by JNU students have been raging in the national capital after the university administration proposed a fee hike in the draft hostel manual. As is the case with every news development of significance, the issue has become fodder for purveyors of misinformation on social media. Over the past few days, old and/or unrelated photographs have been circulated on Facebook, Twitter and WhatsApp in the backdrop of these protests. In a majority of the instances, the JNU students are at the receiving end of misinformation. A photograph of a young woman holding a liquor bottle in one hand and a cigarette in the other, has been circulated with the narrative that she is a JNU student. The liquor bottle in her hand apart.. This JNU junkie has 2 packs of “Classic” on the table as she smokes one…Each pack costs 300 bucks.. And these castards are whining about fee hike?… @Timesnow @Indiatoday @Republic @PMOIndia @DrRPNishank @mamidala90 https://t.co/ZgKaLbvB60 pic.twitter.com/sA8pVpEEqF — Ravinar (@RavinarIN) November 16, 2019 Another picture of a girl who has tied her hair with a condom too has been shared as a protesting JNU student. “JNU ‘s fall cannot be explained better than this – Condom to tie hair & Naked protests”, reads the caption along with the photograph. JNU ‘s fall cannot be explained better than this – Condom to tie hair & Naked protests 👎 pic.twitter.com/TmXYH8HBtz — Karuna Gopal (@KarunaGopal1) November 18, 2019 Alt News reverse-searched both images and found they are unrelated to JNU protesters. The image of the woman holding the liquor bottle was found on a blog from August 2016. As for the picture with the condom, Alt News found it posted by a Twitter user in December 2017. A photograph of an elderly woman was shared widely on Facebook and Twitter with the narrative that the person is a student of JNU. The messages accompanying it were sarcastic in nature. A final year student from JNU got arrested. Fascist Modi#ShutDownJNU #JNUWallOfShame #JNUFreebies #JNUProtests pic.twitter.com/AAEq6Imtf8 — Amaresh Ojha 🇮🇳 (@Amreso99) November 18, 2019 It turns out that the lady in the photograph is Annie Raja, a leader of the CPI and not a student of JNU. Annie Raja was among those who had protested outside the Supreme Court in May 2019 over the clean chit given to former CJI Ranjan Gogoi over allegations of sexual harassment. That is when this photo was taken In yet another example, a photograph was shared on social media, targeting the protesting students. An image of a student was circulated with the claim that he is a 45 year old Congress leader Abdul Raza, who is still a student at the university. The photograph was shared with the message, “ये JNU का छात्र निकला 45 वर्ष का जानते हैं कौन है अब्दुल रजा कांग्रेस का मण्डल अध्यक्ष कुछ समझे” (This 45 year old turned out to be a JNU student, he is Abdul Raza, a Congress leader- translated), and the hashtag #ShutDownJNU. 45 वर्षीय #अब्दुल_रजा कांग्रेस का #मण्डल_अध्यक्ष भी अभी JNU में पढ़ाई कर‌ रहा हैं। हद हो गयी यार…😠😠😡#ShutDownJNU pic.twitter.com/97PW0nVKNw — डा.सीमा (@seematri6) November 19, 2019 The social media claim, once again turned out to be false. The person in the photograph is Shubham Bokade, a 23-year old student at JNU studying MA in Lingustics. In a conversation with Alt News, Bokade said, ““First of all, the post being circulated is fake. I think the narrative being circulated is also very problematic. It is Islamophobic, clearly. Secondly, suppose even if I were the Abdul Raza who is 45 years of age as the fake news claims, the question is what’s wrong with a 45 year old man trying to get an education at an affordable price. The idea of education is not to make University spaces exclusive but rather to make space for the last person standing.” A photograph depicting a young woman bleeding copiously from a head wound was circulated on social media with a narrative targeting the government. It was shared in the context of the clash between students and the police in the national capital, in which 15 students were injured. The above picture is not from India. According to an article published by a Shia News website JafariyaNews.com in February 2005, these images depict the observation of Ashura on the tenth day of Muharram. Hence the suggestion that image was clicked during the recent students’ fee hike protest is false. In another such instance, a photograph of a man was circulated with the narrative that he is Moinuddin, a 47-year old student at JNU. According to the claim on social media, Moinuddin had enrolled at the university thirty years back i.e. in 1989. “That baldy looks like he’s been there for a while.. ₹10 room, free food, generous stipend, condom vending machine.. What else a ‘revolutionary’ want?” is the message accompanying the image. That baldy looks like he’s been there for a while.. ₹10 room, free food, generous stipend, condom vending machine.. What else a ‘revolutionary’ want? 😄 pic.twitter.com/2ygF1O0NmA — ചാത്തൂട്ടി (@chathootti) November 16, 2019 The narrative is false. The person in the photograph is Pankaj Mishra, a student of JNU indeed, but not 47 years old as claimed. Mishra is 30 years old and is a MPhil student at the university. “जिस उम्र में लोग बृद्धा पेंशन लेते है उस उम्र में ये आँटी कौन सा ज्ञान ले रही है ,😂😂😂#JNU (In the age when people take an old-age pension, what knowledge is the aunty attaining -translated)”, tweeted a user along with an image of a woman who seems to be forcefully escorted by the police. Another account posted the same image with a message, “ई कवन पढ़ाई पढ़े ली JNU में ..!😊 (What is she studying in JNU -translated)”. Both tweets were retweeted widely. A Google reverse image search of the image revealed that the image is not related to the JNU students’ protest. “Police arrests a woman who was participating in a protest demanding for minimum wage, at labour Commissioner Office in Hyderabad”, reads the caption of the image published by Outlook. According to the media outlet, this is an image by PTI from September 19, 2017. A photograph showing a young woman attacked with a lathi by police personnel, was shared widely by social media users who took a dig at the protesting JNU students with the words, “ये पड़ा धोनी का 6 और गेंद स्टेडियम से बाहर”. The image was posted on both Facebook and Twitter. ये पड़ा धोनी का 6 और गेंद स्टेडियम से बाहर 😆 pic.twitter.com/kVCuXRvMxy — गब्बर सिंह ( रामगढ़ वाले ) (@IntolerantMano2) November 19, 2019 The photograph in question was clicked in 2012, during the protest which had taken place in the national capital over the brutal rape and murder of Nirbhaya. A screengrab of a Zee News broadcast, where a woman can be seen standing in a crowd, is was shared on social media. One Kanak Mishra posted the image with a claim that the woman is a 43-year-old student at Jawaharlal Nehru University whose daughter is also studying in the same institute. मोहर्तमा JNU की 43 साल की छात्रा है, और कमाल की बात उनकी बेटी मोना भी 12 वी में JNU में ही पड़ती है🙄🙄🙄 #muftkhori_Zindabad 😃😃 Posted by कनक मिश्र on Sunday, 17 November 2019 This too is a false claim. The student is Shambhavi Siddhi, a 23-year old student of the university, who is pursuing Masters in French literature. Social media continues to rage with misinformation surrounding the agitation by JNU students. The modus operandi is simple- pick up photographs randomly from the internet, from personal social media profiles of students, or from feeds of news outlets and share them with new, false contexts. As noted, it is the students of the varsity who have been targeted in most cases. 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	21st November 2019 / 7:04 pm / Last updated: 21st November 2019	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/how-misinformation-is-being-used-to-undermine-jnu-students-protest-alt-news-compilation/", "author": "Arjun Sidharth" }
1,480	How misinformation was weaponized in 2019 Lok Sabha election - A compilation - Alt News Arjun Sidharth 18th May 2019 / 6:46 pm / Last updated: 20th May 2019 As the 2019 general election draws to a close, Alt News has compiled a list of the most prominent instances of misinformation this election season. No stone was left unturned by purveyors of misinformation/disinformation, who resorted to every trick to sway the electorate ahead of voting. Readers may note that the instances listed below are in no particular order. It is not uncommon to see misinformation float on social media, but when it emanates from the formal political system, it becomes an even greater cause for concern. In the much hyped interview given to India Today in April 2019, Prime Minister Narendra Modi asserted that the people of the country must be made aware of one crucial fact- the Congress party is contesting the lowest number of seats ever in the history of general elections.The relevant portion can be heard from 1:03:45 in the video posted below. Alt News found that PM Modi’s claim was factually incorrect. Congress party is contesting the election from 424 seats in this election. This is not the lowest tally ever. In 2004, the INC had fought on 417 seats. Alt News’ detailed fact-check can be read here. “What are your thoughts?”, tweeted Divya Spandana, social media head of the Congress party, along with two photographs. The photograph on the left is that of Nazi leader Adolf Hitler, whereas the one on the right is of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. What are your thoughts? pic.twitter.com/b8GcgKL2ih — Divya Spandana/Ramya (@divyaspandana) April 29, 2019 The same image had been circulated by detractors of Narendra Modi in 2018 as well. It was debunked by Alt News. A reverse image search on Google revealed that Hitler’s image used in the post is photoshopped. In the original image, he is not holding the child’s ears but resting his hands on her shoulders. An article in The Sun has published the original image which was apparently clicked to portray the Nazi leader as a “personal friend and guardian of the German youth”. On April 28, Haryana chief minister Manohar Lal Khattar addressed an election rally in Ratia in the state. During his speech, the CM spoke about a purported video of Rahul Gandhi which was “too difficult to even talk about”. Khattar alleged that the Congress president “insulted the honour of our mothers and sisters”. He cited a video where he claimed Gandhi said that women in Uttar Pradesh can give birth to one child a week or 52 children a year. The video referred to by Manohar Lal Khattar was mischievously clipped. A 7-year-old speech of Rahul Gandhi in UP’s Phulpur was lifted, clipped and circulated on social media.In the original speech, Rahul Gandhi talks about Janani Suraksha Yojna under the National Rural Health Mission, where pregnant women get an incentive of Rs 1,400 for institutional delivery. In that context, the Congress president claimed that according to an RTI response, women with the same name were getting incentives every week due to corruption in the scheme. Alt News’ fact-check can be read here. Its very strange-BJP President Sh Amit Shah himself says that do not vote for Meenakshi Lekhi! Then why should anyone vote for Lekhi ji? With the above message, Congress leader from Delhi Ajay Maken tweeted a video on May 2 of BJP president Amit Shah speaking at a rally. The video clip is 18 seconds long. In it, Amit Shah can be heard appealing to the audience not to vote for the two BJP candidates present on the dais- Meenakshi Lekhi and Ramesh Bidhuri. Its very strange-BJP President Sh Amit Shah himself says that do not vote for Meenakshi Lekhi! Then why should anyone vote for Lekhi ji? Please watch this video sent by @Kundra_Vishal 👇 pic.twitter.com/VaRXUBbiXA — Ajay Maken (@ajaymaken) May 2, 2019 The video clip of Amit Shah has been mischievously edited and taken out of context, to make it seem as if Shah is bizarrely appealing to the crowd to not vote for his own party candidates! The BJP president was appealing to the crowd to vote for the BJP candidates, not for the supposedly stupendous work done by the Modi govt, but on the issue of national security. One bit from this video was mischievously edited, and shared by no less than a senior leader like Ajay Maken. The tweet has still not been deleted. Celebrated boxer Vijender Singh, who recently joined the Congress party, tweeted a live video on April 24. Singh broadcast the video via his Twitter account, as he paid a visit to a mohalla clinic in Delhi. The mohalla clinic turns out to be locked, and Singh can be heard criticizing the AAP government. https://t.co/KdAOsWHvy6 — Vijender Singh (@boxervijender) April 24, 2019 The pugilist turned politician was probably unaware that the timing of the mohalla clinics is from 8 am to 2 pm. Singh reached the clinic at 2:40 pm and obviously found it locked. “The impact of MODI TSUNAMI – Mamata Banerjee appeals everyone to vote for BJP!” – the official twitter handle of BJP Bengal declared in a tweet that the Chief Minister of West Bengal, Mamata Bannerji, appealed to vote for BJP in a rally. Accompanying the tweet was a short 18-second video in which her words – “BJP shorkar ke vote diye” – were played in a loop. The English translation of the statement is – “vote for BJP”. The impact of MODI TSUNAMI – @mamataofficial appeals everyone to vote for BJP! The first time she’s made any sense during this election campaign! Thanks a ton DIDI !! pic.twitter.com/Os6PxdF9GS — BJP Bengal (@BJP4Bengal) April 23, 2019 It turns out that BJP Bengal had tweeted a doctored video, which was clipped and played in a loop to give a misleading impression. Mamata Banerjee addressed a rally in Khanakul, West Bengal on April 23. While ending her speech, Banerjee asked the people to vote out BJP, with a sarcastic tone to her words. Banerjee’s words “6 May aasche din, ekhane bhalo kore gonotontroye BJP Sarkar ke vote diye bhalo kore kobor din, bhalo kore kobor din, bhalo kore kobor din“, can be approximately translated as follows: “On May 6, cast your vote for BJP government and give them a proper burial, give them a proper burial, give them a proper burial”. The part where Banerjee says “bhalo kore kobor din“, which literally translates to “put them in the grave“, was clipped out by BJP Bengal. Instead, the part where Banerjee sarcastically says “vote for BJP” was retained and played in a loop. People of Delhi have understood that @INCIndia and @SheilaDikshit are merely vote-cutters. If you dont believe it then watch this 24 second video. After today’s #AAPkaManifesto, the 2-3% people who would have voted for Congress will now not. (translation). The above message has been tweeted by Ankit Lal, the social media in-charge of the Aam Aadmi Party, along with a short video clip showing former Delhi CM and senior Congress leader Sheila Dikshit. The tweet referred to the Congress party as a vote katua, incapable of garnering the popular mandate in Delhi for the Lok Sabha election of 2019. दिल्ली के लोगों ने समझ लिया है कि @INCIndia और @SheilaDikshit सिर्फ़ वोटकटवा हैं। अगर यकीन नहीं आता तो ये 24 सेकंड का वीडियो देखिए। आज के #AAPkaManifesto के बाद जो 2-3% लोग कांग्रेस को वोट दे सकते थे, वो भी नहीं देंगे। pic.twitter.com/gDOsEgQMSZ — Ankit Lal (@AnkitLal) April 25, 2019 The video which has been posted by Lal on his Twitter account was misleading. It is not a recent news report. It is from November 2013. NDTV had reported on the turnout at the Congress party’s rally in Ambedkar Nagar, ahead of the 2013 assembly election which took place in December that year. INC was the biggest loser in the election, plunging from 43 seats to 8. BJP MP and actor Paresh Rawal retweeted a purported newspaper clipping (archive) according to which an Indian politician was arrested in Boston airport for possession of drugs. The politician was a son for a former prime minister, claimed the alleged clipping dated ‘September 30, 2001’. Well I know and all should know ! https://t.co/Q1intlelge — Chowkidar Paresh Rawal (@SirPareshRawal) April 18, 2019 The newspaper clipping shared by Rawal is fake and was debunked by Alt News earlier when RBI director S Gurumurthy had tweeted it. The clipping was created on a website fodey.com that gives one an option to write a story, give it a headline, name the newspaper and change the date. TIME’s article on Prime Minister Narendra Modi, titled ‘India’s divider-in-chief’ was written by Aatish Taseer. The Bharatiya Janata Party, dismissing the critique, said that the article must not be given importance as it was written by a Pakistani author. This was said by BJP president Amit Shah, and reiterated by party spokesperson Dr. Sambit Patra. The BJP’s assertion that Aatish Taseer ,the author of the piece is a Pakistani, is false. Taseer is a British national and not a Pakistani. Alt News’ article on this may be read here. A clipping that had been floating on social media the last few years resurfaced this election season. It talks about Prime Minister Narendra Modi and alleged incidents from his childhood. “मोदी के भाई बहन नरेंद्र मोदी को ही अपने पिताजी के मौत का जिम्मेदार मानते है (Modi’s brothers and sister blame Narendra Modi for their father’s death),” the clipping is headlined. It says that PM Modi’s father, Damodardas Mulchand Modi, used to make ends meet by pickpocketing and stealing coal and iron from the railway station where he worked as a tea seller. He traded the stolen items for gold, which, in turn, were stolen by Narendra Modi when he was a young boy. His father, unable to cope with his son’s actions, suffered a cardiac arrest. The family could not get back the stolen gold despite lodging an FIR and Damodardas Mulchand Modi subsequently died because his family could afford the medical expenses. The story ends by claiming that former PM Atal Bihari Vajpayee suppressed the case and the FIR against Narendra Modi in 1996. The clipping was shared widely on social media and messaging platforms. Alt News’ fact-check found that the claims made in this ‘newspaper clipping’ are ludicrous and fake. Alt News spoke to PM Modi’s family who confirmed that the contents of this write-up are false. Moreover there are spelling errors in this ‘article’, which betray its fakeness. Alt News’ fact-check can be read here. A purported newspaper clipping of popular Bengali daily বর্তমান (Bartaman) was shared on social media with its headline reading, “৪২টা আসন দিন হিন্দু কীভাবে কাঁদা তে হয় দেখিয়ে দেব: মমতা (Give me 42 seats & I’ll show you how to make the Hindus cry: Mamata)” The image had also circulated on WhatsApp. Alt News found that the image was photoshopped. A careful glance at the clipping was sufficient to reveal that the image has been morphed. The font, size and colour of the words “হিন্দু (Hindu)” and “কাঁদা তে (cry)” do not match the words in the rest of the sentence. They are not in perfect alignment, are larger than the other words and are in a deeper shade of black. Moreover, some words were replaced from the original image. An alleged newspaper clipping has been shared by several individual users on social media. It is titled – “पंजाबी वोटर अगर मेरा साथ दें तो देहाती जाट गुज्जरों और बिहारियों को धूल चटा दूंगा – राघव चड्ढा\| (If Punjabi voters support me, I will defeat Jats, Gujjars and Biharis – Raghav Chadha)”. The quotation was also shared on Twitter. @raghav_chadha बेटा राघव चड्ढा इतना आसान नहीं है की बिहारियों को दिल्ली से भगाना आज दिल्ली में 90%बिहारी है बिहारी से पंगा लेना भारी पड़ सकता है तुम्हें और तुम्हारे पार्टी की एक बिहारी सौ पर भारी @Aap_Burari_02 @majorgauravarya @ArvindKejriwal @AamAadmiParty @AtishiAAP @BJP4India pic.twitter.com/At7MGXMCrn — DEEPAK JHA ABVP🇮🇳 (@deepakjha_abvp) May 10, 2019 The clipping can be debunked using several clues. The ludicrousness of the claim itself should raise doubts. The lack of media reports on the alleged statement further espouses its falseness. Lastly, the clipping has been made to resemble a newspaper cut-out, however, a quick glance is sufficient to reveal that it is manufactured. अगर हमारी सरकार गीरी तो पुरे देश में आग लगा दूंगा – योगी आदित्यनाथ (If our govt is voted out of power then I will set the whole country on fire -translated)”, reads a statement ascribed to UP CM Yogi Adityanath in a supposed screengrab of a news channel. Looking at the logo shown in the screengrab, Alt News found that the screengrab of the news channel belongs to a Gujarati News channel called Mantavya News. We found that the alleged screengrab of Mantavya News, which attributes an outrageous statement to the UP CM, is morphed. Alt News’ fact-check may be read here. A screengrab of ABP News, attributing a quote to Union Minister Smriti Irani, was shared by a Facebook page India Resists. Irani is quoted saying, “अगर प्रधानमंत्री मोदी जी हारे तो में आत्महत्या कर लुंगी (If PM Modiji loses I will commit suicide -translated)”. The viral post attempted to inject credibility to the claim by providing a corresponding screenshot of a news report purportedly telecasted by the said channel. The screenshot is fake. Alt News contacted ABP News Senior Editor Pankaj Jha. He confirmed, “Yes it’s a morphed screenshot”. A keyword search on Google with respect to the statement ascribed to Irani yielded no results. The remotest reference to such a statement made by Irani states, “The day ‘pradhan sevak’ Narendra Modi ji decides to retire, I will also leave Indian politics”. A photograph of Priyanka Gandhi wearing a cross necklace was shared widely on social media. Several pro-BJP Facebook pages posted an image, in which two photographs of Priyanka Gandhi were juxtaposed. In the photograph on the left, Mrs. Gandhi is seen wearing a cross. It has been claimed that the picture was taken in Kerala. In the image on the right, Mrs. Gandhi is sporting a rudraksha necklace. This photo was claimed to be from Uttar Pradesh. The attempt was to highlight the supposed hypocrisy and skullduggery of Priyanka Gandhi. The picture of Priyanka Gandhi wearing a cross, is photoshopped. Alt News had fact-checked the photograph and found that Mrs. Gandhi was actually wearing a pendant, which was replaced with a cross necklace through photoshop. The original photograph was from a rally in Uttar Pradesh in 2017. An image of Pakistani prime minister Imran Khan interacting with the country’s army chief Qamar Javed Bajwa is being circulated on social media. Congress leaders Shatrughan Sinha and Navjot Singh Sidhu, West Bengal CM Mamta Banerjee and Congress president Rahul Gandhi can also be seen in the photograph, sitting in a corner. It was circulated with the caption – “ನೀವು ಕಾಂಗ್ರೆಸ್ ಗೆ ಮತ ಹಾಕಿದರೆ ಪಾಕಿಸ್ತಾನ ಕ್ಕೆ ಮತ ಹಾಕಿದ ಹಾಗೆ.ಚಿತ್ರ ನೋಡಿ ಪಾಕಿಸ್ತಾನ ದ ಪರ ಗುಲಾಮರು ಮೂಲೆಯಲ್ಲಿ ಹೇಗೆ ಕುಳಿತಿದ್ದಾರೆ,” which roughly translates to, “If you vote for Congress, you will be able to vote for Pakistan. Look at the picture, how are the slaves of Pakistan sitting in the corner.” Alt News found that the original photo, in which no Indian leader is seen, was digitally altered. The image was photoshopped by Twitter user @Atheist_Krishna who had posted it on April 5 with the caption – “बालाकोट में मारे गए आतंकवादियों के सबूत जुटाने पाकिस्तान पहुंचा विपक्ष। (Opposition reaches Pakistan to gather evidence for the death of terrorists in Balakot)” – which suggests that he took a sarcastic jibe at the opposition leaders. A photograph of CPI Begusarai candidate Kanhaiya Kumar was circulated on social media with Kumar purportedly campaigning behind a poster of 2001 Parliamentary attack convict, Afzal Guru. The image in circulation has been lifted from the CPI candidate’s election campaign rally in Begusarai. In the original photograph, Kumar is not standing behind a portrait of Afzal Guru. A video of the rally, uploaded on Youtube, shows him standing behind the symbol of Communist Party of India. A photograph of movie stars Ranveer Singh and Deepika Padukone was posted by a page on Facebook. The photograph showed the two sporting saffron scarves on which ‘Vote for BJP N Modi’ is printed. The text accompanying the image read, ‘कमल का बटन दबाकर देश की तरक्की में भागीदार बनें’ (Press the lotus button, become a part of the nation’s progress- translated). As expected, the image was digitally manipulated. Alt News reverse searched the image on Google and found the real photograph, which was clicked on November 30, 2018. Singh and Padukone had visited the Siddhivinayak temple in Mumbai, where the picture was clicked. It was carried by several media publications. “This is not sand in front of the two bald heads. it is human crowd at the BJP Kolkata rally. Yesterday was an unusual day in Kolkata. Modi ji was in town! Mamta B was not! On the vast Brigade Ground was a massive crowd of 10+ lakh Karyakartas(figure given by the Kolkata Police)”, read a messageposted along with an image purportedly of a rally that was addressed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and BJP president Amit Shah in Kolkata. PM Modi had visited Kolkata for an election campaign rally on April 3. Alt News had debunked this morphed image earlier when it was shared as that of a “tsunami of supporters” in a Modi-Shah rally. Alt News was able to trace back the image to December 2017 when PM Modi and Amit Shah were sharing dais in Shimla. The event was the swearing-in ceremony of Himachal Pradesh CM Jai Ram Thakur. On May 6, PM Narendra Modi targeted the TMC by terming the party ‘TTT’ or ‘Trinamool, Tolabaazi, Tax.’ The Bengali word ‘Tolabaazi’ translates extortionists. Subsequent to the PM’s statement, several mainstream media outlets reported that Mamata Banerjee’s response to his remark was – “I will slap Modi.” These included Aaj Tak, ABP News and News 18. The West Bengal Chief Minister was misquoted in news broadcasts. She did not say, “I will slap Modi,” but stated, “I want to give PM Modi a tight slap of democracy.” The Trinamool Congress uploaded Banerjee’s video where she can be heard saying, “নরেন্দ্র মোদী যখন বাংলায় এসে বলে মমতা ব্যানার্জী তোলাবাজ, তখন শুনলে আমার মনে হয় দি ঠাসি একটা ভালো করে গণতন্ত্রের থাপ্পড় (When Narendra Modi comes to Bengal and accuses Mamata Banerjee of being Tolabaaz, I feel like giving him a tight slap of democracy.)” “कांग्रेस के विधायक अनिल उपाध्याय भी हुए पीएम मोदी के मुरीद, बंधे तारीफों के पूल (Translated: Congress MLA, Anil Upadhyay also becomes a disciple / fan of Modi, lavishes praise on him)”. The ‘Breaking News’ headlines telecast on April 27th by Republic TV’s Hello Bharat programme, carried a video of a person praising PM Modi and saying that only the corrupt want him to lose. The anchors further explained what they called the ‘big news’ saying that not only the common citizens of the country but also PM Modi’s political opponents are full of praise for him. They introduced the person as Anil Upadhyay, a Congress MLA from Madhya Pradesh. कांग्रेस के विधायक अनिल उपाध्याय भी हुए पीएम मोदी के मुरीद, बांधे तारीफों के पूल कांग्रेस के विधायक अनिल उपाध्याय भी हुए पीएम मोदी के मुरीद, बांधे तारीफों के पूल Posted by Republic Bharat on Friday, April 26, 2019 Republic TV had clearly misreported. This is because Alt News found that there is no Congress MLA by the name of Anil Upadhyay. The person in the video was identified by The Quint as Mohan (Munna) Pandey. Several videos of Pandey have been shared by twitter user, Tanmay Shankar (@Shanktan). In all these videos, he is seen as making a very spirited and emotional case for supporting PM Modi. Speaking to The Quint, Shankar confirmed that the person is Mohan Pandey and is known to him personally. In a debate broadcast by ABP News from Darbhanga in Bihar, the question of Smriti Irani’s degree once again come to the fore, when one person from the audience raised a question over her questionable educational qualifications. In response, the ABP News anchor moderating the debate said that Irani has a Master of Arts (MA) degree. The relevant portion of the discussion can be seen at 38:16 minutes in the video posted below. In response to a question raised by a member of the audience, ABP News anchor Rubika Liyaquat promptly responded, saying, “MA kiya hai sir correspondence se, MA kiya hua hai, MA kiya hua hai (She has done MA through correspondence, she has done MA, she has done MA- translation).” This is not true, as Irani’s poll affidavit for 2019 clearly mentions that she had not completed her three-year degree course. On May 12, visuals of masked men, who were seen brandishing guns and heard speaking to a man behind the camera, were relayed by several mainstream media outlets. It was claimed that the visuals of gun-toting men were from Purulia district in West Bengal. Some of the outlets even went a step further by alleging that the men were, “TMC workers”. These included ETV Bharat and Republic TV. Alt News could not independently verify the video or establish its origin. Suffice to say, a video sans verification was relayed by sections of mainstream media with an unsubstantiated narrative that TMC workers were threatening the voters in West Bengal. As far as the claims about TMC workers brandishing guns in Purulia is concerned, the men in the video only stated that they are going to Raghunathpur, which is in Purulia district. Neither, there is evidence to claim that they were TMC workers nor that they entered Purulia. The India Today group misreported Rahul Gandhi’s poll speech at Neemuch in MP on May 14, stating that Gandhi had bungled with the names of the chief ministers of Congress-ruled states. An article published on the website was titled, ‘Rahul Gandhi mixes up names of CMs of Congress-ruled states, Twitter has field day’. Times Now too reported that the Congress president had committed a gaffe. The fact of the matter is that Rahul Gandhi had not bungled the names of the CMs of Congress ruled states, as reported by Times Now and India Today. The basis for this claim was a clipped video. Alt News’s fact-check on this may be read here. A man points at magnificent European architecture and claims that Congress president Rahul Gandhi owns the lavish property. “He has looted India and bought these buildings in Italy,” the man says in Gujarati. This video was circulated widely on social media. The over one-minute clip shows a man cautioning people against Rahul Gandhi who has bought three extravagant buildings in Italy with India’s money and gets paid in hefty rent. इटली से आयी पप्पु की सच्चाई देखो ओर दूसरो को भी दिखाओ ……. Posted by Mera Bharat Mahan on Saturday, April 27, 2019 The claim was not only false but ludicrous. The buildings showcased in the video are a part of a city square – Piazza Castello – in Turin, Italy. The square-shaped landmark houses museums, theatres and palaces, including the Royal Palace of Turinbuilt in the 16th century. Several of the architectural complexes are world heritage sites protected by the UNESCO. Alt News’ fact-check can be read here. “What kind of language is this Mr. PM? Does it beholds the Prime Minister of the country to use profanity and that too publicly? Shocking beyond belief !! Have some respect for the chair, if nothing else.” The above message was tweeted by Gaurav Pandhi, along with a video which has been superimposed with the words ‘Modi said BC at a rally’. Pandhi is associated with the Congress party. The video was shared widely not only on social media platforms but also on WhatsApp, with the narrative that the Prime Minister had used profane language. What kind of language is this Mr. PM? Does it beholds the Prime Minister of the country to use profanity and that too publicly? Shocking beyond belief !! Have some respect for the chair, if nothing else. 😡 pic.twitter.com/tVrHVbSlek — Gaurav Pandhi गौरव पांधी (@GauravPandhi) April 21, 2019 The assertion that Prime Minister Narendra Modi uttered the word ‘bh****’ at the rally, is false. PM Modi had used the words ‘thavan(i) chhe’, which PM Modi can be heard uttering the second time in the video clip, has been wrongly interpreted as ‘bh**‘. ‘Thavan(i) chhe’ roughly translates to ‘Will happen/going to happen’. The classical usage is ‘thavani chhe’, but PM Modi says ‘thavan chhe’, which is colloquial usage. Repeatedly playing the word ‘thavan(i) chhe’, as was done in the video clip, creates the illusion that PM Modi said ‘bh****’. A tweet by Renuka Jain, who is followed by prime minister Narendra Modi, has gained traction not only on Twitter but also on Facebook (archive). In her tweet, Jain claimed that the Congress party had used the same elderly woman for all their photoshoots. “Congress pays her 5000 Rs. per photoshoot,” read her tweet. Congress pays her 5000 Rs. per photoshoot. pic.twitter.com/jhYEOArSqK — #RenukaJain Chowkidar 🇮🇳 (@RenukaJain6) April 22, 2019 The claim is false. All four women might seem alike because of their old age and white hair. A closer look, however, reveals apparent distinctions in physical features. Alt News juxtaposed photographs of the four women for a clearer view. The second woman was photographed with BJP’s K Surendran and the fourth, with Shashi Tharoor. The third elderly woman is the same who could be seen embracing Rahul Gandhi. According to a message which was shared widely on Facebook and WhatsApp, a pre-election survey conducted by the British global news broadcaster BBC had concluded that the ruling BJP is all set to better its 2014 performance and storm to power. The message was a total fabrication. No such pre-election survey has been conducted by the BBC. In fact, the broadcaster does not conduct pre-election surveys at all for India. In a statement to Alt News, BBC spokesperson said, “This fake survey on the Lok Sabha polls has been circulating on WhatsApp and Facebook, with messages claiming it to be from BBC News. We’d like to make it absolutely clear that it is fake and does not come from the BBC. The BBC does not support pre-election surveys in India”. One name which keeps circulating on social media is Anil Upadhyay. Sometimes he is called a Congress MLA whereas at other times, he is claimed to be a BJP politician. Alt News came across several instances of misinformation wherein ‘Anil Upadhyay’ was referred to. For instance, an old video of an inter-family dispute was shared with the claim that ‘BJP MLA Anil Upadhyay’ had beaten up a Dalit youth. B.j.p. विधायक अनिल उपाध्याय की इस हरकत पर क्या कहेगे मोदी जी, इस video को इतना वायरल करो की ये पूरा हिन्दुस्तान देख सके..👇 दलित पिछड़े अलीशान कार में नहीं घूम नहीं सकते हैं pic.twitter.com/5WIIJ4qo5F — अमरनाथ(मंडल महासचिव ‘भीम सेना’) इलाहाबाद उ. प्र. (@AmarNat94778546) April 27, 2019 It was a false claim. There is no BJP MLA by the name of Anil Upadhyay. Also, as pointed out earlier in the article, Republic TV had falsely portrayed a person praising PM Modi as ‘Congress MLA Anil Upadhyay’. A video went viral on social media in April, showing a woman seizing purported fake Aadhaar cards from a group of Burqa-clad voters. It was claimed that the woman was a Muslim worker of the BJP from Muzaffarnagar, a constituency that went into polls on April 12. The video was shared in the backdrop of Muzaffarnagar BJP candidate Sanjeev Balyan’s allegations that people were casting fake votes dressed as burqa-clad women. @संजीव बालियान-मुज़फ़्फ़रनगर अगेन,बीजेपी की मुस्लिम कार्यकर्ता द्वारा फ़र्ज़ी वोटिंग का रंगे हाथ पकड़ना,पहचान पत्र किसी और का वोट कोई और डाल रहा है pic.twitter.com/OEStN2vdzp — Chowkidar V K SHARMA🇮🇳 (@VictoryForNamo) April 11, 2019 If one carefully listens to the video, the woman takes her name and that of her party in the first few seconds. “मैं BSPप्रत्याशी शेला हूँ ,“ she can be heard saying. Alt News found that a woman named Shaila Khan was fielded by the Bahujan Samajwadi Party in 2017 as the candidate for Rampur nagar palika chairperson. It was an old, unrelated video. Quote-tweeting actor Swara Bhasker, journalist and executive editor with Network 18, Amish Devgan tweeted that terror accused Sadhvi Pragya Thakur has been acquitted by the court. This was right after Thakur’s nomination from Bhopal on a BJP ticket had sparked a furore. 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 Several pro-BJP social media users had ecohed this claim, which is NOT true. Pragya Thakur has not been acquitted by the court. 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. 1. The cycle of misinformation, as expected, was largely determined on the basis of the different phases of the election. Whichever state was scheduled to conduct polling was targeted on the eve of the election. 2. Misinformation/disinformation was myriad in nature- clipped videos, photoshopped images, fake newspaper cutouts, false quotations, use of old and unrelated pictures and/or videos, to cite a few. 3. West Bengal was a prime target of misinformation/disinformation. Alt News found that the maximum number of instances of falsehood pertained to this state. Moreover, the nature of misinformation was communal and inflammatory. 4. Sections of mainstream media too succumbed to the scourge of misinformation. The reportage in such instances was heavily lopsided. It may not be an exaggeration to state that misinformation/disinformation has characterized the 2019 general election in large measure, with no segment left untouched. Arjun Sidharth is a writer with Alt News. He has previously worked in the television news industry, where he managed news bulletins and breaking news scenarios, apart from scripting numerous prime time television stories. He has also been actively involved with various freelance projects. Sidharth has studied economics, political science, international relations and journalism. He has a keen interest in books, movies, music, sports, politics, foreign policy, history and economics. His hobbies include reading, watching movies and indoor gaming. Rahul and Priyanka Gandhi recently performed aarti at the Narmada Ghat in Madhya Pradesh’s Omkareshwar… In the wake of the alleged murder of Shraddha Walkar by his partner Aftab Amin… The video of a group of people stopping an e-rickshaw with BJP flags attached to… Last week during the G20 summit in Bali, world leaders were informed of a missile… Recently, several prominent BJP leaders claimed that Prime Minister Narendra Modi had intervened to stop…	news-altnews	2024-05-27T18:24:05.489452	18th May 2019 / 6:46 pm / Last updated: 20th May 2019	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/how-misinformation-was-weaponized-in-2019-lok-sabha-election-a-compilation/", "author": "Arjun Sidharth" }
1,481	How multiple Twitter handles changed their religion overnight to support CAB - Alt News Jignesh Patel 14th December 2019 / 11:46 pm / Last updated: 15th December 2019 Multiple Twitter users claiming to be Muslim took to Twitter and shared an identical piece of text announcing their support for Citizenship Amendment Bill (CAB). “I’m a Muslim. I support #CABBill. I strongly denounce the protests launched by my muslim brothers across the nation. They either didn’t understand the bill and have been manipulated or they’re knowingly targeting the govt as a political move. But I’m very proud of it. Jai Hind🇮🇳”, claimed the users. The ‘declaration of support’ comes in the wake of the passing of Citizenship Amendment Bill (CAB) by the parliament on December 11, 2019. President Ram Nath Kovind on December 12 gave his assent to the Citizenship Amendment Bill, 2019, turning it into an Act. The opposition has criticised the bill as being discriminatory on religious grounds. The Act offers citizenship to refugees from all South Asian religions, except Muslims, fleeing oppression in neighbouring countries, namely Afghanistan, Bangladesh and Pakistan. I’m a Muslim. I support #CABBill. I strongly denounce the protests launched by my muslim brothers across the nation. They either didn’t understand the bill and have been manipulated or they’re knowingly targeting the govt as a political move. But I’m very proud of it. Jai Hind🇮🇳 — 🌼نازیہ (@thegirl_youhate) December 14, 2019 However, when Alt News looked up the profiles and previous tweets of people declaring support for the Act, we found that several among them used to identify as Hindus. The sudden shift to Muslim identities unsurprisingly happened in the wake of CAB. Twitter handle @thegirl_youhate posted a tweet on March 10, 2019, saying, “I’m hindu bruh”. This handle has identified itself as Arti Pal on multiple occasions. “Bhai mai hindu hu”, replied Twitter handle @ambersariyaaaa when a user passed a communal slur. At the time of writing this article, a tweet where the handle claimed to be a Muslim who supports CAB has garnered close to 500 retweets. On April 26, 2019, a Twitter user who goes by the handle @NeecheSetopper tweeted, “i am hindu”. “Power of hindu. Proud to be a hindu,” posted Twitter handle @NamanJa82028342 who now has declared support to CAB as a Muslim. A Twitter user with the name BaashaBhai posted a message on April 16, 2019, where he said, “I am a Hindu have never looked at anyone as Hindu , Muslim or a Christian but there are many who show up their hatred for Hindus / Hinduism openly!”. “I am a hindu, and I will not step back again. I am a hindu and this will be hindu rashtra again,” tweeted a user named Dehati Intellectual who also supported CAB by posting the same text on December 14, 2019. Twitter user ‘Khadija’ also tweeted the text and expressed her support as a Muslim. However, in a separate tweet, she declared herself as Arpita Gouttam. A concerted effort was made on social media to project widespread support from the Muslim community for the Citizenship Amendment Act. 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	14th December 2019 / 11:46 pm / Last updated: 15th December 2019	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/how-multiple-twitter-handles-changed-their-religion-overnight-to-support-cab-bill/", "author": "Jignesh Patel" }
1,482	How the Murshidabad triple murder was given a political, communal colour - Alt News Pooja Chaudhuri 16th October 2019 / 6:31 pm / Last updated: 16th October 2019 On October 8, 2019, a family of three – Bandhu Prakash Pal, his pregnant wife and 8-year-old child – was hacked to death in West Bengal’s Murshidabad. A construction worker, Utpal Behara, has been booked for the crime. Behara had reportedly entered the victims’ house armed with a knife. The police have stated “financial dispute” as the motive behind the murders. However, the past week leading up to the arrest was marred with misinformation. Several attempts were made to add communal and political colours to the crime. Initial local reports carried details of the primary investigation where the police were hinting at personal enmity as the possible motive behind the murders. According to Anandabazar Patrika, the family was killed at around 12 pm on October 8 by an unidentified man who had entered the victims’ home with a knife. The cops initially suspected that a dispute over property triggered the murders. To them, the crime seemed like an “act of revenge”. A Bengali report in The Indian Express also stated that the police were investigating the possibility of a known person’s hand behind the heinous crime. Less than two days later, the BJP appended a political angle. Attacking West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee, BJP MLA Babul Supriyo tweeted, “Does mother, land and people mean anything to you?” बंगाल किस तरफ बढ़ रहा है?? #MamataBanerjee आपके लिए ‘माँ, माटी,मानुष’ कोई मायने रखते भी है क्या? क्या यही बंगाल चाहिए था हमें? जहां हम दुर्गा और काली माँ की उपासना करते है और दूसरी तरफ एक माँ को उसके बच्चे समेत मौत के घाट उतार दिया जाता है।#WestBengalhttps://t.co/ksnGHMbIrQ — Babul Supriyo (@SuPriyoBabul) October 10, 2019 Newly-inducted BJP member and MP Gautam Gambhir suggested that the family was linked to the RSS. “Hope that assoc[iation] with RSS does not deter @MamataOfficial from taking action,” wrote the former cricketer. An entire family incl an 8 year old boy killed in the most inhuman & barbaric way. Law&order in Bengal has deteriorated so much that massacres are now being carried out with absolute impunity.Hope that assoc with RSS does not deter @MamataOfficial from taking action #Murshidabad — Gautam Gambhir (@GautamGambhir) October 11, 2019 Another BJP MP from West Bengal Arjun Singh directly blamed the TMC for the murder of an ‘RSS’ worker. इस बार #tmc गुंडों ने बंधुप्रकाश,उनकी गर्भवती पत्नी और बेटे की हत्या कर दी।उनका गुनाह – आरएसएस कार्यकर्ता होना।जय श्री राम का नारा सुनकर गाड़ी से उतर चिल्लाने और धमकी देने वाली मुख्यमंत्री @MamataOfficial क्यों खामोश हैं इस पर?बंगाल तालिबानी शासन की तरफ बढ़ रहा है।#bengal pic.twitter.com/xei085rCiE — Arjun Singh (@ArjunsinghWB) October 10, 2019 BJP national general secretary Kailash Vijayvargiya also attacked the Mamata Banerjee government. इससे ज्यादा जघन्यता क्या होगी? मुर्शिदाबाद (प.बंगाल) में #RSS के कार्यकर्ता श्री प्रकाश पॉल, उनकी गर्भवती पत्नी और 8 साल के बच्चे की नृशंस हत्या कर दी गई! जहाँ आम आदमी की जान सुरक्षित न हो, उस राज्य की कानून व्यवस्था को अच्छा कैसे माना जाए? ये क्या हो रहा है दीदी आपके राज में? pic.twitter.com/WqGLtZwOt3 — Kailash Vijayvargiya (@KailashOnline) October 10, 2019 The party’s state president Dilip Ghosh, national spokesperson Sambit Patra and BJP Mahila Morcha national social media head Priti Gandhi were among the other BJP members who introduced a political angle to the crime. Social media users also did not deter from adding their own versions to the incident – a Muslim perpetrator link to the crime. The founder of fake news portal Postcard News, Mahesh Vikram Hegde, claimed that ‘peacefuls’ lynched an ‘RSS karyakarta’ in West Bengal. ‘Peacefuls’ is a derogatory term used to refer to Muslims. In Mamata Banerjee’s West Bengal, Peacefuls lynched: * 35 yr old Bandhu Prakash Pal * His six year old son Angan * His 8 month pregnant wife Mondal Pal Reason? * Bandhu Prakash was an RSS Karyakartha But this is not lynching/intolerance because * ONLY HINDUS WERE KILLED pic.twitter.com/TnHqNy77eP — Mahesh Vikram Hegde (@mvmeet) October 10, 2019 Several users followed by the office of railway minister Piyush Goyal also brought in communal overtones to the murders. One Rakesh Krishnan Simha (@ByRakeshSimha) wrote that a ‘jehadi mob’ murdered an unborn baby in Murshidabad. This beautiful family of a primary school teacher was brutally murdered yesterday along with an unborn baby by a jehadi mob in Murshidabad, Bengal. The deceased: 1. Prakash Pal 2. His pregnant wife 3. His 6 year old son pic.twitter.com/i1rIfUgbMv — Rakesh Krishnan Simha (@ByRakeshSimha) October 9, 2019 Madhu Kishwar alluded a hate crime, suggesting that the large Muslim population of Murshidabad was somehow connected to the murders. Not strangled but brutally hacked to death in Bengal as their bodies clearly show. They were living in heavily Muslim majority area. If only they were Muslim, their deaths would have been etched in world history like that of Pehlu Khan https://t.co/qhBP7qAEOT — MadhuPurnima Kishwar (@madhukishwar) October 10, 2019 Another user tweeted ‘radical Islam’ while claiming that an RSS worker was slain in Bengal. RADICAL ISLAM A RSS Swayamsewak was killed along with his pregnant wife and 8 years old son in #Murshidabad Today a Hindu, tomorrow a Christian Buddhisth Yahudiyo & all others😡 & World is busy in trade & profit 😡😤@UN @realDonaldTrump @WhiteHouse @IsraeliPM @narendramodi pic.twitter.com/KMVRPnzS8q — 🇮🇳🚩ॐ राहुल पटेल ॐ🚩🇮🇳 (@RAHUL9262514) October 10, 2019 A parody account of journalist Pushpendra Kulshrestha, infamous for spreading misinformation along communal lines, tweeted, “We are defamed even for cutting a lemon. They kill an entire family and no one talks about it.” हम नींबू भी कुचल दें, तो हो जाते है बदनाम। वो पूरे परिवार को रेत दें, तो भी चर्चा नहीं होती।। ध्यान रहे.. आप भी कतार में है। #मुर्शिदाबाद_हत्याकांड — Pushpendra Kulshrestha (@Nationalist_Om) October 13, 2019 A user Judhajit Senmazumdar (@Judhajit_S) followed by the office of Piyush Goyal shared images of a ‘shradhanjali’ offered in the child’s name in California. Tweeting with the hashtag ‘Ram Mandir Nirman’, he wrote that the child’s sacrifice will not be wasted. #राममंदिर_निर्माण #MurshidabadKilling Sacrifice of that 8 years old kid and his bereaved family from #Murshidabad will not go waste! Yes, it has shaked the world & no wonder 100s joined hand at the heart of California to condemn and offer Shradhanjali!@KailashOnline @BJP4Bengal pic.twitter.com/ffIh3vgoZL — Judhajit Senmazumdar (@Judhajit_S) October 16, 2019 Most media outlets carried reports which furthered the unverified ‘RSS’ angle. Incidentally, initial reports of the crime did not mention the victim’s alleged political affiliation but the same was highlighted only after the BJP made the assertion more than 24 hours after the crime was committed. An October 10 report by ANI merely said, “In a gruesome incident, three people, including a child, were murdered by unknown miscreants in their house on Thursday in Jiyaganj area of Murshidabad…The investigation into the matter is underway.” However, a subsequent report by the news agency referred to Pal as ‘RSS worker’. India Today had published a PTI report on October 9 with no mention of Pal’s purported political links, however, an independent report published by the news organisation the next day carried the unconfirmed claim by BJP as a fact. The reportage by India Today’s Aaj Tak, however, took it a step further. The channel broadcast a discussion on – ‘Will Bengal’s politics be designed with the blood of children? Red with blood, Didi’s Bengal!” बच्चों के खून से सींची जाएगी बंगाल की सियासत? खून से फिर लाल, दीदी तेरा बंगाल! दंगल, 5PM, @aajtak पर. pic.twitter.com/jHlCb1YgEz — रोहित सरदाना (@sardanarohit) October 10, 2019 Several other news organisations gave credence to unverified claims – Hindustan Times, The Lallantop, India TV, Swarajya, Navbharat Times, Jansatta, The Frontline, DNA, Outlook, Prabhat Khabar, Oneindia and Nai Dunia. Right-wing website Opindia also carried a story with similar assertions. Vikas Bhadauria’s tweet on the incident contained graphic imagery hence was taken down by Twitter. The ABP News journalist, however, construed this as ‘lynching’ of his right to expression. Bhadauria was defending a tweet where he had claimed that the triple murder was a hate crime, committed in an area with negligible Hindu population. .@TwitterIndia is muzzling my pen and journalistic freedom. It has forced me to delete my tweet on the gruesome murder of RSS worker in Murshidabad, an incident reported widely in media. My account was restored conditionally. This is nothing but lynching my right to expression. pic.twitter.com/Y0GmuSP4t2 — Vikas Bhadauria (ABP News) (@vikasbha) October 11, 2019 India TV’s executive editor Sushant Sinha also portrayed the murders as a hate crime. In a tweet which garnered nearly 10,000 likes, Sinha attacked certain sections of the citizenry who, as per the journalist, would be unaffected by the death of the child and celebrate the death of his parents. “They won’t see the dead body of a child but that of a Sanghi…They would be happy seeing the corpses of the entire family covered in blood,” wrote Sinha. जिन लोगों के लिए ॐ लिख देने से विमान हिन्दू हो सकता है उनके लिए संघ से जुड़े व्यक्ति का मासूम बेटा भी संघी ही होगा।और जितनी नफ़रत उनके दिलों में भरी है,उन्हें बच्चे का शव नहीं एक संघी का शव दिख रहा होगा।कुछ तो खून से लथपथ पूरे परिवार के शव को देखकर अंदर से खुश होंगे#Murshidabad — Sushant Sinha (@SushantBSinha) October 10, 2019 After West Bengal police clarified that the murders were not linked to any political or communal angle, editorial director of Swarajya R Jagannathan questioned the investigation. This came despite the statements of the victims’ family being in tandem with those of WB police. Why would you want to believe tje WB police when you would not do so for the same police in say UP? https://t.co/3wIjsSWfMD — R Jagannathan (@TheJaggi) October 10, 2019 The incident also drew sharp criticism for ‘liberals’. Union minister Ravi Shankar Prasad wrote, “Hope liberals will find it ghastly enough to empathize with the bereaved family.” Deeply condemn this barbaric act of murder of RSS worker, his wife and child in West Bengal. Hope liberals will find it ghastly enough to empathize with the bereaved family if not condemn and criticise it outrightly. https://t.co/18cGTJtC1w — Ravi Shankar Prasad (@rsprasad) October 10, 2019 Times Now broadcast a show targetting the 49 celebrities who had written an open letter to the Prime Minister, expressing concern over mob lynching in the country. Man, his pregnant wife & son butchered in @MamataOfficial‘s Bengal. 49 celebs slam ‘saffron terror’, but now sit in total silence. Share your view with Padmaja Joshi on @thenewshour AGENDA. \| Tweet with #RSSWorkerButchered pic.twitter.com/i8Q5ied8zU — TIMES NOW (@TimesNow) October 10, 2019 Republic TV’s Major Poonia also called upon liberals. Horrific RSS member,his pregnant wife & 8 yr kid brutally murdered in Murshidabad,Bengal Why -Sickular leaders r silent ? -No intolerance/Lynching debates ? How come death of Hindus is less painful than death of a Muslim/other religion ? Aren’t they HUMAN🤔? Every-life Counts ! pic.twitter.com/huu9J7j3pp — Major Surendra Poonia (@MajorPoonia) October 10, 2019 Those critical of the government were attacked by social media users as well. The Twitter handle Friends of RSS (@friendsofrss) which is followed by top leaders of the BJP, including the PM Modi, wrote, “Will the Award Wapsi gang and the intellectuals who have coined the word lynching say something?” मुर्शिदाबाद में RSS के स्वयंसेवक बंधु प्रकाश, उनकी गर्भवती पत्नी और बच्चे को गला रेत कर मार दिया गया। वे कौन लोग थे वो जिन्होंने 8 साल के बच्चे को भी नहीं बख्शा? क्या इस निर्ममता पर अवार्ड वापसी गैंग और लिंचिंग शब्द गढ़ने वाले बुद्धिजीवी कुछ बोलेंगे? pic.twitter.com/mnTeuyP9HQ — Friends of RSS (@friendsofrss) October 9, 2019 In an October 11 Twitter thread, West Bengal police had clarified, “Prima facie it seems to be a case of personal enmity and it has nothing to do with politics.” CID has been asked to get associated with investigation. Prima facie it seems to be a case of personal enmity and it has nothing to do with politics.(3/3) — West Bengal Police (@WBPolice) October 11, 2019 The police had also mentioned that Pal was in “serious financial crisis.” Subsequently, media reports came pouring in that the family has denied RSS links. India Today also reported that Pal’s brother-in-law, Diptiman Sarkar, said that an RSS member offered him financial help however he rejected the man’s assistance and told him that his brother-in-law was never associated with any political party. After the family’s statements, the BJP was on the back foot over the triple murder. The party’s state chief Dilip Ghosh denied that he ever said that the murders had a political motive. Days before, Ghosh had tweeted, “…political violence continues unabated even during Durga Puja.” After a week-long investigation, West Bengal police arrested Utpal Behara from Bandhu Prakash Pal’s hometown and ruled out any political angle to the crime. “According to police, Pal also worked as an insurance agent and 20-year-old Behra had bought two life insurance policies from him. Behra told his interrogators that Pal gave him the receipt for the first policy but was dodging to give the receipt for the second,” reported The Hindu. The police also claimed in a tweet that Behara confessed to his crimes. Persistent and sincere investigation of the Jiaganj PS murder case of Murshidabad has resulted in a person confessing the crime and his arrest. He had financial transactions and animosity with the deceased person. Prayer of police custody is being made before the court..1/2 — West Bengal Police (@WBPolice) October 15, 2019 The tragic murder of a family over a personal financial dispute was politicised by the TMC’s main opposition in West Bengal. BJP’s unverified claims were given credence by the media which also added communal fervent to the crime. Supporters of the party made massive attempts on social media to allude that the perpetrator was Muslim. Incidentally, none of these online influencers, media organisations and politicians has posted clarifications on the premature, hateful assertions which were laid to rest by West Bengal police. In fact, a few have continued to propagate misinformation. A report by Swarajya post the details released by the police still refers to Bandhu Prakash Pal as ‘RSS worker’. A tweet Gaurav Pradhan continues to give the crime a communal colour by suggesting that the family was hatched to death because Pal objected to the construction of a mosque in the area. FACT : Lebutola is surrounded by Muslims, besides his house there is 17 Katha land that they wanted to build Mosque. He wrote letters to stop. that got leaked. And the masjid committee hatched him to death full family Now investigate this @MamataOfficialhttps://t.co/pBSvWP2uvd — #GauravPradhan 🇮🇳 (@DrGPradhan) October 15, 2019 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 October 2019 / 6:31 pm / Last updated: 16th October 2019	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/how-the-murshidabad-triple-murder-was-given-a-political-communal-colour/", "author": "Pooja Chaudhuri" }
1,483	Social media claims that UP will be divided into three states. What is the truth? - Alt News Kinjal 23rd September 2019 / 7:35 pm / Last updated: 16th June 2021 “Breaking : लखनऊ : तीन राज्यो में बटेगा उत्तर प्रदेश,तीन राज्य में बनेगा- उत्तर प्रदेश, बुंदेलखंड व पूर्वांचल – सूत्र #Up” The above message has been shared on social media along with an image which has gone viral. In the image, the division of Uttar Pradesh into three distinct regions is shown, and the capitals of the new states and the districts have also been mentioned. It has been claimed that UP will be trifurcated. The first state will be UP with Lucknow as its capital. The second state will be Bundelkhand, whose capital will be Prayagraj. The third state will be Purvanchal with Gorakhpur as its capital. This claim has been tweeted by a user named Suraj Vishwakarma, who claims to be a reporter. ब्रेकिंग न्यूज़ लखनऊ तीन राज्य में बनेगा* उत्तर प्रदेश बुंदेलखंड पूर्वांचल तीन राज्यो में बटेगा उत्तर प्रदेश क्या ये खबर सच है??@NirvanTimesJNP @bLh8Qt8Yo0x8Tbq @Surendraekaawaz @kpmaurya1 @JagranNews @aajtak @sardanarohit @mdixitjagran — सूरज विश्वकर्मा (पत्रकार ✍) (@SurajVi31422559) September 18, 2019 This claim has gone viral on Twitter and Facebook. It has also been shared by the Facebook page Saharanpur News. The same has been published on Crime Journalist, a web portal. In order to ascertain this claim, Alt News searched with relevant keywords but found no news report referring to the proposal to trifurcate Uttar Pradesh. Had such a proposal indeed been accepted, it would certainly have been reported by all prominent media organisations. The proposal to split Uttar Pradesh into multiple states first came into prominence in 2011, when the BSP government in UP had passed a resolution in the state assembly in favour of a division of the state, and forwarded the proposal to the Central government for consideration. However, this proposal was not given the green signal by the UPA government. The issue had been raised in 2013 as well. The issue of trifurcation of UP keeps cropping up at regular intervals. In 2017, the issue was proposed once again by Mayawati. She had pledged the division of UP if BSP were to come to power in the state. The Lallantop spoke to Mrityunjay Kumar, media advisor to the UP government, who dismissed this claim and said, “There is no proposal to split UP. There is no proposal for the same either in front of the Yogi Adityanath govt. The claims circulating on social media are false. The government is concerned with the progress of the entire region. No region is being discriminated against. In such a scenario, it is meaningless to give importance to such demands.” (translated from Hindi). There are no media reports and no proposal for the government regarding the division of Uttar Pradesh into multiple states. The claim circulating on social media is 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. 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 September 2019 / 7:35 pm / Last updated: 16th June 2021	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/how-true-is-the-social-media-claim-that-uttar-pradesh-will-be-divided-into-three-states/", "author": "Kinjal" }
1,484	How Twitterati followed by PM Modi spread misinformation about Deepika Padukone’s 'Chhapaak' - Alt News Archit 14th February 2020 / 8:34 pm / Last updated: 14th February 2020 On the eve of January 7, Bollywood actor Deepika Padukone visited Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU), expressing solidarity with the students injured in the JNU attack of January 5. A section of individuals on social media criticised the actor, terming her move a publicity stunt for her latest release ‘Chhapaak,’ a film inspired by the life story of acid attack survivor Laxmi Aggarwal. Soon after, #BoycottChhapaak started trending with the claim that the film gave Aggarwal’s perpetrator, Naeem Khan, a Hindu identity. On January 8, Alt News reported that the allegation was false. A disturbing trend emerged when we analysed several of the Twitter accounts that put out the said misinformation. A large section of them was anonymous users followed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi along with BJP office-bearers. Alt News found over 80 Twitter users followed by PM Modi who shared targeted misinformation about ‘Chhapaak.’ On January 8, the official Twitter account of BJP Jammu and Kashmir tweeted (archive link) that the party’s state president seeks an apology from Deepika Padukone for “backstabbing” the nation for standing with “tukde tukde gang”. BJP Rajya Sabha MP Subramanian Swamy tweeted (archive link) that the “name change” amounts to defamation if found to be true. BJP member Nandita Thakur tweeted (archive link), “If Its based on real story why change Name of the villian of the real story ?? Basheer Khan is also not acceptable.” Jawahar Yadav, the Head of Publicity BJP Haryana, also tweeted (archive link) the trending misinformation. Piyush Fofandi, former zonal head at BJP Samvad Cell (as per his old Twitter bio which was later edited) posted (archive link) an image which said ‘Boycott Chhapaak’ and wrote, “The name of the person who did the acid attack was Nadeem but in the film it’s Rajesh. This mindset is behind to discrediting the Hindu. #बॉयकॉट_छपाक #boycottchhapaak” [Translated from: एसिड अटैक में घायल लड़की पर तेजाब फैंकने बाला #नदीम नाम का लड़का था पर फिल्म में राजेश रखा है ।ये है उनकी मानसिकता हिन्दू को बदनाम करने की । #बॉयकॉट_छपाक #boycottchhapaak]” Similarly, Priyanka Sharma (archive link), a member of BJYM Howrah (as per Twitter bio) and Satish Maisuriya (archive link), Vice President Of Bhartiya Janta Party Yuva Morcho, Surat (as per bio) also tweeted misinformation about ‘Chhapaak.’ On January 8, Prasanna Viswanathan, CEO of Swarajyamag, tweeted (archive link), “The Ways Of Bollywood: In Deepika Padukone-Starer Chhapaak, Acid Attacker Naeem Khan Said To Have Become ‘Rajesh’” along with a link to an article on his publication. This was also tweeted (archive link) by Impreet Singh Bakshi, the National Secretary of Bharatiya Janata Yuva Morcha (BJYM). OpIndia’s Nupur Sharma tweeted, “If secularism means changing “Nadeem” to “Rajesh”, set secularism on fire.” Sharma has deleted the tweet, a screenshot is attached below. Similarly, Abhishek Banerjee who writes for OpIndia said in a tweet (archive link), “Liberals be like : When CAA is passed : We will all report ourselves as belonging to ‘secular’ religion to show solidarity. When Naeem throws acid on Laxmi’s face : Change the offender’s name to Rajesh.” The editor-in-chief of Goa Chronicle Savio Rodrigues tweeted (archive link), “If Nadeem threw acid on the brave girl portrayed in the movie #Chhapaak in real life and it is a true story; then what happened you got scared of the Islamic radicals @deepikapadukone and named the culprit Rajesh because it easy to insult Hindus.” Shefali Vaidya, columnist and BJP supporter, tweeted (archive link), “Waise why is the perpetrator who threw acid is called ‘Rajesh Sharma’ in that movie instead of Nadeem Khan, who was the REAL culprit who threw acid on Lakshmi Agarwal?” Twitter user Gaurav Pradhan posted, “Laxmi Agarwal faced a brutal Acid attacked in 2005 in New Delhi by Nadeem Khan as she refused to marry him Question : Why in film @deepikapadukone changed the name “Nadeem Khan” to Hindu name “Rajesh”? Shameless Hindus will still watch film and clap.” Pradhan is a familiar name in the misinformation ecosystem. In 2018, Alt News published a report documenting the several instances of misinformation put out by him. Pradhan’s account was recently suspended by Twitter. @RitaG74, former presenter at All India Radio (as per Twitter bio), tweeted (archive link), “Laxmi Aggarwal-A 15 year old school going girl in Delhi. Wanted to be a singer. 32 year old Nadeem Khan approached her for marriage. She rejected. Angry Nadeem Khan threw acid on her face. Laxmi’s story attracted Bollywood. Nadeem’s name changed to Rajesh #NameItLikeBolllywood” Makarand R Paranjape, the director of the Indian Institute of Advanced Study, Shimla, quote-tweeted Shefali Vaidya and said, “The politics of naming in Bollywood is insidious, if not viciously anti-Hindu. But will @deepikapadukone speak out against it? Paranjape later deleted this tweet. Another account @TruelyMoica (archive link) also put out misinformation. Several accounts that spread misinformation about the film were anonymous. The followers of these users range from a few hundred to several thousand, however together their reach is significant. Twitter user @erbmjha, who has shared misinformation in the past, said (archive link), “1. Article 15 They turn the accused into BRAHMINS 2. Padmavat They hurt their cultural sentiments related to the respectable Rani Padmini 3. Chhapaak They changed Acid attackers name from “Nadeem” to “Rajesh” Bollywood to defame Hindus has to end.” @Lala_The_Don tweeted (archive link), “A friend of mine who works in Bollywood told me that #Chappak dialogues are getting changed overnight and Rajesh will be renamed to Bashir before release. This is people’s power. We won! People won! Jai Hind.” This retweeted at least 1,400 times. @Lala_The_Don regularly shares posts by Political Kida, a platform that has been featured on Alt News several times for misinformation and propaganda favouring the BJP. Similarly, @HDL_Global, in which HDL stands for Hindu Defense League, tweeted (archive link), “We won’t say boycott @deepikapadukone for her solidarity with anti Hindu brigade but #BoycottChapak for they changed the character of Nadeem to Rajesh just to defame Hindus and have no spine to stand against Islamists,” on January 8. The account regularly shared provocative tweets. The entire list of 84 individuals along with the archived links of their tweets can be viewed below or in a PDF file here. Liberal voices critical of the ruling party are frequently targeted by the supporters of the BJP on various social media platforms. This takes different forms like online abuse, misinformation campaigns and calls for a mass boycott of products. In the past, Alt News has documented such targetted online attacks. Similarly, the spread of misinformation about ‘Chhapaak’, aimed at sabotaging its commercial prospects was triggered by actor Deepika Padukone’s support to JNU. In this case, Alt News found a disturbing pattern – a large number of individuals who indulged in spreading misinformation were followed by PM Modi on Twitter. In 2017, Alt News published a report, documenting the toxic online behaviour of accounts followed by the Prime Minister. Many of them indulge in online abuse and often spread misinformation of communal nature, targeting political opponents. Unfortunately, the Prime Minister continues to follow them despite this being brought to his attention. 🙏 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	14th February 2020 / 8:34 pm / Last updated: 14th February 2020	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/how-twitterati-followed-by-pm-modi-spread-misinformation-about-deepika-padukones-chhapaak/", "author": "Archit" }
1,485	Viral: Man poses as Aaditya Thackeray portrays him confessing to 'murdering' Sushant Singh Rajput - Alt News Kinjal 15th October 2020 / 8:23 pm / Last updated: 15th October 2020 A two-minute-long clip of a man claiming to be Maharashtra MLA Aaditya Thackeray has been going viral on social media platforms. In the video, the individual confesses to murdering Bollywood actor Sushant Singh Rajput. He also states that he was responsible for the demolition of actress Kangana Ranaut’s office in Mumbai. A Facebook page called ‘Ram Rajya Sarkar’ had posted the clip on October 2 where their Hindi caption stated, “This is Sushant’s real killer who just admitted to the murder. Share this widely so that it is broadcasted on Republic TV tomorrow and everyone can know the truth.” The video had racked up 1.2 million views and had been shared 32,000 times at the time of writing. (archived link to the post) यह है सुशांत सिंह का असली कातिल जिसने यह कबुला है कि मैने ही मरा है सुशांत सिंह को.👇👇 सभी ग्रुप में डाल दो कल तक रिपब्लिक भारत पर दिखाई देगा और इसकी असलियत सबको दिखाई देगी… Posted by राम राज्य सरकार on Friday, 2 October 2020 Facebook user Sheetal Kashyap also posted the clip with the accompanying claim. (archive link) यह है सुशांत सिंह का असली कातिल जिसने यह कबुला है कि मैने ही मरा है सुशांत सिंह को👇 यह है सुशांत सिंह का असली कातिल जिसने यह कबुला है कि मैने ही मरा है सुशांत सिंह को.👇👇 सभी ग्रुप में डाल दो कल तक रिपब्लिक भारत पर दिखाई देगा और इसकी असलियत सबको दिखाई देगी… Posted by Sheetal Kashyap on Thursday, 8 October 2020 This video has since made its way to both Twitter and Facebook. It is not difficult to see that the man in the video does not resemble Thackeray in the slightest. This is established when we compare their faces side by side, as shown below. The man in the viral clip also has a visible neck tattoo, whereas the Maharashtra politician has no such markings on his body. Alt News was able to identify the man in the clip. He is Saahil Choudhary, a YouTuber and model from Faridabad, Haryana. According to an ABP News report dated September 30, 2020, Choudhary had posted this video to a Facebook page called ‘Justice for Humanity’. The YouTuber also goes by another name, Pradeep Mohinder Singh Chaudhary. Saahil alias Pradeep calls himself a journalist on social media and has made offensive comments against women in the past. After one of these incidents, a woman from Mumbai filed a complaint against him to the Cyber Cell on August 22. Furthermore, a report in Navbharat Times states, “Saahil had posted about 60 videos on YouTube in support of Sushant Singh Rajput since the death of the late actor. In many of these videos, he made several controversial comments against Maharashtra CM Uddhav Thackeray and his son Cabinet Minister Aaditya Thackeray. Following this, the Mumbai Police registered a case and arrested him from his home in Faridabad’s Sector 19 on Monday.” On September 29, Jagran also ran a story on Choudhary’s arrest. Choudhary had posted a string of speculative videos to his YouTube channel and Facebook page following Sushant Singh Rajput’s suicide. He made many serious allegations against Bollywood, the Mumbai Police and the Maharashtra government. These videos were removed following the complaints filed against him. However, some of the clips are still up on the Facebook page ‘Justice for Humanity’. There are quite a few videos still up on his Instagram account as well where he is seen blaming actress Rhea Chakraborty for Rajput’s death. On June 29, the YouTuber had posted a video on Instagram with the caption ‘Sushant Singh Rajput: Murder or suicide’ where he gave a ‘demo’ of Rajput’s suicide. ‘Justice for Humanity’ had posted an additional video featuring Choudhary on October 5. In this clip, he is apologising for the false statements he made in his previous videos. हम समझ गए #sahilchaudhary #justiceforssr #justiceforhumanity #ssr #underpressure Posted by Justice For Humanity on Sunday, 4 October 2020 Therefore, the viral video does not show Aaditya Thackeray confessing to late actor Sushant Singh Rajput’s ‘murder’. The man in the video posing as the Maharashtra MLA is a YouTuber and model named Saahil Choudhary. 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 2020 / 8:23 pm / Last updated: 15th October 2020	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/https-www-altnews-in-hindi-video-of-a-youtuber-claiming-himself-aditya-thackeray-responcible-for-sushant-singh-rajput-death-shared-as-real/", "author": "Kinjal" }
1,486	Was the 'Humans of Hindutva' page taken down by the admin or suspended by Facebook? - Alt News Alt News Desk 29th December 2017 / 3:58 pm / Last updated: 29th December 2017 On December 28, 2017, a popular Facebook page ‘Humans of Hindutva’ (HoH), that used satire to take jibes at right wing politics, went offline and could not be accessed. A few hours later the admin of the parody page wrote on his website www.satyanash.com that he had voluntarily deleted the page as he had been receiving threats to his life from trolls who managed to get his number. The HoH admin who does not wish to be identified wrote, “I’m quitting out of my own accord. I’ve not been banned or mass reported. I have recently received some threats to my life which I can’t take lightly. I am outnumbered, live in a BJP state and come from a middle-class family with no political or police connections. I have no desire to end up like Gauri Lankesh or Afrazul Khan. Actually, more than myself I worry for the safety of my family. I hope those who threatened me consider this as a victory and leave us alone. I have deleted the HOH page and will delete this website soon. Congratulations to Hindutva on winning this David vs. Goliath fight” Editor of DailyO website Jairaj Singh who knows the person behind the page claimed that he’d received death threats which is why he took down the page. Had a brief chat with my friend who runs the Humans of Hindutva page. He told me that trolls have got a hold of his phone number and they're sending him death threats. He's scared for his wife and children, so he's shut the page for now. The nation can't take a joke. — Jairaj Singh (@JairajSinghR) December 28, 2017 HoH’s decision to delete the page and its contents was the trending topic of the day on social media. The news was carried by a number of publications like The Scroll, The Wire and DailyO. Fans and followers of the page lamented the decision, calling it a victory of ‘fascism’ over ‘dissent’. On the other hand, those who railed against HoH claimed that it was Facebook which had pulled down the page after it was mass reported for hate speech. Journalist Aarti Tikoo Singh was among those who questioned HoH’s claim that the page had been voluntarily taken down. And what is this? Are @scroll_in @thewire_in @DailyO_ @htTweets & others now into fake news to glorify an abusive troll #HumansofHindutva ? pic.twitter.com/njtUYO5ZrP — Aarti Tikoo Singh (@AartiTikoo) December 29, 2017 Right-wing blog OpIndia also wrote an article claiming that Facebook deleted the page for violating community guidelines. Alt News contacted the admin of Humans of Hindutva over email who rubbished the claim that his page was deleted by Facebook. In an email conversation, he said “There are some photos doing the rounds which claim that my page was deleted by Facebook. This is patently false. I’m attaching a screenshot to prove that it was a decision taken by me and not Facebook. There are many people who are celebrating my decision to take down a page due to threats on my life. Unfortunately, even in my defeat they are proving me right by acting exactly in the way I used to satirize. Thanks for proving me right. Even some ‘journalists’ think I’m doing this as a publicity stunt and am a coward for surrendering. Apparently, choosing to protect one’s family (in the same year when a journalist was shot dead at her door and numerous people have been lynched and a man was set on fire on video) makes one a coward. Yes, I’m a coward for choosing common sense. If I was living in a country which could protect people like me then I wouldn’t have to be anonymous in the first place. Come talk to me when you are facing thousands of nameless, faceless enemies who are sponsored by The Powers That Be. I’m not going to take any action against those who threatened me because I live in a system where doing so only exposes me to further risk. I am choosing to move on and soon enough you will move on as well once you stop celebrating the end of a silly parody page. But remember: my defeat is your defeat too. Today it is me, tomorrow it could be you.” He also sent the following screenshot to attest his claim. In the screenshot, “Humans of Hindutva is scheduled to be deleted in 14 days [Cancel Deletion]” notice can be seen which would indicate that the admin has chosen to delete the page. We also received another screenshot according to which a Facebook page with the URL “https://www.facebook.com/HoHHindi” is the one that had actually been suspended. The suspension notice being circulated on social media has a capital ‘O’ in “Humans Of Hindutva” which matches the HoHHindi page while the original “Humans of Hindutva” page has a small ‘o’. To show that the page was indeed deleted voluntarily and not suspended by Facebook, as we were writing this article, the admin ‘undeleted’ his page (Facebook allows one to ‘undelete’ upto 14 days) and posted the following. One may or may not agree with the style and content of the humour and satire adopted by ‘Humans of Hindutva’ but there is no merit to the claim that the page had been deleted by Facebook for violation of community standards. It was a voluntary decision by the admin. Follow @free_thinker Rahul and Priyanka Gandhi recently performed aarti at the Narmada Ghat in Madhya Pradesh’s Omkareshwar… In the wake of the alleged murder of Shraddha Walkar by his partner Aftab Amin… The video of a group of people stopping an e-rickshaw with BJP flags attached to… Last week during the G20 summit in Bali, world leaders were informed of a missile… Recently, several prominent BJP leaders claimed that Prime Minister Narendra Modi had intervened to stop…	news-altnews	2024-05-27T18:24:05.489452	29th December 2017 / 3:58 pm / Last updated: 29th December 2017	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/humans-hindutva-page-taken-admin-suspended-facebook/", "author": "Alt News Desk" }
1,487	HW News ran photoshopped image of an old Aaj Tak promo, clarified later - Alt News Pooja Chaudhuri 11th September 2019 / 5:23 pm / Last updated: 12th September 2019 On September 10, HW News broadcast a show on journalist Ravish Kumar’s Ramon Magsaysay Award and Tabrez Ansari’s lynching where charges of murder were recently dropped. The show was anchored by Abhisar Sharma and has since attracted attention on social media for the wrong reasons. During the program, Sharma flashed a photoshopped image of an Aaj Tak promo on Chandrayaan-2. This was pointed out by several social media users who shared a video created by ‘Political Kida’. So @abhisar_sharma used a photoshopped image to target Modi govt and to show that Media is working for him. No wonder channels throw him out for fake news. cc @chitraaum pic.twitter.com/CWrpYOreec — Ankur Singh (@iAnkurSingh) September 10, 2019 Aaj Tak anchor Chitra Tripathi, who was featured on the photoshopped promo, tweeted about the misinformation. मोदी विरोध में इतना गिर जायेंगे अभिसार @abhisar_sharma इसकी उम्मीद नहीं थी. वैसे धान से गेहूँ निकालने वाला इंसान गर्त की पत्रकारिता ही कर सकता है. गधों की तरह बोलने के पहले फ़ैक्ट चेक करते की जो तस्वीर आप वायरल कर रहे हैं उसकी हक़ीक़त क्या है? बीमार हैं आप,अपना इलाज कराइये. https://t.co/2IFIV4JO20 — Chitra Tripathi (@chitraaum) September 10, 2019 The HW News broadcast carried a morphed image of a July 22 broadcast by Aaj Tak on the launch of Chandrayaan-2. The original promo was tweeted by Tripathi on the same day. आज रात 10:30 मिनट पर मेरे साथ देखिये, @aajtak पर- देश के लिये गर्व से भर देने वाला दिन, अब चांद हमारी मुट्ठी में ..☺️☺️ pic.twitter.com/0nfrMp8tKb — Chitra Tripathi (@chitraaum) July 22, 2019 As evident, the original image has the words – “अब चांद हमारी मुट्ठी में (The moon is now in our clutches),” while the photoshopped infographic included Prime Minister Modi’s name in the sentence – “अब चांद मोदी की मुट्ठी में (The moon is now in PM Modi’s clutches.)” The photoshopped promo has been available online since before its appearance on HW News. लगता है साहब ने मुठ्ठी कस के नही बांधी थी? pic.twitter.com/87pySOIeUa — बेबाक़ आवाज़ ( Parody ) (@BebakAawaj) September 7, 2019 After the error was brought to the notice of HW News and Abhisar Sharma, the channel took down its broadcast and uploaded it again after deleting the misinformation. A clarification on the same has been posted on its YouTube channel but is missing from its website, Facebook page and Twitter handle. Sharma has also not added a clarification while tweeting the updated video titled, “रवीश को मैग्सेसे अवार्ड मिलने पर मोदी की ख़ामोशी! (Modi’s silence on Ravish’s Magsaysay award.)” आखिर रवीश कुमार के मैग्सेसे पुरस्कार पर मोदी सरकार क्यों खामोश है और तबरेज अंसारी को किसने मारा। सुनिए सरकारhttps://t.co/9e5UB0VSxJ — Abhisar Sharma (@abhisar_sharma) September 10, 2019 A photoshopped Aaj Tak promo thus featured on an HW News broadcast anchored by journalist Abhisar Sharma. HW News had in December last year broadcast a show anchored by journalist Vinod Dua which misled viewers on Union Minister Nitin Gadkari’s statements on stalled projects and NPAs. The channel later took down the program and provided an elaborate clarification. The photoshopped tweet had also made an appearance in a September 8 report by The Wire. 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	11th September 2019 / 5:23 pm / Last updated: 12th September 2019	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/hw-news-ran-photoshopped-image-of-an-old-aaj-tak-promo-clarified-later/", "author": "Pooja Chaudhuri" }
1,488	Hyd rape case encounter: A recap of 'bloodlust' in media, celebration by MPs, celebrities - Alt News Archit 30th May 2022 / 7:44 pm / Last updated: 1st June 2022 A commission set up by the Supreme Court to investigate the alleged encounters of the four accused in the 2019 Hyderabad rape case has submitted a report stating that the police deliberately fired with an intention to kill and there did not arise any occasion for exercising the “right to private defence”. In November 2019, a veterinary doctor, 26, was gang-raped and murdered which led to the arrest of four. The police claimed that the accused, declared adults at the time of the incident, were killed in an alleged encounter when they tried to snatch police weapons and fire at cops in an attempt to flee custody. Nearly three years after two petitions were filed seeking an independent investigation against the police officers allegedly involved, the SC panel noted that two of the accused were minors and the deceased did not commit any offence related to the alleged encounter like snatching of weapons and attempting to assault or fire at police officials. The SC panel has recommended action against ten police officers and personnel under various charges, including murder. But when the police had killed the accused nine days after the gang-rape and murder in 2019, the alleged encounter was massively hailed by members of parliament, politicians, media personnel, celebrities and even sportspersons who shifted the narrative from due process to ‘blood lust’. The ‘swift action’ of the police was celebrated as ‘justice’ and support for meting out similar ‘punishments’ to alleged perpetrators of rape were viral on social media and mainstream media alike. Former ADGP of Telangana VC Sajjanar had stated at the time that the “law has done its duty” but retired SC judge J. Chelameswar had cautioned, “If police action of encountering accused is promoted, anyone among us could be the victim tomorrow”. He said it could lead to a situation of “arbitrary state action”. In this report, we look back on how the alleged encounter was celebrated with blatant disregard for due process. While BJP MP Maneka Gandhi and Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal were among the handful who criticised the alleged encounter, most incumbent and former lawmakers across political lines celebrated the police action. The Wire reported, “Minister in the Telangana Rashtra Samithi government Gangula Kamalakar said that the killing of the rape accused demonstrated the prowess of the Telangana police.” However, TRS wasn’t the only party that backed the alleged encounter. Communist Party of India’s National Secretary K. Narayana had said, “I defend encounter killings in rape cases. Such deterrent police actions are essential to send a strong message across society to prevent recurrence of sexual assaults on women.” Three days after the alleged encounter, Andhra Pradesh CM YS Jagan said in the state assembly, “Salute To KCR and Telangana police.” He further stated, “If the hero in a movie kills someone in an encounter, we all clap and say the movie is good. If a daring person does that in real life…someone will come down from Delhi in the name of National Human Rights Commission and say this is wrong.” Similarly, Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel said, “…it can be said that justice has been done.” Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel on all four accused in rape&murder of woman veterinarian in Telangana killed in encounter: When a criminal tries to escape, police are left with no other option, it can be said that justice has been done. pic.twitter.com/5kw96wG34q — ANI (@ANI) December 6, 2019 On the day of the alleged encounter, Deccan Herald reported that office-bearers in the Karnataka government — then CM BS Yediyurappa, ex-deputy CM C N Ashwath Narayan, and then Home Minister Basavaraj Bommai — lauded it. RJD leader and former Bihar CM Rabri Devi said, “What happened in Hyderabad will act as a deterrent against criminals surely, we welcome this.” Rabri Devi,RJD on Telangana encounter: What happened in Hyderabad will act as a deterrent against criminals surely, we welcome this. In Bihar as well, cases of crimes against women are increasing. The state Govt here is lax and doing nothing. pic.twitter.com/5yMP5e0Han — ANI (@ANI) December 6, 2019 Congress leader and MP President Arun Subhash Yadav tweeted, “Daughter got justice, congratulations to Hyderabad police.” हैदराबाद गैंगरेप के चारों आरोपियों के भागने की कोशिश के दौरान पुलिस ने किया एनकाउंटर । बेटी को मिला इंसाफ , हैदराबाद पुलिस को बधाई ।#DrPriyankaReddy — Arun Subhash Yadav 🇮🇳 (@MPArunYadav) December 6, 2019 YSR Congress MP Kanumuru Raghu Rama Krishna Raju had said, “They deserved to be shot dead. God has been kind that they were shot dead, this is a good lesson. They tried to run away and they were killed. No NGO should oppose it and if they do so, they are anti-national.” Kanumuru Raghu Rama Krishna Raju, YSR Congress Party on #Telangana encounter: They deserved to be shot dead. God has been kind that they were shot dead, this is a good lesson. They tried to run away&they were killed. No NGO should oppose it & if they do so, they are anti-national pic.twitter.com/dl56IVBn6Y — ANI (@ANI) December 6, 2019 Former Madhya Pradesh CM Uma Bharti lauded Telangana police and tweeted, “I can now believe that the people sitting in the governance of other states will find ways to teach the criminals a lesson immediately.” SP President and former UP CM Akhilesh Yadav also welcomed “justice via encounter”. BSP chief and former UP CM Mayawati said, “Wish the police had done a better job in the Nirbhaya case as well.” She asked UP police to “take inspiration”. Some of the BJP leaders who supported the encounter included Rajyavardhan Rathore, Anil Vij, Locket Chatterjee and Shobha Karandlaje. Rajya Sabha member from Samajwadi Party Jaya Bachchan had called for the “lynching” of the accused a few days before the alleged encounter took place. #WATCH “People now want Govt to give a definite answer. These type of people (the accused in rape case) need to be brought out in public and lynched,” Rajya Sabha MP Jaya Bachchan on rape & murder of woman veterinary doctor in Telangana pic.twitter.com/HFNjUHtSHB — ANI (@ANI) December 2, 2019 Sudhir Chaudhary, editor-in-chief and CEO of Zee News, WION and the host of Daily News & Analysis, presented an hour-long show on the alleged encounter. In the opening remarks, he said, “In our ancient texts it is said that the one who enjoys killing should be killed instantly. Today, four such demons were killed by the Telangana police.” Several News18 Twitter accounts branded the alleged encounter as ‘justice’ — News18 Bihar, News18 Chhattisgarh, News18 Haryana, News18 Himachal, News18 Madhya Pradesh, News18 Rajasthan, News18 Uttar Pradesh, News18 Hindi, and News18 India. Managing Editor of News18 Hindi Amish Devgan similarly wrote, “Justice for Hyderabad’s daughter” (हैदराबाद की बेटी को इंसाफ). Zee MP-Chhattisgarh, Lokmat Hindi, Dainik Bhaskar, InKhabar, Punjab Kesari also followed suit. ABP journalist Sumit Awasthi joined the bandwagon as well. News Break – All 4 accused of Hyderabad rape killed in encounter as they tried to flee from Police Custody from Scene of Crime. हैदराबाद के चारों आरोपी हैवान पुलिस कस्टडी से भागने की फिराक में एनकाउंटर में मारे गये हैं! #दिशा के साथ इंसाफ हुआ!!! — Sumit Awasthi (@awasthis) December 6, 2019 Patanjali Ayurved founder Ramdev had said, “Such criminals… and terrorists should be dealt with on the spot by armed forces and police forces…” #WATCH Baba Ramdev: Jo is tarah ke apradhi hote hain,kalank hain,jinse desh,dharm,sanskriti badnaam hoti hai,unke saath aur jo aatankwadi hain unke saath, on the spot police aur sena ko aise hi karyavahi karni chahiye,jin ghatnaon mein sandeh hai unhe Court mein le jana chahiye.. pic.twitter.com/R6yAWBf5uZ — ANI (@ANI) December 6, 2019 Actor Vivek Oberoi termed the alleged encounters “poetic justice”. Same spot, same time frame, the predators became the prey! Now that’s true Poetic Justice! Maybe now all such monsters will finally feel fear and think a hundred times before even thinking of raping and murdering girls!#JusticeForDisha #TelanganaPolice #JusticeServed #Telangana — Vivek Anand Oberoi (@vivekoberoi) December 6, 2019 Less than 24 hours after the alleged encounter, The News Minute published a report documenting how Tollywood stars cheered the Telangana police. Bollywood actors Anupam Kher and Rishi Kapoor also expressed the same opinion. Latestly reported that sportspersons Saina Nehwal, Phogat sisters and Harbhajan Singh lauded the police. Hyderabad Encounter: Saina Nehwal, Phogat Sisters, Harbhajan Singh Laud Police for Killing All 4 Men Accused in Telangana Vet Rape And Murder Case@NSaina \| @harbhajan_singh \| @BabitaPhogat \| @geeta_phogat \| #TelanganaEncounter \| #TelanganaPolice https://t.co/kDf9zk0XGJ — LatestLY (@latestly) December 6, 2019 A Supreme Court panel has now reported that the alleged encounters were not justified as the police’s version of events leading up to the killings cannot be believed. While public sentiment supports ‘instant justice’ due to a slow judicial process, political leadership, the media and celebrities encouraging encounters promotes lawlessness. 🙏 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	30th May 2022 / 7:44 pm / Last updated: 1st June 2022	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/hyd-rape-case-encounter-a-recap-of-bloodlust-in-media-celebration-by-mps-celebrities/", "author": "Archit" }
1,489	"I will slap Modi" - Aaj Tak, ABP, News18 misreport Mamata Banerjee's statement - Alt News Pooja Chaudhuri 8th May 2019 / 7:57 pm / Last updated: 9th May 2019 The 2019 Lok Sabha elections have entered the 5th phase and among the constituencies that are in polls is West Bengal. The Bharatiya Janata Party and the Trinamool Congress are taking each other head-on in the state, with the Prime Minister himself involved in the campaigning. On May 6, he targetted the TMC by terming the party ‘TTT’ or ‘Trinamool, Tolabaazi, Tax.’ The Bengali word ‘Tolabaazi’ translates extortionists. Subsequent to the PM’s statement, several mainstream media outlets reported that Mamata Banerjee’s response to his remark was – “I will slap Modi.” The West Bengal Chief Minister was misquoted in news broadcasts. She did not say, “I will slap Modi,” but stated, “I want to give PM Modi a tight slap of democracy.” The Trinamool Congress uploaded Banerjee’s video where she can be heard saying, “নরেন্দ্র মোদী যখন বাংলায় এসে বলে মমতা ব্যানার্জী তোলাবাজ, তখন শুনলে আমার মনে হয় দি ঠাসি একটা ভালো করে গণতন্ত্রের থাপ্পড় (When Narendra Modi comes to Bengal and accuses Mamata Banerjee of being Tolabaaz, I feel like giving him a tight slap of democracy.)” Here is the clipping where @MamataOfficial says “When Narendra Modi came to Bengal and accused my party of being tolabaaj, I wanted to give him a tight slap of democracy” pic.twitter.com/7VAJB8WPF1 — All India Trinamool Congress (@AITCofficial) May 7, 2019 In the May 7 broadcast of her flagship program ‘Halla Bol’, Aaj Tak’s Anjana Om Kashyap reiterated multiple times during the length of the show that Mamata Banerjee said that she will slap Prime Minister Modi. In the middle of a heated debate between the spokespersons of the BJP and the TMC, Kashyap interjected the TMC delegate and asked, “अच्छा थप्पड़ वाले बयान पे एकबार बोलिये मनोजीत जी (Comment on the ‘slap’ statement, Manojit ji.)” A little further into the broadcast, she accused Banerjee of sympathising with ‘immigrants’ and the ‘neighbouring country’. She questioned the TMC spokesperson, “इतना सम्मान जो कमज़ोर है उसकी देख-रेख करना देश में, जो पड़ोसी मुल्क से आये उससे भी भाईचारा रखना, इतनी महान बाते करने वाली, देश के प्रधानमंत्री को थप्पड़ क्यों मारना चाहती है? (Giving such respect to the ‘weak’ and taking care of them in the country, maintaining brotherhood with the neighbouring state, a person who speaks so righteously, she wants to slap the country’s Prime Minister?)” After the TMC delegate’s response that PM Modi visits West Bengal for politicising issues, Kashyap reiterated, “पर पीएम के लिए ऐसा बोलना सही है क्या की मेरा मन करता है उनको थप्पड़ मार दू? (But is it right for her to say ‘I want to slap PM Modi’?” Aaj Tak’s broadcast can be viewed below. Anchor Anjana Om Kashyap can be heard making the three statements onward 38:30 minutes. ‘हवन करेंगे…हवन करेंगे’ ! देखिए #हल्ला_बोल @anjanaomkashyap के साथ #ATLivestream Posted by News Tak on Tuesday, 7 May 2019 The news organisation also published an article on the erroneous quote – ‘आपे से बाहर हुईं ममता बनर्जी बोलीं- मोदी को थप्पड़ मारने का मन करता है’ (Mamata Banerjee lost her temper and said- I feel like slapping Modi.) “जब नरेंद्र मोदी बंगाल आकर कहते हैं कि टीएमसी लुटेरों से भरी पड़ी है तो मुझे उन्हें थप्पड़ मारने का मन हुआ:” ममता बनर्जी https://t.co/1jL4MKMseb — आज तक (@aajtak) May 7, 2019 The popular Hindi news channel, ABP News, ran an over 10-minute broadcast on Mamata Banerjee’s recent remark. Despite the show being titled, ‘PM Narendra Modi needs a ‘slap of democracy’: Mamata Banerjee’, anchor Rubika Liyaquat’s translation of Mamata Banerjee’s statement omitted the word ‘democracy’. At around 8:35 minutes into the program, a member of the audience questioned the BJP spokesperson if his party plans on winning elections on Hinduvad and aantankvad. As soon as he asked, “Is the BJP even concerned about small traders?”, Liyaquat interrupted and said, “A big news is coming our way.” The ‘big’ news was Mamata Banerjee’s statement that Liyaquat had misquoted. “आपको पता है क्या हुआ है अभी? ममता बनर्जी ने प्रधानमंत्री मोदी पे बड़ा हमला किया। वो कह रही है मैं पीएम को थप्पड़ मरूंगी। (Do you know what happened just now? Mamata Banerjee massively targetted Prime Minister Modi. She said ‘I will slap the PM’.” Recently, Rubika Liyaquat was also found defending Union Textile Minister Smriti Irani’s educational qualification” with falsehood. “West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee said that she will slap Prime Minister Modi’s face as he was saying that Mamata Banerjee’s party is a party of extortionists…” reported CNN News18 at the start of its May 7 broadcast. The statement attributed to Banerjee was repeated throughout the over 7-minute broadcast, with the channel flashing ‘Mamata threatens to slap the PM’ on TV screens. CNN News18 later took down the broadcast (archive) and tweeted a correction with Banerjee’s original statement. CORRECTION: “When Narendra Modi came to Bengal and accused my party of being ‘tolabaaj’, I wanted to give him a tight slap of democracy” said @MamataOfficial. https://t.co/bFDOReAFMe — News18 (@CNNnews18) May 7, 2019 The Hindi outlet of Indian Express – Jansatta – published an article on the false quote attributed to Banerjee. Jansatta’s report was titled – ‘अलग दौर में पहुंचा ‘वर्ड-वॉर’, ममता बनर्जी ने कहा- मोदी को थप्पड़ मारने का मन करता है (The battle of words has taken a different turn, Mamata Banerjee said- I feel like slapping Modi.)’ अलग दौर में पहुंचा ‘वर्ड-वॉर’, ममता बनर्जी ने कहा- मोदी को थप्पड़ मारने का मन करता है https://t.co/CuDSoutUVF — Jansatta (@Jansatta) May 7, 2019 Among those who misreported West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee’s statement, CNN News18 was the only one to have uploaded a clarification. Aaj Tak and ABP News, on the other hand, used the misleading quote to defend the Prime Minister and the BJP. Banerjee’s remarks were rightly reported by several other media organisations. #WATCH West Bengal CM Mamata Banerjee in Purulia: Money doesn’t matter to me.That is why when Narendra Modi came to Bengal and accused my party of being Tolabaaz (Toll collector), I wanted to give him a tight slap of democracy pic.twitter.com/JnE5xywWJI — ANI (@ANI) May 7, 2019 [This article has been updated to include Jansatta’s misreport and CNN News18’s clarification. Dainik Bhaskar, which was wrongly included in the story, has been taken down.] 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	8th May 2019 / 7:57 pm / Last updated: 9th May 2019	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/i-will-slap-modi-aaj-tak-abp-news18-misreport-mamata-banerjees-statement/", "author": "Pooja Chaudhuri" }
1,490	IANS falls for fake account of Sara Pilot attacking Ashok Gehlot via tweets - Alt News Pooja Chaudhuri 14th July 2020 / 12:09 am / Last updated: 14th July 2020 A section of the media republished a report by news agency IANS claiming that rebel Congress leader Sachin Pilot’s wife Sara Pilot in a series of tweets tagged to Congress party said “big magicians started sweating when we go to Delhi”, apparently referring the magician to Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot. Below is a screenshot of the IANS feed republished by Outlook. Other organisations that carried the story were Free Press Journal, Dainik Jagran and Newstrack. Ashok Gehlot-led Congress government is in crisis in Rajasthan after Deputy Chief Minister Sachin Pilot claimed the support 30 MLAs and said that Gehlot’s government is in minority. The Rajasthan Congress Legislature Party has passed a resolution supporting the current government. The tweet in question was made by Twitter account ‘Sarah Sachin Pilot (@SarahSachin)’ on July 12. This is an imposter account and not Sara Pilot’s official account. The first obvious give away is that her name is misspelt as ‘Sarah’. Below is a tweet where her brother and former Chief Minister of J&K Omar Abdullah refers to her as ‘Sara’. The same spelling mistake is also present in the IANS copy. Another clue that the account is fake is its bio which says, “The Spelandra of Kasmir.” The misspelling of ‘Kashmir’ is a mistake that Sara, a native of the region, would not make. The handle has also made other spelling and grammatical errors such as — “brands ambassador” and “politics”. Furthermore, it does not have a verified blue tick which a prominent individual’s account would. Sara Pilot does not have an official handle on Twitter. IANS fell for an imposter account and several media outlets republished its feed. Earlier the news agency had fallen for a fake account of late actor Sushant Singh Rajput’s father. In fact, IANS has a history of falling for fake accounts including those of Raghuram Rajan and Biplap Deb. 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	14th July 2020 / 12:09 am / Last updated: 14th July 2020	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/ians-falls-for-fake-account-of-sara-pilot-attacking-ashok-gehlot-in-tweets/", "author": "Pooja Chaudhuri" }
1,491	IANS falls for parody account of Raghuram Rajan, several media outlets follow suit - Alt News Pooja Chaudhuri 13th September 2019 / 9:19 pm / Last updated: 14th September 2019 On September 13, a few media outlets published a story titled – “It’s a sign that you’re hiding real data: Rajan on Goyal faux pas”. The story was on former RBI governor Raghuram Rajan’s alleged response to the recent gaffe made by Railway Minister Piyush Goyal where he attributed the discovery of gravity to Albert Einstein instead of Isaac Newton. IANS ran the original story and the syndicated feed was published by ABP News, The Quint, The Economic Times, Outlook and Caravan Daily. The Economic Times has now taken down the story. According to the report, Rajan tweeted, “When you don’t understand the #GRAVITY of the economic slowdown, the words stumble and reasoning becomes feeble. If someone thinks that maths doesn’t help understanding gravity and economics, then it’s a sign that you are hiding the actual statistical data. Newton must be smiling,” The tweet attributed to Rajan was posted by a parody account dedicated to the Indian economist. The handle itself reveals this information in its bio. Raghuram Rajan is not on Twitter. This isn’t an isolated case when IANS and subsequently other media outlets believed a parody account to be genuine. Led by IANS, several media outlets published reports based on tweets from a parody account of Tripura CM Biplab Deb last year. Furthermore, The Economic Times had earlier published a tweet by a parody account of Warren Buffet, despite the American businessman operating an official Twitter account. Pooja Chaudhuri is a senior editor at Alt News. Rahul and Priyanka Gandhi recently performed aarti at the Narmada Ghat in Madhya Pradesh’s Omkareshwar… In the wake of the alleged murder of Shraddha Walkar by his partner Aftab Amin… The video of a group of people stopping an e-rickshaw with BJP flags attached to… Last week during the G20 summit in Bali, world leaders were informed of a missile… Recently, several prominent BJP leaders claimed that Prime Minister Narendra Modi had intervened to stop…	news-altnews	2024-05-27T18:24:05.489452	13th September 2019 / 9:19 pm / Last updated: 14th September 2019	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/ians-falls-for-parody-account-of-raghuram-rajan-several-media-outlets-follow-suit/", "author": "Pooja Chaudhuri" }
1,492	IANS falls for satire on Pakistani PM Imran Khan reading COVID-19 chart upside down - Alt News Jignesh Patel 8th May 2020 / 1:13 pm / Last updated: 8th May 2020 News agency Indo-Asian News Service (IANS) published a report titled, “Imran Khan reads chart upside down, claims Covid curve flattening.” The report claimed that Pakistan’s Prime Minister Imran Khan made a gaffe and claimed that the coronavirus curve in the country was flattening while in reality, he read the chart upside down. The IANS article was carried by news outlets like Newsd and Outlook. The latter has taken down the report. Its archive can be accessed here. The article published by Newsd mentions Aarti Singh Tikoo’s name in the byline. She is the Foreign and Strategic Affairs Editor at IANS. The report claimed that Khan while holding a chart of the coronavirus cases in the country said, “See, it’s right there. The cases seem to be tapering to a flat line.” It further stated, “However, a political aide Saleem Kheshgi, noticing that the Prime Minister had goofed up, quickly whispered something into his ear. Khan’s mood changed quickly, Pakistan Today reported.” It may be noted that the report cites Pakistan Today. Alt News found that the report cited by the news agency is a satirical piece. It was published in the satirical section of Pakistani news website Pakistan Today. The satirical section is called ‘The Dependent’. It appears that the name – The Dependent – is inspired by British news outlet The Independent. The website clearly mentions the word ‘satire’ in bold letters in the featured image published along with the article on Khan. Leaving no room for doubt, the author’s biography at the bottom of the article also has a disclaimer which reads, “The above piece is a work of satire and does not present itself as the truth.” Twitter handle Not The Dependent tweeted a screenshot of the IANS article and ridiculed the news agency for not being able to differentiate between a “satire and actual news reports.” Learn to differentiate between satire and actual news reports @ians_india And hands off our PM. He may be a petty, facile, undemocratically imposed lackey without principles, but he’s OUR petty, facile, undemocratically imposed lackey without principles! pic.twitter.com/mrTIeS4SBl — Not The Dependent (@DependentNot) May 7, 2020 Journalist Aarti Singh Tikoo took to Twitter and apologised for her error by saying that she mistook “satire for serious news.” I mistook satire for serious news. The hate-AartiTikoo brigade in its frenzy is projecting as if my mistake is the biggest ever crime. Yes, stupid of me; I apologise for my error. But imagine the journos who deliberately peddle Pakistani propaganda & bigotry against India daily. — Aarti Tikoo Singh (@AartiTikoo) May 8, 2020 A piece of satirical news about Pakistan’s PM Imran Khan reading the coronavirus chart upside down and declaring that the curve has flattened in his country was published as actual news by news agency IANS and subsequently carried by media outlets like Newsd and Outlook. Last year in December, IANS had fallen for satirical news of “crazy sex run by Irish sheep after drinking viagra”. 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. 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	8th May 2020 / 1:13 pm / Last updated: 8th May 2020	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/ians-falls-for-satire-on-pakistani-pm-imran-khan-reading-covid-19-chart-upside-down/", "author": "Jignesh Patel" }
1,493	IANS, media outlets fall for fake Twitter account of Sushant Singh Rajput's father - Alt News Pooja Chaudhuri 6th July 2020 / 6:11 pm / Last updated: 6th July 2020 News agency IANS tweeted on July 4 that a Twitter account of late actor Sushant Singh Rajput’s father has surfaced through which he is demanding an inquiry of the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) into the suicide of his son. Rajput had died by suicide on June 14. Several leading media outlets picked up the story — The New Indian Express, Outlook, Mathrubhumi, National Herald, The Times of India and The Pioneer. Aaj Tak aired alleged tweets of Rajput’s father K K Singh and claimed that he is demanding a CBI probe into his son’s death. The tweet read, “अब मैं बहुत जल्द सुशांत की मौत की सीबीआई जांच करवाने की याचिका सुप्रिम कोर्ट में दर्ज करवा रहा हूँ। कल को अगर मुझे कुछ हो जाये तो कितने लोग मेरे साथ हैं। (Very soon I will file a petition in the Supreme Cout for CBI inquiry into Sushant’s death. If something happens to me tomorrow, how many people are with me?) The relevant section can be watched 2:20 minutes onward where Aaj Tak also said that the account could not be verified. #SushantSinghRajput के मौत की CBI जाँच की हो रही मांग और पटना में लोगों में फूटा आक्रोश। #ATVideo pic.twitter.com/nmlOE2b8oO — AajTak (@aajtak) July 5, 2020 A few other outlets that published the story were Times Now, The Tribune and Dainik Jagran. While the first two took down their reports, Dainik Jagran updated its article and added a clarification at the end. Its initial report can be accessed here while the updated one can be viewed here. Times Now is yet to take down its Facebook post of the story. It is important to note that media outlets Aaj Tak and Dainik Jagran run dedicated fact-checking desks. Furthermore, Jagran’s Vishwas News and India Today Fact Check are signatories to the International Fact-Checking Network (IFCN). The story was also picked up by right-wing propaganda website The Frustrated Indian. The tweets were made by an account with the username @K_KSingh_. This is an imposter account with an earlier username @Real_Aishwarya_. The account was also impersonating singer Sonu Nigam. Alt News had earlier published a report which revealed that this account was impersonating Sonu Nigam to target actor Shahrukh Khan. Our detailed fact-check can be read here. The account has made four tweets since July 2 which talk about CBI inquiry into Rajput’s death. Tweets by an imposter account posing as late actor Sushant Singh Rajput’s father K K Singh were therefore picked by mainstream media outlets led by IANS. “He (Singh) has outrightly denied the existence of any such account and urged those behind such things to not create confusion in public,” a family source told PTI. The above case wasn’t the only instance when IANS published news based on fake accounts or satirical posts and other news organisations amplifyed the misinformation. 1. IANS falls for parody account of Raghuram Rajan, several media outlets follow suit Last year in September, a story on former RBI governor Raghuram Rajan’s alleged response to Railway Minister Piyush Goyal’s gaffe where he attributed the discovery of gravity to Albert Einstein splashed across media outlets. “It’s a sign that you’re hiding real data: Rajan on Goyal faux pas,” was the republished IANS story. Turns out, the report was based on a parody account of Raghuram Rajan. 2. Led by IANS, media outlets fall for a parody account of Tripura CM Biplab Deb “There is no truth in the (media) reports of Modiji summoning me to Delhi. The (Delhi) trip was long planned. In fact, Modiji loves me like a son.” In 2018, news agency IANS reported that this tweet was made by Tripura Chief Minister, Biplab Deb. The story was taken down after IANS realised that the tweet was by a parody account of Deb. 3. IANS falls for satire on Pakistani PM Imran Khan reading COVID-19 chart upside down Earlier in May, the news agency had published a report titled, “Imran Khan reads chart upside down, claims Covid curve flattening.” This was based on a satirical post by website The Dependent. 4. Crazy sex run by Irish sheep after consuming Viagra? Indian media falls for satire If an IANS ‘news’ feed republished by multiple media outlets last year was to be believed, hundreds of sheep in Ireland went on a “week-long uncontrollable sex drive” after they drank water from Ringaskiddy harbour where drug manufacturer Pfizer had “accidentally spilled tonnes of Viagra.” This too was based on an article by satirical website worldnewsdailyreport. Pooja Chaudhuri is a senior editor at Alt News. Inter-faith relationships between Hindu women and Muslim men have been a sore point for the… 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	6th July 2020 / 6:11 pm / Last updated: 6th July 2020	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/ians-media-outlets-fall-for-fake-twitter-account-of-sushant-singh-rajputs-father/", "author": "Pooja Chaudhuri" }
1,494	IANS, NDTV use old photo to claim BJP's Pankaja Munde wept after electoral loss; delete later - Alt News Jignesh Patel 24th October 2019 / 9:06 pm / Last updated: 24th October 2019 News agency IANS tweeted a photo of Pankaja Munde, the BJP candidate from Maharastra’s Parli assembly seat, who was defeated in the recently-concluded assembly elections. The news agency’s tweet read, “#BJP’s heavyweight and #Maharashtra minister #PankajaMunde weeps inconsolably after her shock defeat in #Parli (Beed) seat by her estranged cousin, #NCP Leader of Opposition in Legislative Council #DhananjayMunde. Photo: IANS”. The tweet now stands deleted but an archived version can be accessed here. This photo is a screengrab taken from a TV9 Marathi broadcast from October 20, 2019. “Exclusive interview with Pankaja Munde before voting (translated)”, reads the title of YouTube video posted by the channel. One can see that the thumbnail of the YouTube video is the photo which was posted by IANS. Twitter user Riaz Ahmed had shared the video on Twitter. NDTV also tweeted the image and later deleted the same. In a separate report which was earlier titled –“BJP’s Pankaja Munde Weeps Inconsolably After Shock Defeat”– the channel did refer to the fact that IANS deleted their tweet but failed to clarify about their own tweet and simultaneous changes in the report. Lokmat News Hindi published an article based on IANS’s tweet titled, “पंकजा मुंडे नहीं सह पाईं हार का गम, फूट-फूटकर रो पड़ीं, तस्वीर वायरल (Pankaja Munde couldn’t bear the sorrow of her loss, inconsolably wept, photo viral -translated)”. India Today managing-editor Kamlesh Singh also tweeted the photo with the message, “हमें अपनों ने लूटा ग़ैरों में कहां वज़न था जिसने हमको हराया हमारा कज़न ~Pankaja Munde, 24.10.2019”. हमें अपनों ने लूटा ग़ैरों में कहां वज़न था जिसने हमको हराया हमारा कज़न था ً~Pankaja Munde, 24.10.2019 pic.twitter.com/Wwbro5KI1a — Kamlesh K Singh (@kamleshksingh) October 24, 2019 Youth Congress leader Kumar Raja took a jibe at Munde tweeting the same photo. Neither IANS nor NDTV has issued a clarification for putting out a screengrab from an old broadcast as the image of BJP’s Pankaja Munde publically grieving on her recent electoral loss. Jignesh is a writer and researcher at Alt News. He has a knack for visual investigation with a major interest in fact-checking videos and images. He has completed his Masters in Journalism from Gujarat University. Rahul and Priyanka Gandhi recently performed aarti at the Narmada Ghat in Madhya Pradesh’s Omkareshwar… In the wake of the alleged murder of Shraddha Walkar by his partner Aftab Amin… The video of a group of people stopping an e-rickshaw with BJP flags attached to… Last week during the G20 summit in Bali, world leaders were informed of a missile… Recently, several prominent BJP leaders claimed that Prime Minister Narendra Modi had intervened to stop…	news-altnews	2024-05-27T18:24:05.489452	24th October 2019 / 9:06 pm / Last updated: 24th October 2019	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/ians-ndtv-use-old-photo-to-claim-bjps-pankaja-munde-wept-after-electoral-loss-delete-later/", "author": "Jignesh Patel" }
1,495	IDENTIFIED: Admin of the FB page that called for violence against 100+ inter-faith couples - Alt News Arjun Sidharth 5th February 2018 / 7:59 pm / Last updated: 5th February 2018 On February 4, 2018, Alt News published an article that shockingly revealed how a list of more than 100 couples who had entered into inter-religious union were being targeted on social media and a page called “Hindutva Varta” was openly calling for violence against these couples by putting out links to their Facebook profiles as a list in the public domain. Alt News has identified the perpetrator of these threats. The Facebook page by the name ‘Hindutva Vaarta‘ had urged social media members to track and hunt down Muslim men who are in a relationship with Hindu women. A person called Satish Mylavarapu admitted to being the admin of the page. I am proud to be admin of that page हिंदुत्व वार्ता … Will create new page again — Satish Mylavarapu (@satsmylavarapu) February 5, 2018 Mylavarapu has been rather brazen on social media, openly posting threats and inciting violence against members of a particular community. His viciousness can be judged by the fact that he openly pays tributes to Nathuram Godse and claims that Godse saved the country. In the following tweet, along with a picture of Nathuram Godse, Mylavarapu writes, “Raghupati Raghav Raja Ram, Desh Bachcha Gaye Nathuram”. रघुपति राघव राजा राम, देश बचा गए नाथूराम। pic.twitter.com/swz4fUuSp4 — Satish Mylavarapu (@satsmylavarapu) January 31, 2018 Many of Mylavarapu’s tweets call for genocide against ethnic communities and religious minorities. Maximum restraint?? What the use…. If you need to save india… You have conduct genocide in Kashmir valley… No other go. — Satish Mylavarapu (@satsmylavarapu) January 31, 2018 In the following tweet, he urges members of the Sikh Community (Khalsa) to crush Islam. @TajinderBagga ji #इस्लाम की यादाश्त कमजोर हो गयी है, #खालसा को चाहिए के 21वें सदी में फिर से इस्लाम को पैरों तले रौंद दे… — Satish Mylavarapu (@satsmylavarapu) February 5, 2018 His bigotry did not even spare Ankit Saxena who was killed by the family members of the Muslim woman he was in love with, justifying his murder and claiming that it is the wicked Indian constitution that led to his death, and not Islam. ये नमाज़ी #अंकित_सक्सेना है… मर गया यही सोचते कि सब #धर्म एक समान है, इसकी हत्या #इस्लाम ने नही की… हमारी विकृत #संविधान ने की… pic.twitter.com/ej0VoFapIs — Satish Mylavarapu (@satsmylavarapu) February 5, 2018 After Alt News’ story on the call for violence against inter-faith couples led to a huge uproar, the FB page ‘Hindutva Vaarta’ was suspended. Mylavarapu however was nonplussed about the fact that his page was taken off Facebook, resolving to bide his time. अरे पेज बैन कर दिए, id 30 दिन के लिए बैन कर दिए… अब क्या हिन्दू लड़कियों को अपने हाथों से जिहादियों के हाथ सौंप दी??? सेक्युलर कहलाने का इतना शौक नही है — Satish Mylavarapu (@satsmylavarapu) February 5, 2018 This nonchalance on the part of those who are openly issuing violent threats in the public domain is a serious cause for concern. Such threats are a direct affront to the authority of the state which is expected to crack down with a heavy hand on those who challenge its monopoly over the legitimate use of force. Moreover, these calls for ‘tracking and hunting down’ Muslim boys is not only blatantly communal but calls upon ordinary citizens to adopt violent tactics, openly fuelling communal tension and conflict. Alt News calls for strict action to be initiated against the admin of the page. 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	5th February 2018 / 7:59 pm / Last updated: 5th February 2018	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/identified-admin-fb-page-called-violence-100-inter-faith-couples/", "author": "Arjun Sidharth" }
1,496	Iftar held at HDFC Barabanki given false communal spin - Alt News Nilofar Absar 21st May 2022 / 4:23 pm Photographs of iftar being served post namaz at an HDFC branch in Uttar Pradesh’s Barabanki were widely shared on Facebook with a communal spin. The incident took place during the month of Ramzan around April 24, 2022, within the bank premises. The viral images were shared with the caption: “These photographs aren’t from a mosque but taken at a bank. It is from an HDFC bank branch in Barabanki. Roza, iftar and namaz are being offered here on a regular basis. This has been happening for years now. This false pretence of “secularism” must be strongly opposed.” Pro-BJP propaganda outlet OpIndia reported the event while stating that “only Muslim customers” were invited to the iftar. It also claimed that SP leader Osama Ansari graced the occasion with his presence. The event upset members of the Hindu nationalist organisation Bajrang Dal. Sunil Singh, the organisation’s convener for the Awadh province, is quoted in the OpIndia article, as stating, “Today they offered prayers in a bank. Tomorrow they will read namaz somewhere else. The administration should take action against them.” Alt News performed a keyword search in Hindi and came across several reports describing the event as a great example of “Hindu-Muslim” unity. We also found a detailed video report covering the event on YouTube. [youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7RBKcYUicoc] The following excerpts with time-stamps, from the above video report, are essential to understand the bank’s rationale behind organising the iftar party and to establish that Hindu festivals are also celebrated within the bank premises: At 1:35/6:11, the deputy manager of the bank branch can be heard saying, “All customers regardless of their religion have been invited to the iftar party.” This statement directly disputes the unfounded claim made in the OpIndia article about only Muslim customers being invited to the iftar party. Further at 1:50/6:11, SP leader Osama Ansari can be heard saying, “This is a grand gesture by HDFC that reinstates some faith in Hindu-Muslim brotherhood at a time when communal tensions in India have peaked. It sends a positive message to society. People from all religions work in this bank and it is heartening to see the kind of effort that has been put into organising this iftar.” At 2:21/6:11, a reporter is heard asking the SP councillor, “Are Hindu festivals also celebrated in this manner at the bank”? The councillor’s response follows, stating, “Earlier, Holi Milan Samaroh was also held at the bank. Other festivals are also celebrated here. Everyone is invited regardless of their religious identity. I have been associated with the bank for the past 15 years and I have seen all festivals being celebrated here.” In the same video report, at 3:24/6:11, the bank cluster head can be heard saying, “Organising such gatherings is a good way to connect with our customers. At 3:35/6:11, he says, “All festivals are celebrated with the primary objective to connect with customers. We also celebrate festivals like Hanuman Jayanti, Holi, Diwali…” At 3:48/6:11, the manager of the bank, Zaheer Abbas, can be heard saying, “HDFC’s objective is to always connect with its customers and to ensure that everyone moves forward together.” At 4:01/6:11, the manager says, “Our philosophy is to stay connected with our customers at all times. This is how our customers feel safe banking with us. The other name for banking is trust.” At 4:42/6:11, the manager further mentions, “Such programs have been conducted at the bank as a matter of practice. This is not a new occurrence, we were only delayed by the pandemic. But connecting with customers is of prime importance. Apart from religious celebrations we also conduct industry meets. Sometimes, we even arrange for get-togethers to sanction loans instantly.” It is evident from the above excerpts from the video report that the iftar organised by the bank was based on a business decision to connect with customers and implies no affiliation to any community based on religious identity. In addition to the above, we also found a report by Dainik Bhaskar in which videos and photographs of other religious festivals like Holi and Diwali being celebrated at HDFC, Barabanki, have been shared. The report states that the iftar party held within the bank premises infuriated members of the Bajrang Dal who demanded an inquiry into the matter. They also threatened to forcefully have the Hanuman Chalisa recited within the bank premises in the absence of stringent measures being taken to investigate the people involved in organising iftar. According to this report published by Jagran, the Deputy District Magistrate, Nawabganj, Sumit Yadav said, “Information has been received about such a video going viral. An investigation will be done. Action will be taken if any violation of banking rules is found.” Alt News also got in touch with a senior bank official (administration) in Barabanki who requested anonymity while stating, “I can confirm that other religious celebrations are held in the bank and customers from all faiths are invited to partake.” To conclude, HDFC Barabanki organised an iftaar party to connect with all customers, regardless of their religious identities. This was given a political as well as communal spin to portray partiality. Nilofar Absar is a lawyer by training and a storyteller by nature who takes a keen interest in the lives of people belonging to South Asian diasporic communities. Rahul and Priyanka Gandhi recently performed aarti at the Narmada Ghat in Madhya Pradesh’s Omkareshwar… In the wake of the alleged murder of Shraddha Walkar by his partner Aftab Amin… The CCTV footage of a man violently flinging a child on the ground has created… The video of a group of people stopping an e-rickshaw with BJP flags attached to… A minute-long video clip of a woman being physically assaulted is viral on social media….	news-altnews	2024-05-27T18:24:05.489452	21st May 2022 / 4:23 pm	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/iftar-held-at-hdfc-barabanki-given-false-communal-spin/", "author": "Nilofar Absar" }
1,497	IIT-Delhi startup Sanfe falsely claim FDA approval and AYUSH ministry certificate for a pain relief roll-on - Alt News Sabeeh Kamil & Dr. Sumaiya Shaikh 7th April 2019 / 9:46 pm / Last updated: 7th April 2019 On 8th of March 2019, four IIT-Delhi entrepreneurs launched a product ‘Sanfe Period Pain Relief Roll-On’ that claimed to help women with menstrual pain. The start-up group who launched the product consists of two textile engineering students (Archit Agarwal & Harry Sehrawat ), a faculty of economics (Dr Seema Sharma), and a professor in the department of design (Prof Srinivasan Venkataraman) at IIT-Delhi. As reported by the Times of India on the 11th of March, the Tech student Archit Agarwal stated that 24-hour long research for almost seven months was required to finalise a composition that helped them acquire the FDA approval. Several news outlets such as Indian Express, NDTV, Times of India, The Economic Times, India Today, DNA India, reported as per the Official IIT Delhi website release. As per the archived version of the Sanfe article, reportage by major news outlets as listed above, and during a phone conversation with Sanfe co-founder Archit Agarwal, it was collectively claimed that: The Food and Drug Administration (FDA), USA, examines and approves a broad range of treatments for medical use including drugs and medical equipment. Although, FDA can approve drugs from international manufacturers, it is to ensure the safety of such products for Americans. FDA approval of treatments is public information. After checking with two online databases here, (Drugs@FDA and Orange Book), it was found that Sanfe was not approved by the FDA. A cross-check via email to the Division of Drug Information in the FDA’s Center for Drug Evaluation and Research ([email protected]). The FDA CDER confirmed that ‘Sanfe Period Pain Relief Roll-On’ is not a U.S. FDA approved drug product (see screenshot of email response below). When we established our 1 phone contact with Archit Agarwal, the co-founder of Sanfe, he confirmed that Sanfe doesn’t have the American FDA approval, but actually acquired the approval from FDA, Haryana. During our 2 phone contact, also with Archit Agarwal, he suggested they hadn’t acquired any FDA approval but instead had a safety certificate from the AYUSH ministry, Haryana by the manufacturers called Space Organics, Haryana. Upon confronting the reason behind their misleading adverts of FDA approval, he elaborated that the AYUSH certificate was ‘FDA like’ and hence was advertised that way. During our 2 phone contact with Archit Agarwal, he claimed that an AYUSH ministry certificate was acquired by the manufacturer Space Organics, Haryana, to determine the safety of the Sanfe roll-on. Thereafter, we contacted the owner of Space Organics Mr Bhupender Nagpal. He stated that his company manufactured Ayurvedic treatments in collaboration with a sister company called Space Life Sciences, led by his son. Mr. Nagpal clarified that neither the FDA approval nor the AYUSH ministry approval exists for the ‘Sanfe roll-on’. The previous version (archived here) of the Sanfe website, also claimed that it was tested in 79 people in conjunction with AIIMS, Delhi. The owner of Space Organics Mr Bhupender Nagpal who manufactured Sanfe roll-on clarified that no ‘clinical’ or ‘medical’ testing was conducted as a part of safety and toxicity tests. The reason given was that it wasn’t cost-effective for a business to test a product in the market that has a lower purchase value per product in comparison to the cost of the clinical testing. Research databases such as PUBMED also provided no studies referring to the specific Sanfe product. All the claims listed above, i.e. FDA approval, AYUSH ministry safety certificate as well as clinical testing in collaboration with AIIMS, Delhi were not substantiated by the Sanfe founders. Fact-checks from FDA and the Sanfe manufacturers called Space organics also confirmed that the treatment had no official approvals or any ongoing clinical testing. After our phone calls to Sanfe, the information about FDA approval and clinical testing in AIIMS promptly deleted at official IIT-Delhi website but can be compared with the archived version available here. However, major media outlets had reported that Sanfe was released after an FDA approval and none of those articles had been retracted. Archit Agarwal, the Sanfe founder also stated that the FDA claim was a ‘mistake’ and they have published a corrigendum in major newspapers but no such corrigendum have been published so far. The infographics on Sanfe have also been changed to remove the ‘mistakenly’ added FDA approval. These claims collectively made by members of leading government institutions such as IIT-Delhi is grossly misleading to include tags such as FDA, AYUSH and AIIMS to market the product as a private company. Finally, major leading news outlets reproduced the press release without any cross-verification and added significantly to spreading the misleading, deceitful marketing for the Sanfe brand. In a 2-minute video, a man recommends a “technique” to prevent infection from Omicron, the… A video of a set of iron nails that appear to melt after being placed… Several social media users have shared an image that shows two columns — ‘Cepa/variante’ (Spanish… A 90-second video of a man dissecting a banana has been shared on the internet…. The Taliban has formed an all-male government after taking over control in Afghanistan. On September…	news-altnews	2024-05-27T18:24:05.489452	7th April 2019 / 9:46 pm / Last updated: 7th April 2019	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/iit-delhi-startup-sanfe-falsely-claim-fda-approval-and-ayush-ministry-certificate-for-their-product/", "author": "Sabeeh Kamil & Dr. Sumaiya Shaikh" }
1,498	IIT Guwahati cited fake tweet in court document against Professor Brijesh Rai - Alt News Abhishek Kumar 6th June 2022 / 10:14 am Dr Brijesh Kumar Rai, a former professor at IIT Guwahati, shared a printout of a screenshot of a tweet with Alt News. He informed that IIT Guwahati’s Board of Governors (BoG) minutes report cited a tweet in his name that he has never made. Dr Rai also shared some other documents of the court with us, where the screenshot of the relevant tweet has been attached. On January 1, 2020, Dr Brijesh Kumar Rai, then Assistant Professor of IIT Guwahati, was given Major Penalty Compulsory Retirement on charges of misconduct. On January 2, 2020, he was given a notice to vacate the quarters of the institute. Dr Rai had been working in the Department of Electronics and Electrical Engineering at IIT Guwahati since 2011. He has filed four PILs and more than 450 RTI applications, alleging corruption at IIT Guwahati before his compulsory retirement. A screenshot of an alleged tweet by Dr Rai was attached to a document of the 106th Board of Governors (BOG) meeting held on April 22, 2021. It is available on the website of IIT Guwahati. According to the screenshot on page number 96 of this 125-page document, Dr Rai tagged several accounts including the Ministry of Education, and the Prime Minister’s Office, and called for a protest against the forced expulsion of students. In this purported tweet, he also talked about mobilizing shopowners across faculty gates. It also says that the demonstration will be against the BJP, PM Modi, Himanta Biswa Sharma, and IIT Guwahati and it will be led by Vikrant and Himanchal. Vikrant and Himanchal are students of IIT Guwahati. They went on a hunger strike from January 4 to 7, 2020, in protest against the compulsory retirement of Dr Rai. According to reports, in March 2021, Vikrant faced suspension from the academic session by IIT Guwahati. Following this, he was terminated from the institute. In the case of Himanchal, he was made to sign a six-point undertaking by IIT Guwahati to continue his research. The undertaking states that he will not participate in any future protest or agitation. In October 2021, IIT Guwahati filed a criminal defamation complaint against Dr Rai before the Court of Chief Judicial Magistrate, Kamrup (complaint number – 79/2021). Point number 8 of pages 10 and 11 of this complaint states that “with the intention of making the most out of his disinformation campaign the accused Dr Rai published a tweet on his social media account with the purpose of organising a rally on March 11, 2021”. It furthers that the tweet said that he and his associates intended to protest against public figures belonging to a particular political party on the campus of IIT Guwahati. The said tweet was made by the accused person from his Twitter handle @brijeshrai on March 11, 2021, it alleges. In the document, a copy of the screenshot purportedly taken from his social media account is attached and marked as Annexure-B. When we matched the Board of Governors (BOG) minutes report and the tweet in Annexure-B, we found that both the screenshots are the same. According to the writ appeal filed by IIT Guwahati in the Guwahati High Court on March 14, 2022, the sequence of events is given below. Respondent means Professor Dr Brijesh Kumar Rai, and Appellant Institute means IIT Guwahati. The index of this Writ Appeal (W.A. No. 117/2022) has a mention of the “copy of the screenshot of the Respondent’s social media accounts” in Annexure-7 (Page No. 464 to 474). When we saw page number 465 (Annexure-7) of the writ appeal, we found that a screenshot of the alleged tweet has been attached. The tweet mentioned in the documents appears to be fake at first glance as it contains many errors. There are a total of 341 characters in this tweet, while the character limit of Twitter is 280. The tweet has 61 characters extra. Furthermore, the screenshot of the alleged tweet has ‘Tweet’ written on top as well as a back button, which is visible only when we click on a tweet and open it. Tweets appearing on the feed do not have the back button. When a tweet is opened, details such as time, date, device, number of retweets and likes are visible. At the bottom, Reply, Retweet, and Like buttons are visible without their corresponding numbers. The third element to note is that when a tweet is opened, the text perfectly aligns with the profile image. This is not the case with the tweet attached in the document. In the writ appeal filed in the Guwahati High Court, we found another alleged tweet by Professor Brijesh Rai. This tweet is still present on Twitter. It can be viewed on this archive link. The original tweet (right) and fake tweet (left) are below and the discrepancies can be clearly observed. Another aspect to note is that in the original tweet (right), all the accounts mentioned have a space before the ‘@’ except in the case of ‘@EduMinOfIndia’. This is exactly the same in the fake tweet which means that this portion of the tweet has been copied from the original. Therefore, we found that the Board of Governors (BOG) minutes report of IIT Guwahati and other court documents mention a fake tweet in the name of Professor Dr Brijesh Kumar Rai. 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	6th June 2022 / 10:14 am	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/iit-guwahati-board-of-governers-report-fake-tweet-of-ex-professor-dr-brijesh-rai/", "author": "Abhishek Kumar" }
1,499	Image from 2009 linked with recent water crisis in Delhi - Alt News Kalim Ahmed 21st June 2021 / 5:32 pm / Last updated: 21st June 2021 Several areas in Delhi have been experiencing a shortage of water. The Delhi Jal Board released a press note saying that due to an increase in Ammonia pollution and high algae in the Yamuna river, the water production has been curtained from Water Treatment Plants at Wazirabad, Chandrawal, and Okhla. BJP leader and former Minister of State for Parliamentary Affairs Vijay Goel shared a photo of a large crowd gathered around a water tanker. “Do something Kejriwal,” he wrote, addressing the Chief Minister. दिल्ली में पानी का हॉल कुछ करो भैया केजरीवाल pic.twitter.com/wgXNpVyFeF — Vijay Goel (@VijayGoelBJP) June 19, 2021 Surat BJP MLA Harsh Sanghavi and BJP Gujarat member Tarun J. Barot also shared the image. It is viral on Twitter. ये हाल कोनसे राज्य का है? pic.twitter.com/3lFqb2Lw2y — Harsh Sanghavi (@sanghaviharsh) June 20, 2021 BJP Gujarat IT cell member Nikhil Patel shared the same photo with a Gujarati caption. દિલ્હીમાં પાણી માટે, આ છે લોકો નો હાલ,બોલો જોઇએ છે ગુજરાતમાં કેજરીવાલ?? pic.twitter.com/ynlwpPQe51 — Nikhil Patel (@iNikhilVpatel) June 20, 2021 Several Facebook users have posted the image. A simple reverse image search performed on Google led us to the website of Alamy, a British stock photography agency. According to Alamy, the photo was taken on June 30, 2009, in Sanjay Colony, New Delhi and has been credited to ‘Reuters/ Adnan Abidi’. We located the picture on Reuters. It was shot during the tenure of Congress leader Sheila Dikshit. AAP was found three years later in 2012. Both the Delhi Jal Board and Aam Aadmi Party’s official Twitter handle replied to Vijay Goel’s tweet dismissing the claim. He is yet to take down the erroneous post. ⚠️Fake News ⚠️ The image posted is from the year 2009. Entire DJB team has worked very hard even during the raging pandemic. Link to the original image clicked on June 30 2009 :- https://t.co/jkzoW52ZTH — Delhi Jal Board (@DelhiJalBoard) June 20, 2021 Alt News spoke with photojournalist Adnan Abidi who confirmed that the photograph was indeed taken by him in 2009. Hence, prominent BJP members linked an image from 2009 to the recent water crisis in Delhi. However, it is noteworthy that the struggle for water in Sanjay Colony has been prevalent for more than 30 years. Residents are still facing water shortage. Recently, LG Anil Baijal asked for a detailed report from the Delhi Jal Board on the water crisis in the national capital. Kalim is a journalist with a keen interest in tech, misinformation, culture, etc Rahul and Priyanka Gandhi recently performed aarti at the Narmada Ghat in Madhya Pradesh’s Omkareshwar… In the wake of the alleged murder of Shraddha Walkar by his partner Aftab Amin… The video of a group of people stopping an e-rickshaw with BJP flags attached to… Last week during the G20 summit in Bali, world leaders were informed of a missile… Recently, several prominent BJP leaders claimed that Prime Minister Narendra Modi had intervened to stop…	news-altnews	2024-05-27T18:24:05.489452	21st June 2021 / 5:32 pm / Last updated: 21st June 2021	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/image-from-2009-linked-with-recent-water-crisis-in-delhi/", "author": "Kalim Ahmed" }
1,500	Image from 2013 shared as Delhi police attacking Sikh man during farmers' protest - Alt News Archit 30th January 2021 / 5:09 pm / Last updated: 30th January 2021 Pakistan-based journalist Bashir Chaudhary tweeted an image of policemen attacking a Sikh man. “This picture will shake the foundations of #India. #JaagPunjabiJaag #IndianRepublicBlackDay #TractorMarchDelhi #KisanTractorRally #FarmersProtest,” he wrote linking the image to police violence during farmers’ tractor parade on January 26. Facebook user Ajay Tiwari posted the image on the group ‘Prof. Gourav Vallabh Fan’s Club’. It gained close to 5,000 shares. Alt News performed a reverse image search on TinEye and found the same on Getty Images. It was clicked by Shekhar Yadav in 2013. The caption reads, “Sikh community members scuffle with policemen as they shout anti-government slogans during a demonstration against the acquittal of Congress politician Sajjan Kumar, in New Delhi.” We also found other images by Yadav related to the same incident on Getty Images. (1, 2) As per a 2013 Livemint report, Sikh protestors attempted to march towards the Prime Minister’s residence protesting against Congress leader Sajjan Kumar’s acquittal in the 1984 riots case. Yadav currently works at The Indian Express. He quote-tweeted Chaudhary’s tweet and debunked the claim. This photo of mine is from the 1984 sikh riots anniv protests at the jantar mantar from 10 years ago. Kindly stop using this as propaganda. दुकान के नाम पे कुछ भी ? https://t.co/qg6aPAqUu7 — Shekhar Yadav (@Shekharyadav02) January 29, 2021 Therefore, a 2013 image was shared on social media with the false claim that it is from the clashes between farmers and Delhi police. It is noteworthy that police violence has been reported during the ongoing farmers’ movement. 🙏 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	30th January 2021 / 5:09 pm / Last updated: 30th January 2021	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/image-from-2013-shared-as-delhi-police-attacking-sikh-man-during-farmers-protest/", "author": "Archit" }
1,501	Image from 2014 falsely shared as Canadian Army giving winter warfare training to Chinese PLA - Alt News Archit 13th January 2021 / 2:52 pm Twitter user @captjasdeep, who claims to be an Indian armed forces veteran in his bio, tweeted an image of soldiers on snowy terrain and wrote, “I hope our country knows that Canadian Army is giving winter warfare training to Chinese PLA in Canada.” (archived link) The tweet drew over 1,600 retweets and more than 5,000 likes as of this writing. Facebook page Defence360 posted the viral image along with three other images in which Chinese soldiers can be seen. #Important Canadian Army giving winter warfare training to Chinese PLA to deal with Indian Army in Peaks & Mountains… Posted by DEFENCE360 on Tuesday, 12 January 2021 Image 1: Soldiers in snowy terrain Alt News performed a reverse image search on Yandex and found that the image was posted in December 2014. The Joint Delegation of Canada to NATO tweeted the image and wrote, “#Canadian soldiers training in Canada’s #Arctic, February 2014.” Twitter accounts of the Canadian Armed Forces and Canadian Army have been tagged. #Canadian soldiers training in Canada's #Arctic, February 2014. pic.twitter.com/vkVJUir3Ei — Canada at NATO 🇨🇦 (@CanadaNATO) December 6, 2014 Images 2, 3 and 4 The images by Facebook page Defence360 were tweeted by Candian Army in 2018. As per the tweet, “The #Army deployed a team of four observers from the Canadian Army Advanced Warfare Centre to China. The Chinese PLA accepted a reciprocal invitation from the CA to observe winter survival training in Petawawa. #StrongSecureEngaged #StrongProudReady”. #FactFriday – The #Army deployed a team of four observers from the Canadian Army Advanced Warfare Centre to China. The Chinese PLA accepted a reciprocal invitation from the CA to observe winter survival training in Petawawa. #StrongSecureEngaged #StrongProudReady pic.twitter.com/eARdeIXggz — Canadian Army (@CanadianArmy) February 9, 2018 Since 2018, neither Canadian Armed Forces nor Canadian Army has posted images of the drill with China. In 2020, Canada cancelled military drill with China. The Week reported, Canada’s Department of Global Affairs, the country’s foreign ministry, responded to the cancellation of the military exercises with China by stating, “Given the heightened scrutiny, any decision by Canada to reduce/cut ties should be carefully considered to avoid sending any unhelpful or unintended messages.” Thus, Twitter user @captjasdeep shared a 2014 image with a false claim that the Canadian Army is giving winter warfare training to Chinese PLA in Canada. Similarly, Facebook page Defence360 also posted old images. They were tweeted by the Candian Army in 2018. Recently Indian Navy veteran Harinder S Sikka posted an image of a Sikh man praying in a mosque that dates back to at least 2016 with the false claim that he forgot to remove his turban after returning to a mosque from the farmers’ protest 🙏 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	13th January 2021 / 2:52 pm	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/image-from-2014-falsely-shared-as-canadian-army-giving-winter-warfare-training-to-chinese-pla/", "author": "Archit" }
1,502	Image from 2014 viral as PM Modi meets Ambani's grandchild at hospital - Alt News Aqib Pathan 14th December 2020 / 12:49 pm / Last updated: 14th December 2020 Industrialist Mukesh Ambani and Reliance Foundation chairwoman Nita Ambani recently became grandparents. An image of Prime Minister Narendra Modi along with the couple is massively viral on social media. It has been shared with a caption in Hindi that says, “The man has reached the hospital to see his owner’s grandson but doesn’t have time to meet farmers who have been sitting in the cold and rain for 17 days.” (Archive link) बंदा मालिक के पोते को देखने हॉस्पिटल पहुंच गया लेकिन किसानों से मिलने का समय नहीं है। जो 17 दिन से ऐसी ठंड और बरसात में खुले आसमान के नीचे बैठे हैं। Posted by Santosh Kumar Thakur on Saturday, December 12, 2020 The same image is also shared on Twitter with the following message in Punjabi — “ਕੜਕਦੀ ਠੰਡ ਚ ਬੈਠੇ ਕਿਸਾਨਾਂ ਕੋਲ ਜਾਣ ਨੂੰ ਇਹਦੇ ਕੋਲ ਟਾਈਮ ਨਹੀ ,ਅੰਬਾਨੀ ਘਰ ਪੋਤਰਾ ਹੋਇਆਂ, ਵਧਾਈ ਦੇਣ ਹਸਪਤਾਲ ਵੀ ਪਹੁੰਚ ਗਿਆ ।”(Archive link) ਕੜਕਦੀ ਠੰਡ ਚ ਬੈਠੇ ਕਿਸਾਨਾਂ ਕੋਲ ਜਾਣ ਨੂੰ ਇਹਦੇ ਕੋਲ ਟਾਈਮ ਨਹੀ ,ਅੰਬਾਨੀ ਘਰ ਪੋਤਰਾ ਹੋਇਆਂ, ਵਧਾਈ ਦੇਣ ਹਸਪਤਾਲ ਵੀ ਪਹੁੰਚ ਗਿਆ । pic.twitter.com/c9GAGDqt50 — 👩‍🌾किसान 👩‍🌾 (@australiavsp) December 12, 2020 Facebook user ‘ਪਰਮਜੀਤ ਬੂਹ ਹਵੇਲੀਆ’ also posted the image, drawing over 400 shares. (Archive link) ਕੜਕਦੀ ਠੰਡ ਚ ਬੈਠੇ ਕਿਸਾਨਾਂ ਕੋਲ ਜਾਣ ਨੂੰ ਇਹਦੇ ਕੋਲ ਟਾਈਮ ਨਹੀ ,ਅੰਬਾਨੀ ਘਰ ਪੋਤਰਾ ਹੋਇਆਂ, ਵਧਾਈ ਦੇਣ ਹਸਪਤਾਲ ਵੀ ਪਹੁੰਚ ਗਿਆ । Posted by ਪਰਮਜੀਤ ਬੂਹ ਹਵੇਲੀਆ on Friday, December 11, 2020 Several other Facebook users and groups (1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7) shared this image with Punjabi and Hindi captions. The first clue which suggested that the image cannot be recent is PM Modi’s beard. The Prime Minister sports a much longer beard currently than the one in the picture. A reverse image search took us to an article published by India Today on October 25, 2014. It has been captioned, “Prime Minister Narendra Modi with Maharashtra Governor C Vidyasagar Rao, Reliance Foundation Chairperson Nita Ambani, and industrialist Mukesh Ambani after the inauguration of HN Reliance Foundation Hospital in Mumbai.” This image has been flipped and shared online. The image, therefore, is not recent. It is from 2014 when PM Modi went to visit Bombay HN Reliance Foundation Hospital. Aqib is monitoring and researching mis/disinformation at Alt News Rahul and Priyanka Gandhi recently performed aarti at the Narmada Ghat in Madhya Pradesh’s Omkareshwar… In the wake of the alleged murder of Shraddha Walkar by his partner Aftab Amin… The video of a group of people stopping an e-rickshaw with BJP flags attached to… Last week during the G20 summit in Bali, world leaders were informed of a missile… Recently, several prominent BJP leaders claimed that Prime Minister Narendra Modi had intervened to stop…	news-altnews	2024-05-27T18:24:05.489452	14th December 2020 / 12:49 pm / Last updated: 14th December 2020	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/image-from-2014-viral-as-pm-modi-meets-ambanis-grandchild-at-hospital/", "author": "Aqib Pathan" }
1,503	Image from 2016 shared as Muslim man hurling stones in recent spate of CAA protests - Alt News Jignesh Patel 25th December 2019 / 6:42 pm / Last updated: 15th January 2020 A photograph of several men pelting stones has been shared on social media in the view of nationwide protests against the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) and the National Register of Citizens (NRC). In the middle of the group is an elderly man wearing a skull cap hurling stone. The image is circulating with the claim, “रहमान चचा 500 रु लेकर पत्थर फेंकने गये थे…. यूपी पुलिस ने उन्हें 1,50,000 का नोटिस भेज दिया (Rehman uncle had gone to pelt stones for Rs 500. UP Police has sent him notice of Rs 1,50,000 -translated)” A post by Pavan Kharab, who on his Facebook profile claims to be associated with Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh, has amassed over 5,100 shares. Many people on Twitter and Facebook shared the image with a similar claim. On December 24, the same image was tweeted by Pakistani-Canadian author Tarek Fatah with the message, “Meanwhile #, in India a ‘peaceful’ in action.” It has garnered more than 4,500 retweets so far. Meanwhile #, in India a ‘peaceful’ in action. pic.twitter.com/cVNeOwTErX — Tarek Fatah (@TarekFatah) December 24, 2019 A reverse search of the image on Google revealed that it is almost three years old. We found the same image posted on January 8, 2016. The user claimed that the image is from the Malda riots. During Malda Riots..Very Peaceful Protestor Tries to Pacify Situation by Throwing a Stone @tathagata2 @bengaleebabu pic.twitter.com/mXtQrESTvM — সমরजीत দাस🇮🇳 (@jitsamar14) January 8, 2016 Alt News couldn’t ascertain whether the image represents the riots that took place in West Bengal. However, it is worthwhile to note that the violence reportedly broke out on January 3, 2016, in Kaliachak block of Malda while the earliest instance that Alt News could find was January 8, 2016. In conclusion, an old photograph of stone-pelting has been shared in the background of anti-CAA protest across the country. The claim falsely suggests that a Muslim protester who was pelting stones for money has been heavily penalised by the UP government. 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	25th December 2019 / 6:42 pm / Last updated: 15th January 2020	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/image-from-2016-shared-as-muslim-man-hurling-stones-in-recent-spate-of-caa-protests/", "author": "Jignesh Patel" }
1,504	Image from 2017 shared as woman raped and beheaded in Saharanpur, Uttar Pradesh - Alt News Pooja Chaudhuri 7th December 2019 / 7:33 pm Images of a corpse of a beheaded woman lying supine are widely circulating on social media with the claim that the body of a gang-rape victim was found in a forest in Saharanpur, Uttar Pradesh. One @sonamSi93 tweeted the images and wrote, “#सहारनपुर: जंगल में लकड़ी बीनने गई लड़की के साथ हुआ गैंगरेप, दरिंदों ने गैंग रेप करने के बाद पीड़िता की निर्मम हत्या कर दी। (Saharanpur: A woman who had gone to collect woods in the forest was gang-raped and brutally murdered.)“ The same images have also been shared on Facebook. The photographs are viral on both Twitter and Facebook. A reverse search of the image on Google reveals that it is from 2017. This was also pointed out by Twitter user Riaz Ahmed. According to a report in Oneindia published on October 30, 2017, a beheaded dead body of a young woman was found in the village of Bhavpur in Auraiya’s Kotwali area. The body, with the head and hands chopped-off, was discovered by villagers who alleged rape. An earlier report by Newstrack states that the incident took place on October 29, 2017. The case was also reported by Punjab Kersari. Alt News contacted Saharanpur SSP Dinesh Kumar who clarified that false claims are circulating on social media suggesting that the photographs depict a recent incident in the city. Saharanpur police also debunked the misinformation in a tweet. pic.twitter.com/Vo1FrfzAQ0 — Saharanpur Police (@saharanpurpol) December 7, 2019 We were unable to locate any follow-up reports on the case thus specific particulars of the case could not be established. However, as the photographs have been available on the internet since 2017, they cannot represent a recent incident. Images of a beheaded corpse of a woman, allegedly raped, found in a farm in UP’s Auraiya in 2017 have been shared as a recent case that took place in Saharanpur. Since the gang-rape and murder of a veterinary doctor in Hyderabad, social media has been brimming with misinformation around rape crimes. 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 December 2019 / 7:33 pm	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/image-from-2017-shared-as-woman-raped-and-beheaded-in-saharanpur-uttar-pradesh/", "author": "Pooja Chaudhuri" }
1,505	Image from 2017 viral as Aamir Khan recently met Turkish President Erdogan - Alt News Archit 19th February 2020 / 5:33 pm An image of Bollywood actor Amir Khan with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan is being circulated on social media with the claim that the duo met recently. On February 18, Anant Gandhi, who to claims to be a member of Ahmedabad BJP IT cell, posted (archive link) the viral image and said, “Why did film actor Aamir Khan go to Turkey to meet Turkish President? Turkey’s anti-India and pro-Pakistan war continues. (फिल्म अभिनेता आमिर खान तुर्की के राष्ट्रपति से तुर्की मे मिलने क्यों गये??तुर्की का भारत विरोघ और पाकिस्तान प्रेम जग जाहिर हे।)” It is noteworthy that Erdogan raked up the issue of Kashmir in the Pakistani parliament on February 14 and offered to support Pakistan’s stand. The Turkish President had made a similar statement in the United Nations last year. Another Twitter user posted (archive link) the image and said, “The jihadi President of Turkey who opposed India for the removal of section 370 in UNO… the one who supports Pakistan openly and just visited Pakistan two days ago…Aamir, the pig who feels scared in India, has gone to this enemy.” This tweet was retweeted over 150 times. [ Translated from #हमने_तो_आस्तीन_मे_ही_सूूवर_पाले_है जिस तुर्की के जेहादी राष्ट्रपति एबोर्देन ने यूएनओ मे 370 हटाये जाने का भारत का विरोध किया..जिसने खूलकर पोर्किस्तान का साथ दिया और अभी दो दिन पहले भी वही कर चुका है..उसी दुशमन से मिलने..हिन्दुस्तान मे डर लगने वाले सूअर आमिर खान मिलने गया है..!!]” Similarly, several other accounts posted the viral image on Twitter. Alt News did a reverse image search on Yandex and found the viral image on Getty Images. According to the stock photo agency, the picture was clicked in Ankara, Turkey on October 6, 2017, by Kayhan Ozer. A News Nation report from October 8, 2017 states Khan met President Erdogan to promote his film ‘Secret Superstar’ at the Presidential Complex in the Turkish capital Ankara. Therefore, the social media claim that Khan met Erdogan after the latter’s recent comment on section 370 is false. Khan met President Erdogan in 2017 for a movie promotion. 🙏 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 February 2020 / 5:33 pm	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/image-from-2017-viral-as-aamir-khan-recently-met-turkish-president-erdogan/", "author": "Archit" }
1,506	Image from 2018 shared as farmer deceased during ongoing protests - Alt News Archit 26th December 2020 / 12:06 pm Several social media users have posted an image of a Sikh man lying on the ground, claiming that he died during farmers’ protests in Delhi. The image has been shared with the following Hindi text, “दिल्ली किसान मोर्चे में एक और किसान भाई शहीद हो गए , उनके इस शहादत को मै कोटि कोटि नमन करता हूँ।” It was shared by Twitter handle All India Kisan Sanghrash and Ramandeep Singh Mann. The former’s tweet gained over 1500 retweets. (Archived links 1 and 2) दुखी मन से बता रहा हूं।।।। दिल्ली किसान मोर्चे में एक और किसान भाई शहीद हो गए , उनके इस शहादत को मै कोटि कोटि नमन करता हूँ। @vinodkapri @PJkanojia @_sayema @SonuSood pic.twitter.com/jrNov5f8Aq — All India Kisan Sanghrash (@IndianFarmerPro) December 24, 2020 Several Facebook users also posted this image with the above-mentioned Hindi text. The image dates back to at least 2018. It was traced to a Facebook post shared in the month of September that year, gaining over 30,000 shares. As per the post, the image shows an unidentified 70-year-old man at Bohri Chowk in Punjab’s Tarn Taran city. While we were unable to verify details of the photograph, it is unrelated to the recent farmers’ agitation. However, it is also noteworthy that several protesters have passed away in the ongoing movement. According to a report published by Al Jazeera on December 18, the police said that at least 25 people have died, “several of them due to bittering cold”, in three weeks of the protests. 🙏 Blessed to have worked as a fact-checking journalist from November 2019 to February 2023. Rahul and Priyanka Gandhi recently performed aarti at the Narmada Ghat in Madhya Pradesh’s Omkareshwar… In the wake of the alleged murder of Shraddha Walkar by his partner Aftab Amin… The video of a group of people stopping an e-rickshaw with BJP flags attached to… Last week during the G20 summit in Bali, world leaders were informed of a missile… Recently, several prominent BJP leaders claimed that Prime Minister Narendra Modi had intervened to stop…	news-altnews	2024-05-27T18:24:05.489452	26th December 2020 / 12:06 pm	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/image-from-2018-shared-as-farmer-deceased-during-ongoing-protests/", "author": "Archit" }
1,507	Image from 2018 shared as policemen injured during anti-CAA protest - Alt News Archit 20th December 2019 / 7:55 pm / Last updated: 21st December 2019 As protests against the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) and the National Register of Citizens (NRC) continue across the nation, violence was reported in some states. On December 20, Surajit Dasgupta, Founder, Editor-in-chief, Sirf News tweeted an image of police officers with head injuries and claimed, “#ISupportCAA_NRC This is unacceptable. Our custodians are not cannon fodder. This is what the so-called peaceful protesters did to cops in Ahmedabad, Gujarat, ruled by a so-called Fascist party.” It was retweeted over 500 times. Twitter account @RAC7R also posted the same image along with another photograph of a cop with injuries. Maar to diya tumne patthar police pe, Ab police pele to ye mat kehna Modi fascist hai pic.twitter.com/wZCnKph9M2 — Scar (@RAC7R) December 20, 2019 Pankaj Nain from Indian Police Service tweeted the image as well, along with a photograph of people pelting stones at a cop, which was also shared by Vivek Agnihotri. Similarly, several people have posted the image shared by Surajit Dasgupta on Twitter. Alt News received several requests to fact-check the images on WhatsApp (98252 55790) and on our official mobile app. Alt News ran the image on Google’s reverse image search and found that the image has been in circulation since April 2018. A Twitter user, @hemantp83, had posted the same image on April 4, 2018. The same post was retweeted in 2018 by Vijay Panwar, a Delhi-based Sub Inspector (as per Twitter bio). The existence of this image since last year is proof that it is not representative of the recent protets against CAA. Alt News did a reverse image search on Google and found that the other two images are authentic. The image posted by @RAC7R was used in a December 19 article by India Today. According to the report, the image is from Shah-E-Alam area in Ahmedabad where the violent protests against the Citizenship Amendment Act and the National Register of Citizens (NRC) were reported on December 19. India Today attributed Press Trust of India for the said image. One of the images shared by Pankaj Nain was used by Times of India in their article published on December 20. According to the report, the is also fromm Shah-E-Alam area. The report states, 12 policemen and at least 16 civilians were injured. Therefore, the image which shows multiple police officers with a head-injury is from last year, presumably from April 2018 caste protests in Haryana or Uttar Pradesh. This image was shared by Surajit Dasgupta (Founder, Editor-in-chief, Sirf News), Pankaj Nain (Indian Police Service), Twitter user @RAC7R and several others on Twitter. 🙏 Blessed to have worked as a fact-checking journalist from November 2019 to February 2023. Rahul and Priyanka Gandhi recently performed aarti at the Narmada Ghat in Madhya Pradesh’s Omkareshwar… In the wake of the alleged murder of Shraddha Walkar by his partner Aftab Amin… The video of a group of people stopping an e-rickshaw with BJP flags attached to… Last week during the G20 summit in Bali, world leaders were informed of a missile… Recently, several prominent BJP leaders claimed that Prime Minister Narendra Modi had intervened to stop…	news-altnews	2024-05-27T18:24:05.489452	20th December 2019 / 7:55 pm / Last updated: 21st December 2019	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/image-from-2018-shared-as-policemen-injured-during-anti-caa-protest/", "author": "Archit" }
1,508	Image from 2019 CAA protest viral as man posing as cop during farmers' protest - Alt News Jignesh Patel 1st February 2021 / 4:48 pm A photograph of a man in riot gear has been shared online with messages alluding that he posed as a policeman during protests against the farm laws. Farmer Protest: ਜੀਨਾਂ ਪੈਂਟਾਂ ਵਾਲੀ ਪੁਲਿਸ ਨਵੀ ਵਰਦੀ ਇਹ ਕਿਹੜੀ ਸਟੇਟ ਦੀ ਪੁਲਿਸ ਆ ? ਸੇਅਰ ਕਰ ਵਰਦੀ ਪ੍ਰਮੋਟ ਕਰੋ Posted by Khabar Jalandhar Di on Sunday, 31 January 2021 The Punjabi caption shared with the image reads, “Farmer Protest: ਜੀਨਾਂ ਪੈਂਟਾਂ ਵਾਲੀ ਪੁਲਿਸ ਨਵੀ ਵਰਦੀ ਇਹ ਕਿਹੜੀ ਸਟੇਟ ਦੀ ਪੁਲਿਸ ਆ ? ਸੇਅਰ ਕਰ ਵਰਦੀ ਪ੍ਰਮੋਟ ਕਰੋ.” (Farmer Protest: Jeans and pants are new uniforms of which state police? Share and promote.) The image was also shared from the verified page of Punjabi artist Chamkaur Khattra where it drew over 1,000 shares. ਜੀਨਾਂ ਪੈਂਟਾਂ ਵਾਲੀ ਪੁਲਿਸ ਨਵੀ ਵਰਦੀ ਇਹ ਕਿਹੜੀ ਸਟੇਟ ਦੀ ਪੁਲਿਸ ਆ ? ਜਾਣਕਾਰੀ ਦਿਓ ।। ਸੇਅਰ ਕਰ ਵਰਦੀ ਪ੍ਰਮੋਟ ਕਰੋ Posted by Chamkaur Khattra on Sunday, 31 January 2021 It has also been shared on Twitter. ਜੀਨਾਂ ਪੈਂਟਾਂ ਵਾਲੀ ਪੁਲਿਸ ਨਵੀ ਵਰਦੀ ਇਹ ਕਿਹੜੀ ਸਟੇਟ ਦੀ ਪੁਲਿਸ ਆ ? ਜਾਣਕਾਰੀ ਦਿਓ ।। pic.twitter.com/0D9j9FXnNp — Joban Randhawa (@iJobanRandhawa) January 31, 2021 In fact, the image is widespread on both Twitter and Facebook. A screenshot of a Facebook profile of one ‘Bharat Sharma’ juxtaposed with the photo of the man sporting a red t-shirt and riot gear was also shared two years ago during protests against the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA).. “सरकार बहादुर जवाब दे कि अब इसकी ड्यूटी किसने लगा दी? (Courageous government should answer that now, who has appointed him?),” quipped national spokesperson for All India Congress Committee (AICC) Udit Raj on December 17, 2019. The screenshot of the Facebook profile of Sharma identified him as an RSS volunteer and a state executive committee member of the Akhil Bharatiya Vidhyarthi Parishad (ABVP), the youth wing of the RSS. It was being claimed that the man in riot gear was Sharma who joined the Delhi police to quell anti-CAA protests. On December 17, Aam Aadmi Party supporter Kapil tweeted the image and said, “@DelhiPolice can you explain what is happening here?? Have you outsourced law and order to RSS in Delhi??”. The tweet garnered more than 5,300 retweets before it was deleted. Swarajya India president Yogendra Yadav quote-tweeted Kapil’s tweet and reiterated the demand for an answer to the latter’s question. Nationalist Congress Party MLA Jitendra Ahwad posted the same image and claimed, “Look at this photo and u will come to know who r behind the violence”. Look at this photo and u will come to know who r behind the violence #BlackDay #StudentsProtest pic.twitter.com/rh5zqhXKZ1 — Dr.Jitendra Awhad (@Awhadspeaks) December 16, 2019 NOT BHARAT SHARMA Alt News had published a fact-check on the photograph in 2019. We had found that several media outlets reported Delhi police’s clarification that the man in the red t-shirt is police personnel. In a statement given to The Print, DCP (Central) M S Randhawa clarified, “He is not Bharat Sharma. This is another lie that is being spread on social media to tarnish the image of Delhi police. He is, in fact, a constable with the AATS in South district who was also deployed on the law and order duty in the area”. Moreover, The Quint reported that the man’s name is Arvind Kumar and he is with the Anti Auto Theft Squad (ATTS) South Delhi police. Alt News spoke to DCP South-East Delhi Chinmoy Biswal and confirmed media reports which identified the man as Arvind Kumar. We accessed a recent photograph of constable Arvind Kumar. A juxtaposition of the photograph and the zoomed-in viral image shows that he is the same person. (Notice the shape of the nose and the style of the beard.) BHARAT SHARMA IS THE MAN KICKING A PERSON IN ANOTHER VIDEO Delhi NSUI president Akshay Lakra had tweeted a video of a man kicking a person and claimed the former is Bharat Sharma, a volunteer with RSS and ABVP’s state executive committee member. Lakra also posted Sharma’s photograph and a screenshot of his Facebook profile. This was in December 2019. Can @ABVPVoice explain this? pic.twitter.com/WzOFbs4G6L — Akshay Lakra (@akshaylakra17) December 16, 2019 After Sharma’s profile screenshot began circulating on social media along with constable Arvind Kumar’s photo, Sharma deactivated his profile and later reinstated it with considerable changes to his public bio. Responding to Lakra’s tweet about him kicking a person, Sharma said, “Yes. It’s me. I did it because innocent students were being attacked. Because girls were being abused. Because students were not being allowed to give exam. You have conveniently ignored what happened before and after these 12 seconds.” Yes. It’s me. I did it because innocent students were being attacked. Because girls were being abused. Because students were not being allowed to give Exam. You have conveniently ignored what happened before and after these 12 seconds. — Bharat Sharma (@bhaaratsharmaa) December 17, 2019 Speaking with India Today, he clarified that he is not the man in riot gear. “Bharat Sharma categorically denied this and said that neither he is the man in the picture nor he has any idea about it. He also claimed that the face of the man, partially covered in helmet does not resemble his face,” stated the article published on December 18, 2019. I have been subjected to severe mental harassment since yesterday. I will file a defamation suit against all those who have peddled this lie that I was involved in rioting disguising as a police personnel, thus defaming my organisation and me.@ABVPVoice — Bharat Sharma (@bhaaratsharmaa) December 17, 2019 Sharma also reiterated his confession while speaking to the media outlet and said that the man kicking another person is him and also admitted that he is an active ABVP worker. In his defence, he added that the video viral on social media is clipped and doesn’t show what preceded the said incident. However, when asked to produce a longer version, Sharma couldn’t provide one before the aforementioned report was filed. We have compared constable Arvind Kumar’s photograph with Bharat Sharma’s picture posted on Twitter. The comparison brings out the facial differences between the two men. In conclusion, a photograph of a constable with the Delhi police is being circulated with the false claim that a common citizen impersonated a cop during violence in farmers’ protest. The same was earlier shared with the false claim that the constable is actually ABVP, RSS worker Bharat Sharma who joined the police at Jamia Nagar and charged at students during 2019 anti-CAA protests. Jignesh is a writer and researcher at Alt News. He has a knack for visual investigation with a major interest in fact-checking videos and images. He has completed his Masters in Journalism from Gujarat University. Rahul and Priyanka Gandhi recently performed aarti at the Narmada Ghat in Madhya Pradesh’s Omkareshwar… In the wake of the alleged murder of Shraddha Walkar by his partner Aftab Amin… The video of a group of people stopping an e-rickshaw with BJP flags attached to… Last week during the G20 summit in Bali, world leaders were informed of a missile… Recently, several prominent BJP leaders claimed that Prime Minister Narendra Modi had intervened to stop…	news-altnews	2024-05-27T18:24:05.489452	1st February 2021 / 4:48 pm	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/image-from-2019-caa-protest-viral-as-man-posing-as-cop-during-farmers-protest/", "author": "Jignesh Patel" }
1,509	Image from a photo-shoot viral on social media as police action on Sabarimala devotee - Alt News Pooja Chaudhuri 3rd November 2018 / 4:29 pm / Last updated: 4th November 2018 Delhi MLA Kapil Mishra tweeted an image on November 2 in which a man can be seen holding an idol with the foot of a purported cop on his chest. He tweeted this image with the text, “In the eyes of this devotee There is No Fear of brutality There is No fear of oppression This is the Power of Faith #Sabarimala #Ayyappa,” suggesting that the subject of the image was perhaps a victim of brutality. At the time of writing this article, Mishra’s tweet was liked over 2,700 times and retweeted over 1,400 times. The same image was earlier circulated by Squint Woke Neon (@squintneon) and Hindu Mahasabha activist Kamlesh Tiwari who tweeted – “See the violent treatment of Kerala police on Lord Ayyappa devotees.” Both these posts drew a combined retweet count of nearly 1,300. भगवान अयप्पा के भक्त के साथ केरल पुलिस का ज़ुल्मों-सितम देखिए !! Posted by कमलेश तिवारी on Thursday, 1 November 2018 Several other right-wing handles on both Twitter and Facebook circulated the image with the identical narrative of brutality on a Sabarimala devotee (1, 2, 3). Journalist Bobins Abraham pointed out on Twitter that a photo-shoot of a man named Rajesh Kurup was being circulated on social media as the brutality of Kerala police on Ayyappa devotees. This is how #FakeNews is created. A staged photo shoot of a man called Rajesh Kurup (രാജേഷ് കുറുപ്പ് ശ്രീകല്യാണി) by a photographer called Midhun Krishna Photography is now being circulated as police brutality on Ayyappa Devotees in Kerala. #SabarimalaProtests pic.twitter.com/Ebnv8onTs7 — Bobins Abraham (@BobinsAbraham) November 3, 2018 Abraham had posted another picture of Kurup where the photographer’s stamp – Midhun Krishna photography – is visible. Alt News reached out to Rajesh Kurup who confirmed to us that the pictures were part of a photo-shoot and that the one shared by Kapil Mishra was shot about four days ago. We also contacted the photographer of the second image, Midhun Krishna. He said that the stamp on the photograph was indeed his and the picture was shot on October 6. Sabarimala was opened to women for the first time on October 17, which hints that the image could not be a depiction of protests which started after the temple permitted women’s entry. Since protests against the entry of women in Sabarimala began, social media has been brimming with misinformation. Delhi MLA Kapil Mishra, prior to the aforementioned case, also spread the fake news about a devotee dying in police action. In the past, numerous other false images and claims were viral on social media. 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… Trigger Warning: The following story contains graphic imagery. Several users have shared images of the… The brutal murder of Shraddha Walker has been widely covered across news media over the… A 1:34-minute-long CCTV camera clip is being widely circulated on social media in which viewers… The teaser of a movie titled ‘The Kerala Story’ is being widely shared on social…	news-altnews	2024-05-27T18:24:05.489452	3rd November 2018 / 4:29 pm / Last updated: 4th November 2018	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/image-from-a-photo-shoot-viral-on-social-media-as-police-action-on-sabarimala-devotee/", "author": "Pooja Chaudhuri" }
1,510	Image from Bangladesh shared as Murshidabad triple murder accused - Alt News Pooja Chaudhuri 14th October 2019 / 3:36 pm / Last updated: 14th October 2019 An image of two men is circulating on social media. The face of the man in a skull cap has been highlighted and the accompanying message alleges that he was the one behind the Murshidabad triple murder. The below tweet was posted by one Sanjay Gupta ‘BJP’ who is followed by the Office of Railway Minister Piyush Goyal. यही है वो जिसने मुर्शिदाबाद के आर एस एस दल के कार्यकर्ता को उसके परिवार के साथ मौत के घाट उतार दिया 👇🏻👇🏻👇🏻 इसके बारे में कुछ कहना चाहोगे या मौन रहना है? pic.twitter.com/8SsnMnajs2 — Sanjay gupta 🇮🇳 BJP 💯FB (@SanjayGupta____) October 13, 2019 “यही है वो जिसने मुर्शिदाबाद के आर एस एस दल के कार्यकर्ता को उसके परिवार के साथ मौत के घाट उतार दिया इसके बारे में कुछ कहना चाहोगे या मौन रहना है? (This is the one who murdered the RSS worker and his family in Murshidabad. Is there anything left to say after this?)” – reads his complete tweet. The same photograph has been similarly shared on Facebook. From the account of one Dilip Singh, it received over 4,200 shares and 1,000 likes. The message reads, “ये वही हत्यारा है जो एक हंसता मुस्कुराता हिन्दू परिवार (बंधु प्रकाश) की हत्या कर दी । इनके और साथी होंगे वो कहां है ? क्या ये अल्लाह के नेक बंदे हैं ? इस हत्याकांड के मकसद क्या है, इसके पीछे और कौन लोग है? देश के सामने आना जरूरी है। (This is the murderer who killed a happy Hindu family (Bandhu Prakash). Where are his accomplices? Are they honest men of Allah? What was the motive behind this murder and who are these people? This needs to come out in front of the country.)” ये वही हत्यारा है जो एक हंसता मुस्कुराता हिन्दू परिवार (बंधु प्रकाश) की हत्या कर दी । इनके और साथी होंगे वो कहां है ? … Posted by Dilip Singh on Saturday, 12 October 2019 On October 8, Bandhu Prakash Pal, his pregnant wife Beauty and 8-year-old son were found dead in their house at Jiaganj in Murshidabad district. While BJP claimed that Pal was an RSS worker, the victim’s family has denied affiliation with any political group. Furthermore, the initial police investigation discovered personal enmity as the motive behind the murder. The photograph circulated online has nothing to do with the Murshibadbad triple murder case. The image was uploaded in June by a Bangladeshi resident Mehedi Hasan Rasel. The man in a skull cap is his father. অনুপ্রেরণা…পিতা 🙂 Posted by Mehedi Hasan Rasel on Monday, 10 June 2019 Rasel is one of the 10 accused in the murder of second year engineering student, Abrar Fahad, in Bangladesh University of Engineering Technology (Buet). “Abrar Fahad, 22, who was allegedly targeted after he criticised the government in a Facebook post, was found dead at his university halls of residence in Dhaka on Monday,” reports The Guardian. It was claimed that the attackers were linked to the Bangladesh Chhatra League (BCL), an influential student wing of prime minister Sheikh Hasina’s Awami League. The murder took place in the early hours of October 7. The Daily Star identified Rasel as the general secretary of Buet BCL. According to News18, “As part of the probe, a team of police officers on Saturday morning raided a house in Hooghly’s Rampurhat area and picked up a person. Another, identified as Shoubhik Bhowmik, was detained from Suri in Birbhum.” A report by The Indian Express says, “Pal’s relatives have accused Souvik Banik, a resident of Rampurhat town in Birbhum district, of being involved in the crime. According to police sources, Banik has a history of duping people after taking money from them in the name of business investments and chain marketing systems.” The police have detained a total of four persons for interrogation, however, no arrests have been made. They received some information about financial dealings but are yet to confirm the same, reported ANI. An image of a murder accused in Bangladesh, posing with his father, was falsely linked to the Murshidabad triple murder case. 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	14th October 2019 / 3:36 pm / Last updated: 14th October 2019	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/image-from-bangladesh-shared-as-murshidabad-triple-murder-accused/", "author": "Pooja Chaudhuri" }
1,511	Image from Bangladesh shared as protest in Mumbai against Citizenship Amendment Act - Alt News Arjun Sidharth 14th December 2019 / 4:31 pm / Last updated: 17th July 2021 With protests taking place in different parts of the country against the controversial Citizenship Amendment Act, a photograph showing a massive gathering of people beneath a flyover has been posted on social media with the claim that it depicts a protest against the Act. “भारत में तमाम बड़े शहरों में सिटीजनशिप एक्ट और एनआरसी के खिलाफ आवाज़, लोग सड़कों पर, अब पूरे देश में प्रोटेस्ट्स की लहर” (Protests in several cities in India over the Citizenship act and NRC, people out on the streets, wave of protests throughout the nation- translation). This is the message with which the photograph has been posted. The above post is on a Facebook page Voice of Muslims. It has been shared over 11,000 times so far. The image has also been shared with the claim that this gathering was at Mohammed Ali road in Mumbai. “Protest Against CAB at Mohammed Ali road Mumbai”, reads the message. Protest Against #CAB at Mohammed Ali Road, #Mumbai pic.twitter.com/5irPIbuucp — Chimmani Manohar (@MChimmani) December 14, 2019 Users of the official Alt News app have requested verification of this image and the accompanying claim. Alt News found that the photograph is being shared with a false narrative. It is not from India and is not related to the Citizenship Amendment Act. Upon reverse-searching the photograph on Yandex, we found several results, according to which the image is from Chittagong, Bangladesh. Alt News found a video uploaded on YouTube on November 10, 2019, titled, ‘আলহামদুলিল্লাহ লাখো আশেকে রাসুলগনের ঢল,jasne julus..chittagong’. The place seen in the video is the same as that shown in the image shared on social media. We also found several videos of the event, posted on YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GV5dz7DO68c Jashn-e-Julus refers to a festive gathering of Muslim devotees. According to the description, this video of November 10 is from the city of Chittagong in Bangladesh. It may be noted that November 10, 2019 was celebrated as Eid Milad Un Nabi. We found visual clues from the above video which correspond with the image. These visual clues have been compared in the below-juxtaposed images. Thus, the image shared widely as a massive gathering in protest against the Citizenship Amendment Act, is actually from Chittagong, Bangladesh and pertains to a religious gathering in November 2019. The story was earlier fact-checked by Boom. 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 2019 / 4:31 pm / Last updated: 17th July 2021	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/image-from-bangladesh-shared-as-protest-in-mumbai-against-citizenship-amendment-act/", "author": "Arjun Sidharth" }
1,512	Image from Bangladesh shared as roads blocked to offer Namaz in India - Alt News Pooja Chaudhuri 5th June 2019 / 9:24 pm “Ban offering of Namaz on roads on #SecularIndia. @PMOIndia @HMOIndia This is NOT allowed in Islamic countries. Why it is allowed here ????? #PayalRohatgi,” read a June 3 tweet by Payal Rohatgi where she shared a photograph of hundreds of people offering Namaz on the road, thus blocking traffic. The same image has been circulating on social media since the past one week. “इस्लामिक देशों में जो गलत है वह भारत में सही कैसे..?? सड़कों पर नमाज पढ़ना प्रतिबंधित है इस्लामिक देशों में भारत में सड़कों पर नमाज पढ़ना क्यों प्रतिबंधित नहीं हो सकता क्यों गुलामी करने पर मजबूर हो….???? (How can something that is wrong in Islamic countries be right in India? If offering Namaz on the streets is banned in Islamic nations, why can’t it be banned in India? Why are we acting like slaves?)” – read the caption used to share the photograph on a Facebook page भाई राहुल रामराज. The identical image has also been floating on social media on Eid, June 5, with the caption – “ध्यान से देखो इस फोटो मे इसमें बसें, कार, टैक्सी, जीप, एम्बुलेंस और इनमे स्कूल जाते बच्चे, ऑफिस जाते लोग, यात्री, राही होंगे, एम्बुलेंस मे पेशेंट होंगे पर इन सभी से ज्यादा जरुरी अल्लाह की इबादत है कोई अस्थमा, दमा, हार्ट पेशंट मर भी जाए तो क्या…इबादत पहले है (See this photograph carefully. This has buses, cars, jeep, ambulance and school-going kids, office-goers, commuters and pedestrians. The ambulance must be carrying patients but it’s more important to worship Allah. Even if asthma or a heart patient dies, worship comes first.)” The screenshot below is from the facebook group WE SUPPORT NARENDRA MODI. If one notices carefully, the viral photograph carries a stamp that says – “robertharding.com.” A simple reverse-search on Google throws up the link of the website where the image was uploaded. The website describes the photograph as – “Muslims are praying at in the road due to large number Muslims gathered at Bishaw ijtema at Tongi, Bangladesh.” It has also given the name of the photographer, M. Yousuf Tusha. Several other similar photographs shot at the same location in Bangladesh are also available on Getty Images. Social media claims that people offering namaz blocked roads in India are, thus, false as the image is from Bangladesh. 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	5th June 2019 / 9:24 pm	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/image-from-bangladesh-shared-as-roads-blocked-to-offer-namaz-in-india/", "author": "Pooja Chaudhuri" }
1,513	Image from Gujarat shared as saint attacked in UP when Mulayam Singh was in power - Alt News Mohammed Zubair 9th December 2021 / 4:11 pm Twitter user @Balram_Ayodhya tweeted an image of a police officer pulling a man by his hair and wrote, “It wasn’t a Jihadi who was pulling our saints by their hair… it was Akhilesh Yadav’s father… remember right?”. Thus implying that the image is from Uttar Pradesh taken during Mulayam Singh Yadav’s tenure. This tweet was retweeted over 2,000 times. हमारे संतो का बाल पकड़ कर खिंचवाने वाला कोई जेहादी नही था,,,वो अखिलेश यादव का बाप था…याद है ना ?? pic.twitter.com/B1BMIcqsoA — महंत बलरामदास श्री हनुमानगढ़ी अयोध्या (@Balram_Ayodhya) December 5, 2021 Several other Twitter and Facebook users posted this image including Facebook account हिंदू की आवाज. Alt News performed a reverse image search on TinEye and found that the oldest instances of the viral image date back a decade. The image was uploaded on Asharambapu Ashram’s official website, ashram.org. Self-styled godman Asaram Bapu was sentenced to a life-long jail term by a special SC/ST court for raping a minor in 2013. The article dates back to December 2009 and is no longer active. However, it can be accessed on Internet Archive. As per the article, the images show police brutality against members of the ashram on November 27, 2009. About 150 ashram followers were detained after clashing with the police in Gandhinagar. The article includes multiple images in addition to the viral image. The Times of India reported that police raided Asaram’s ashram in Ahmedabad’s Motera area on the same day. Aaj Tak also reported this incident. It said that the police detained 200 members of the ashram during a raid after stone-pelting took place between the cops and the members of the ashram a day earlier. The images were also posted on Diwala.com (the domain is no longer accessible). Even this article reported that the incident happened in Gujarat. Additionally, Alt News found a video on Asaram’s YouTube channel. The visuals at the 1:52 mark match with one of the images uploaded on Diwala.com. To sum it up, an image of a clash between a police officer and a supporter of Asaram in Gujarat was shared as police violence under Mulayam Singh Yadav’s regime in Uttar Pradesh. Co-founder, Alt News Co-Founder Alt News, I can be reached via Twitter at https://twitter.com/zoo_bear Rahul and Priyanka Gandhi recently performed aarti at the Narmada Ghat in Madhya Pradesh’s Omkareshwar… In the wake of the alleged murder of Shraddha Walkar by his partner Aftab Amin… The video of a group of people stopping an e-rickshaw with BJP flags attached to… Last week during the G20 summit in Bali, world leaders were informed of a missile… Recently, several prominent BJP leaders claimed that Prime Minister Narendra Modi had intervened to stop…	news-altnews	2024-05-27T18:24:05.489452	9th December 2021 / 4:11 pm	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/image-from-gujarat-shared-as-saint-attacked-in-up-when-mulayam-singh-was-in-power/", "author": "Mohammed Zubair" }
1,514	Photo of ashram in Kerala viral as 'proof' of Indian culture’s influence in New Zealand - Alt News Kinjal 24th August 2020 / 8:24 pm Recently, a photo of people sitting in a communal setting and eating food has been making the rounds on social media, with netizens claiming this is from New Zealand. The people in the photo can be seen eating out of plates made from banana leaves. Users online are claiming this photo shows that Indian culture is becoming quite popular in New Zealand. Facebook user Ravi Mukhiya had shared it on two Facebook groups ‘Bharat Land of Gods’ and ‘Rig Veda Quotes…’ on August 19. Mukhiya wrote in his post on both groups that the image was from the island country. As of this writing, his posts on have been liked 2,700 and 2,400 times respectively. A Twitter user had also tweeted this photo stating that it was taken in New Zealand. When we did a reverse image search using Yandex, we were not able to find the exact same photo, but another that resembled it. The image we found had been shared by a Russian travel website which had shared it as the Sivananda Yoga Vedanta Dhanwantari Ashram in Kerala. There are quite a few similarities between the viral photo in question and Sivananda Ashram images found in many websites. In both images, the blue colour of the floor, the yellow pillars, the size of the windows, the speakers hanging on the wall, the ceiling texture, along with the fans look the same. In an article written about this ashram, some more pictures of its hall can be seen. A closer look at these makes it clear that it is the same hall as seen in the photo we were trying to verify. This means that the image being circulated does in fact show this very ashram. Apart from this, a few Facebook users have also posted pictures of this Kerala ashram, which look very similar to the viral photo. Therefore, a photo that was actually taken in Kerala’s Sivananda Ashram is falsely being circulated as people from New Zealand taking inspiration from Indian culture. Kinjal Parmar holds a Bachelor of Science in Microbiology. However, her keen interest in journalism, drove her to pursue journalism from the Indian Institute of Mass Communication. At Alt News since 2019, she focuses on authentication of information which includes visual verification, media misreports, examining mis/disinformation across social media. She is the lead video producer at Alt News and manages social media accounts for the organization. Rahul and Priyanka Gandhi recently performed aarti at the Narmada Ghat in Madhya Pradesh’s Omkareshwar… In the wake of the alleged murder of Shraddha Walkar by his partner Aftab Amin… The video of a group of people stopping an e-rickshaw with BJP flags attached to… Last week during the G20 summit in Bali, world leaders were informed of a missile… Recently, several prominent BJP leaders claimed that Prime Minister Narendra Modi had intervened to stop…	news-altnews	2024-05-27T18:24:05.489452	24th August 2020 / 8:24 pm	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/image-from-kerala-ashram-shared-as-indian-culture-in-new-zealand/", "author": "Kinjal" }
1,515	Image from Pakistan viral as Hindu woman beaten by Muslim husband in India - Alt News Jignesh Patel 23rd July 2019 / 6:14 pm A set of pictures – one of an alleged newspaper clipping about two Hindu girls who kept Roza [fast] in the month of Ramzan and another of a woman with supposed injury marks on her face – is viral on social media. Several users on Facebook have posted the images with the claim that one of the two Hindu girls who had observed Roza was beaten by her Muslim husband and that their union is a case of ‘Love Jihad’. The message circulated with the images is posted below. आपको याद होगा रमजान महीने में ये खबर खूब चली थी, शिवानी और रिया नामक हिन्दू बेटियों ने हिन्दू-मुस्लिम एकता की मिसाल दी… Posted by We Support Hindutva on Monday, 22 July 2019 “#आपको याद होगा रमजान महीने में ये खबर खूब चली थी, शिवानी और रिया नामक हिन्दू बेटियों ने हिन्दू-मुस्लिम एकता की मिसाल दी । अरे क्यों दी, ये भी तो बताते ?? शिवानी ने पहले तो रोजा रखा, आज इस शिवानी के पति ने ठुकाई कर दी। सारी गंगा जमुनी तहजीब निकल गयी। लव जिहाद हुआ था शिवानी का, अब भुगत रही है, उम्मीद है जल्दी ही रिया का भी ऐसा कोई फोटो आये तो अचरज मत करना। मूर्खता का परिणाम तो मिलना ही चाहिए। Translation – You would remember the news about two Hindu daughters -Shivani and Riya- setting an example of Hindu-Muslim unity. This news had gone viral during the month of Ramzan. Why did they do it? That also should be told? Shivani had observed the Roza at first but then her husband had thrashed her. The whole Ganga-Jamuni tehzeeb [India’s syncretic Hindu-Muslim culture] has vanished. That was Love-Jihad with Shivani, now she is suffering. Hopefully, soon if you see any such photo of Riya then don’t be surprised. There should be consequences for foolishness. Twitter user Shailendra Pratap also posted the images with a similar claim. शिवानी और रिया नामक हिन्दू बेटियों ने हिन्दू-मुस्लिम एकता की मिसाल दी- न्यूज़ अरे क्यों दी, ये भी तो बताते ?? शिवानी ने पहले तो रोजा रखा, आज इस शिवानी के मजहबी पति ने ठुकाई कर दी,#लव_जिहाद हुआ था मजहबी से तो भुगतो 🤣🤣👇👇 उम्मीद है जल्दी ही रिया का भी ऐसा कोई फोटो आएगा pic.twitter.com/kafouml6J2 — शैलेंद्र Shailen🇮🇳 (@shailen_pratap) July 21, 2019 The pictures are also getting circulated on Facebook and Twitter with a similar narrative. A Google reverse image search of the photograph of the scarred woman led us to an article published by Pakistani news organization Geo TV on March 29, 2019. The article identified the woman as Hajra who had alleged that she was tortured by her husband and had suffered various injuries. “Meanwhile, the medical report of Hajra, whose husband was arrested a day earlier from Lahore’s Askari 10 area for torturing her for not bringing money from her parents, stated that she has a broken nose and suffered injuries to her jaw”, stated the report. The newspaper clipping circulated along with Hajra’s photo pertains to a separate case where two Hindu women – Shivani and Riya – from Madhya Pradesh kept a one-day fast on Ramzan as a gesture promoting Hindu-Muslim unity. The newspaper clipping is of Dainik Bhaskar’s June 4 report. A video of the two girls speaking about their fast is also available on YouTube. In conclusion, a photo of an injured woman from Pakistan was shared along with a news report from India about two girls observing Roza. This was done in an attempt to give the impression that the two incidents are related. 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	23rd July 2019 / 6:14 pm	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/image-from-pakistan-viral-as-hindu-woman-beaten-by-muslim-husband-in-india/", "author": "Jignesh Patel" }
1,516	Photo of mace, bow and arrow sculpture in Vadodara viral as Ayodhya - Alt News Anuradha Prasad 16th December 2020 / 4:23 pm Recently, a photo of a gigantic mace along with a bow and arrow has gone viral on Facebook and Twitter. This installation seems to have been constructed in the middle of a circular intersection. Social media users have been sharing the image and claiming that the sculpture has been set up at a chowk in Ayodhya. (Archive link) अयोध्या में निर्मित दिव्य चौराह -अब बोल भी दीजिए आप लोग जय श्री राम🚩 pic.twitter.com/YzZzwYrlQF — Ravikant Mishra (@P_kalyan_) December 10, 2020 Dozens of Facebook users have shared the image and accompanying claim. Alt News performed a reverse image search of this picture and found a tweet dated June 14, 2020. The viral image was posted by user Vivekananda Gupta with the same claim. When another user told Gupta in a reply that this was not taken in Ayodhya, he wrote a clarification staying, “I regret the error, this is Gada Chowk at Vadodara.” Based on this, we did a Google search using the keywords ‘Gada Chowk Vadodara’ and a map of Gada Circle came up in the search results. This location can also be viewed using the Street View feature on Google Maps. It is located on Harni Road in Vadodara, Gujarat. Turning the corner using Street View we come across a white plaque, which contains some information about this square in Gujarati. The plaque states that this is the Shri Bhidbhanjan Circle which was inaugurated on April 15, 2016. It also contains some other details about the site. Two other pictures of this structure have also been posted on Google. Therefore, the claim that the large structure of a mace and bow and arrow was installed in Ayodhya is false. This installation is located on Harni Road in Vadodara, Gujarat, and is known as Gada Circle. Factly had debunked the image when it was viral in July. 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	16th December 2020 / 4:23 pm	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/image-from-vadodara-gujarat-shared-as-divya-chauraha-made-in-ayodhya/", "author": "Anuradha Prasad" }
1,517	Image from Yemen viral as dead body of 'Pappu Shukla' from Gujarat surrounded by dogs - Alt News Archit 28th October 2020 / 7:18 pm An image of a man surrounded by dogs is being shared on Twitter and Facebook along with the text, “This is a dead body of Mr. Pappu Shukla ji, a homeless man from Gujarat State (India) who took care of abandoned dogs for many years. He died yesterday and his beloved dogs surrounded and protected his body, refusing to leave his side.. May Pappu Shukla ji Rest In Peace.” Twitter user @iceman93fk posted the image on October 26. Since then it has been retweeted over 500 times. (archived link) This is a dead body of Mr. Pappu Shukla ji, a homeless man from Gujarat State (India) who took care of abandoned dogs for many years. He died yesterday and his beloved dogs surrounded and protected his body, refusing to leave his side.. May Pappu Shukla ji Rest In Peace🙏 pic.twitter.com/uUOghaURy9 — ICEMAN (@iceman93fk) October 26, 2020 Similarly, it was also posted by many Facebook users. A Google search with the keywords ‘Pappu Shukla Gujarat’ does not throw any relevant results. Next, we performed a reverse image search and learnt that the viral image was uploaded on Reddit by user gevidee on October 20 who claimed that the man is Ismael Hadi, a homeless person from Yemen. He used to feed stray dogs. The post added, “He was found dead this morning with the dogs refusing to leave his side.” Using this as a clue, we performed an advanced search on Twitter and saw that several users had posted this picture including Yemeni conflict analyst Nadwa Dawsari. Ismael Hadi, a homeless man from Ibb #Yemen, fed stray dogs. This morning people found him dead with his dogs refusing to leave his side. 💔❤️ pic.twitter.com/symVBZ1yHj — Nadwa Dawsari (@Ndawsari) October 20, 2020 The same was reported by Yemen-based news website Ababil and Al Jazeera Mubasher on October 20. A video of the man lying dead on the road surrounded by dogs has also been shared by Arab users. #الوفاء في زمن قل فيه الوفاء .! هذا المشهد حقيقي .. عندما تكون الكلاب أوفى من كثير من الناس.! هذا الرجل إسماعيل محمد هادي كان يطعم الكلاب يومياً في سوق الدليل بمحافظة اب وينام في الشارع . مات ليلة أمس رحمة الله عليه . فضلت الكلاب الى جانبه حزينة .! المشهد يتحدث عن الوفاء في زمن قل فيه الوفاء .!! الله يرحمه ويغفر له . من صفحت الاخ الصديق محمود الحيدري . Posted by ‎مطهر عنان‎ on Tuesday, 20 October 2020 Thus, an image of a homeless man from Yemen who as surrounded by dogs after this death was circulated in India with the claim that the said man is ‘Pappu Shukla’ from Gujarat. 🙏 Blessed to have worked as a fact-checking journalist from November 2019 to February 2023. A minute-long video clip of a woman being physically assaulted is viral on social media…. Trigger Warning: The following story contains graphic imagery. Several users have shared images of the… A 1:34-minute-long CCTV camera clip is being widely circulated on social media in which viewers… Trigger Warning: Violent Content. Viewer discretion is advised. Over the past few months, rumours of… The teaser of a movie titled ‘The Kerala Story’ is being widely shared on social…	news-altnews	2024-05-27T18:24:05.489452	28th October 2020 / 7:18 pm	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/image-from-yemen-viral-as-dead-body-of-pappu-shukla-from-gujarat-surrounded-by-dogs/", "author": "Archit" }
1,518	Image morphed to show US VP-elect Kamala Harris wearing saree - Alt News Archit 13th November 2020 / 9:40 pm On November 12, BJP MP Satya Pal Singh posted an image of US Vice President-elect Kamal Harris in a saree and later deleted it. He wrote, “America’s Vice President-elect Kamala Harris, the one who learnt about mother India’s heritage from her mother. This seven-year-old image of her at a Ganesh temple in Chennai speaks a lot.” The tweet’s archive can be viewed here. As of writing this report, we found one instance each on Twitter and Facebook where the image was shared with the same claim. (Translated from अपनी माँ से माँ-भारती की संस्कृति सीखने वाली अमेरिका की मा.उपराष्ट्रपति बनने वाली श्रीमती कमला हैरिस ने 7 वर्ष पहले जब चेन्नई में गणेश मंदिर के दर्शन किये- तब की तस्वीर जो बहुत कुछ बयां करती है) On November 8, Principal Secy & CEO TN Tea Federation Supriya Sahu tweeted this image and wrote, “Kamala Harris. You are a trailblazer. Celebrations galore.” (archived link) வாழ்த்துக்கள் 🙏🌹💪 Kamala Harris. You are a trailblazer Celebrations galore. 😊#KamalaHarris @KamalaHarris #AmericaDecides pic.twitter.com/1ee8XdcWRp — Supriya Sahu IAS (@supriyasahuias) November 8, 2020 Alt News performed a reverse image on Google and came across an identical image that shows a different woman wearing the same saree. It was posted in 2017 by Fashion Lady, a lifestyle website, in an article about various types of saree drapes. In 2018, the image was also published by Bollywood Shaadis. As per the articles, the image shows Madisaru style, a traditional saree drape prevalent in Chennai, where lower half is draped like a dhoti while the upper half looks like a saree. The image below compares the viral image and the photo published on Fashion Lady. Kamala Harris’s face has been morphed into the original image. The picture used for the photoshop was picked up from an article in The New York Times. As per her website in the Senate, Harris has African-American and South Asian-American heritage. Her mother, Shyamala is an Indian-American immigrant, activist, and breast cancer researcher. As per The Hindu, Harris’s maternal family has roots in Chennai. Thus an image from an Indian lifestyle website was morphed to portray US Vice President-elect Kamala Harris in a blue saree. On November 12, BJP MP Satya Pal Singh posted the image and falsely claimed that it is a seven-year-old image from a Ganesh Temple in Chennai. Singh deleted the post after it gained over 200 likes. 🙏 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	13th November 2020 / 9:40 pm	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/image-morphed-to-show-us-vp-elect-kamala-harris-wearing-saree/", "author": "Archit" }
1,519	Image of 2013 Bangladesh riots shared as violence against Hindus in West Bengal - Alt News Pooja Chaudhuri 7th April 2021 / 2:26 pm A photograph of a rioting mob has been shared amid West Bengal elections with the claim that it depicts violence against Hindus in Hooghly. #StandWithBengalHindus is the hashtag used along with the claim. Multiple Twitter accounts have shared the image. A simple reverse image search takes one to a May 5, 2013 article published in Daily Mail where the same image has been used. “Protesters armed with sticks flee from police tear gas: The Islamic hardliners are demanding the death penalty for blasphemy,” reads its description. The image has been credited to photographer Ibrahim of former photo agency Demotix. The article reported, “37 people were killed and hundreds more injured in Bangladesh today in fierce street fighting between police and Islamic hardliners demanding the death penalty for blasphemy.” Al Jazeera reported that the protests were led by supporters of Hefazat-e-Islam, an Islamist group, against what they said were blasphemous writings by atheist bloggers. The protestors shouted, “God is great – hang the atheist bloggers”. The riots took place in the capital Dhaka. Bangladeshi PM Sheikh Hasina rejected demands by Islamists for a new anti-blasphemy law granting the death penalty and said that existing laws were sufficient to punish those who attempted to insult religion. An eight-year-old image of riots in Bangladesh where protestors demanded the death penalty for blasphemy has been shared as violence against Hindus in Hooghly, West Bengal. 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	7th April 2021 / 2:26 pm	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/image-of-2013-bangladesh-riots-shared-as-violence-against-hindus-in-west-bengal/", "author": "Pooja Chaudhuri" }
1,520	Image of a Colombian protester circulated as an Iranian woman stoned to death - Alt News Pratik Sinha 30th June 2018 / 11:13 am / Last updated: 9th July 2018 “A****s of Thornton Reuters here is a lady who is ‘allowed’ 3 sips of water before being stoned to death. How safe is she, according to you ?” An image is currently viral on social media with the aforementioned text, many of them misspelling “Thomson Reuters” as “Thornton Reuters”. This is in the aftermath of Thomson Reuters releasing a report which ranks India as the most dangerous country for women. In this particular image, a woman can be seen sipping water off a spoon with only her head above the ground and the rest of her body buried under. This image was shared by Gita Kapoor who is followed by PM Modi on Twitter. Alt News has documented multiple instances where Gita Kapoor has shared misleading information (1, 2, 3). A****s of Thornton Reuters here is a lady who is ‘allowed’ 3 sips of water before being stoned to death. How safe is she, according to you ? pic.twitter.com/Kaiuu8xM4c — Gita S. Kapoor (@GitaSKapoor) June 28, 2018 Madhu Kishwar, who frequently shares misleading posts on her Twitter timeline, also retweeted Gita Kapoor’s tweet while attacking activists and journalists. Certainly safer than hapless Rana Ayyub, Indira Jaisingh, Teesta Setalvad, Vrinda Grover, Kavita Krishnan, Priyanka Chaturvedi & all the leftist women & women of Rahul Brigade living in wretched India! https://t.co/dT4lijbxA4 — MadhuPurnima Kishwar (@madhukishwar) June 28, 2018 This has been shared multiple times on Facebook with the identical message including the spelling error. Over a period of time, the same image has been used on multiple websites with similar claims, the most common being ‘Iranian woman stoned to death’. A Twitter user Sarthak Ray dug into the origins of the image that is being circulated and found that it is actually from Colombia and is part of a protest. https://t.co/WelaURgigghttps://t.co/I9X3Q8mS3d Links to the original photos. Deliberately spreading fake stuff as fact — Sarthak Ray (@RAYsarthak) June 29, 2018 https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js An image of the same woman, who is claimed to have been stoned, is available as part of stock photos on the Adobe website along with the following description: “Colombian Maria Gabriela Ruiz, 66, (C) is aided by a woman while she lies buried in the ground up to her neck along with Olmedo Gomez, 42,(bottom) and Nicolas Salazar, 32, during a protest in a popular sector of Cali, July 4, 2003. Three people, two men and a woman, buried themselves three days ago in protest against the government because 150 displaced persons have not been relocated to a safe sector of Cali.” Yet another close-up image of Ruiz is available on Getty images, an American stock photo agency that supplies licensed images to businesses, creative professionals and the media. False claims on social media are frequently used to create and support certain political narratives. The report listing India as the most dangerous country for women has invited mixed reactions. While there are those who see merit in it, others are skeptical. Notwithstanding the merits and demerits of the report and the arguments surrounding it, this was yet another case where misinformation was used to support a desired narrative. Co-Founder Alt News, I can be reached via E-mail at [email protected] and on Facebook at https://fb.com/freethinker. Follow @free_thinker 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	30th June 2018 / 11:13 am / Last updated: 9th July 2018	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/image-of-a-colombian-protester-circulated-as-an-iranian-woman-stoned-to-death/", "author": "Pratik Sinha" }
1,521	Old image of anti-France rally in Bangladesh viral as protests against PM Modi upcoming visit - Alt News Anuradha Prasad 25th March 2021 / 5:35 pm Prime Minister Narendra Modi is set to go on a two-day tour of Bangladesh on March 26, on the occasion of the country’s 50th Independence Day. Social media users began sharing a picture of a massive crowd, purportedly of locals protesting against the Indian PM’s visit. Many shared the image with the following Bangla caption, “Mashallah! Islamic parties protested against Modi in Dhaka today. The parties have shown that they do uphold patriotism and the religious cause! Long live Islamic unity!” (Original caption: মাশাল্লাহ! ঢাকায় ইসলামী দলগুলোর আজকের মোদী বিরোধী আন্দোলন। ইসলামিক দলগুলো দেখিয়ে দিলো যে দেশপ্রেম এবং ধর্মপ্রেম তাদের হৃদয়ের মনিকোঠায় থাকে! অভিনন্দন ইসলামপ্রিয় তৌহিদী জনতা) One Twitter user wrote an English caption that read, “Narendra Modi is not welcome even in Dhaka, despite tons of favours Modi bestowed upon Haseena Wajid, Bangladesh is out on the streets protesting against the upcoming state visit of PM Modi. This man has brought shame to India internationally.” Alt News performed a reverse image search and found reports on the anti-France rally held in Bangladesh last year. On October 28, 2020, New Straits Times reported that thousands of people took to the streets in protest against France on October 27, in the Bangladeshi capital of Dhaka. Samuel Paty, a high school teacher in France, was beheaded by a Muslim youth for showing caricatures of the Prophet Muhammed during class. French President Emmanuel Macron had defended the cartoon under the country’s secular tradition. This resulted in widespread outrage in Muslim-majority nations all over the world. News Straits Times has attributed the photo to the European Pressphoto Agency (EPA). Its website confirms that the picture was shot during a protest in Bangladesh over Macron’s comments on the cartoon. Therefore, social media users shared a six-month-old photo of an anti-France rally in Bangladesh, falsely claiming that it showed the public marching in protest of PM Modi’s upcoming Bangladesh visit. 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	25th March 2021 / 5:35 pm	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/image-of-an-anti-france-rally-in-bangladesh-shared-as-people-protesting-against-pm-modi/", "author": "Anuradha Prasad" }
1,522	Bandra-Worli Sea Link inaugurated by Sonia Gandhi in 2009 credited to PM Modi - Alt News Priyanka Jha 24th July 2021 / 2:20 pm / Last updated: 28th July 2021 A photograph of the Bandra-Worli Sea Link in Mumbai has been shared on social media, with users crediting PM Narendra Modi for its construction. One such tweet by @REAL___HINDUVT racked up over 9,000 likes. (Archive link) यह कोई अमेरीका फ़्रांस लन्दन का ब्रीज नही है यह बांद्रा के मुंबई का ब्रीज है, वाह मोदी जी pic.twitter.com/JaImibIbSO — ‘सत्य सनातन’ (@REAL___HINDUVT) July 16, 2021 Several others posted the image on Facebook writing “waah Modiji waah” in the caption. Alt News performed a reverse image search and Congress party leader Roshan Lal Bittu shared the image on July 6 as the Bandra-Worli Sea Link in Mumbai. “Development by Congress,” he wrote. We found links to a few other posts among the search results. An Instagram page named @mumbai7merijaan had posted the photo on March 28, 2020, attributing it to one Tapan Dave. Dave had himself uploaded the picture to Instagram on June 7, 2020. The accompanying caption contained the hashtag #bandraworlisealink. A quick rummage through Dave’s Instagram account shows that he has photographed several other famous locations in Mumbai. The Bandra-Worli Sea Link was constructed when the UPA government was in power. Congress leader Sonia Gandhi had inaugurated the bridge on June 30, 2009. Several media reports had covered the event as well. One such video story by NewsX dated June 30, 2009, is posted below. [youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JsbXUN5YCpE] India Today also carries photos from the inauguration ceremony. To sum up, Mumbai’s Bandra-Worli Sea Link construction has nothing to do with either BJP or the prime minister. It was inaugurated in 2009 when Narendra Modi was not the prime minister. He took the seat in 2014. Apart from that, late Shiv Sena leader Bal Thackeray laid the foundation stone for the Sea Link in 1999, and it was inaugurated ten years later in 2009 by Sonia Gandhi. 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	24th July 2021 / 2:20 pm / Last updated: 28th July 2021	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/image-of-bandra-worli-sea-link-inaugurated-by-sonia-gandhi-shared-to-give-credit-to-pm-modi/", "author": "Priyanka Jha" }
1,523	Image of BJP worker's dead body hanging from a tree is from 2018 - Alt News Archit 9th October 2020 / 10:17 pm On October 2, TMC MP Derek O’Brien visited Uttar Pradesh to show solidarity with the alleged Hathras gang-rape victim’s family. Since then several social media users questioned his intentions and alleged that O’Brien doesn’t condemn atrocities in West Bengal. In this context, a photograph of a dead body hanging from a tree has been circulating on social media. “Punished for working for the BJP,” is inscribed on the man’s T-shirt. Several Twitter users posted the image claiming that a BJP worker was recently murdered by TMC goons. On the same day, Twitter user @arpispeaks wrote, “This is Trilochan Mahato, an 18-year-old boy from West Bengal. TMC activists murdered him and wrote on his T-shirt ‘This is a punishment for joining BJP’. And today TMC MP Derek O’Brien has gone to UP to talk about law and order. Do you see their disgusting politics?” This tweet gained over 7,000 retweets since it was posted. (archived link) (Translated from ये पश्चिम बंगाल का एक 18 साल का लड़का त्रिलोचन महतो है। जिसका TMC कार्यकर्ताओं ने हत्या कर दी और उसके टीशर्ट पर लिख दिया ‘ये भाजपा में शामिल होने का सज़ा है।’ और आज TMC सांसद डेरेक ओ ब्रायन यूपी गए है कानून व्यवस्था पर ज्ञान छिलने। घिनौनी राजनीति देख रहे हो इनके?) ये पश्चिम बंगाल का एक 18 साल का लड़का त्रिलोचन महतो है। जिसका TMC कार्यकर्ताओं ने हत्या कर दी और उसके टीशर्ट पर लिख दिया ‘ये भाजपा में शामिल होने का सज़ा है।’ और आज TMC सांसद डेरेक ओ ब्रायन यूपी गए है कानून व्यवस्था पर ज्ञान छिलने। घिनौनी राजनीति देख रहे हो इनके? pic.twitter.com/ngUylAHKfW — Arpita Jana ♓ (@arpispeaks) October 2, 2020 Similarly, several other users posted the image implying it is a recent incident — @reclusiveIndian (archived link), @Aj15891 (archived link), and @aviral_mitta (archived link). On October 5, BJP Bengal Vice President Arjun Singh claimed that Titagarh councillor, a strong voice against the ruling Mamata Banerjee government, was shot dead in the state. Kreately embedded the tweet by @arpispeaks in an article published the same day. The outlet claimed that the murder recently took place. Alt News has documented Kreately spreading misinformation on multiple occasions in the past. Its article gained over 1,500 retweets since October 5. (archived link) TMC कार्यकर्ताओं ने एक लड़के की हत्या कर टीशर्ट पर लिख दिया ‘ये भाजपा में शामिल होने का सज़ा है।’https://t.co/TLPtgHLPV2 — Kreately (@KreatelyMedia) October 5, 2020 The screenshot below highlights the section which states that the incident was recent (ताजा घटना). Alt News performed a reverse image search on Google and found that multiple media outlets had carried this image in their article. According to DNA, this is a 2018 incident that took place in the Purulia district of West Bengal. As per the report, the man in the viral image is 20-year old Trilochan Mahato, whom the BJP had claimed as its member. “An unsigned handwritten note in Bengali found near the body of the 20-year-old victim said that he was “punished for working for the BJP” during the recent rural polls in the state. The same was scribbled behind the T-shirt worn by Trilochan at the time of his death,” said the report. Home Minister Amit Shah had also tweeted the image two years ago. Deeply hurt by the brutal killing of our young karyakarta, Trilochan Mahato in Balarampur,West Bengal. A young life full of possibilities was brutally taken out under state’s patronage. He was hanged on a tree just because his ideology differed from that of state sponsored goons. pic.twitter.com/nHAEK09n7R — Amit Shah (@AmitShah) May 30, 2018 On June 24, 2018, Punjabi Mahato (45) was arrested in connection with the murder. BJP Worker Trilochan Mahato murder case: A 45-year-old man was arrested earlier today in connection with the case. Body of Trilochan Mahato was found hanging from a tree in Balarampur’s Khudigora jungle (West Bengal) on May 30, 2018. — ANI (@ANI) June 24, 2018 Therefore, an old incident was revived to give a false impression that it happened recently. 🙏 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	9th October 2020 / 10:17 pm	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/image-of-bjp-workers-dead-body-hanging-from-a-tree-is-from-2018/", "author": "Archit" }
1,524	Image of boy with acid burns viral as child punished for wearing Ayyappa necklace in Tamil Nadu school - Alt News Pooja Chaudhuri 10th December 2019 / 4:34 pm / Last updated: 10th December 2019 An image of a boy with burn injuries is viral with the claim that a student wearing an Ayyappa necklace was made to wash the bathroom with acid at a ‘Christian’ school. The image and its corresponding claim in Telugu were shared by an individual user Mekala Nagarjuna Reddy. His post has 12,000 shares. The caption is as follows – “అయ్యప్పమాల వేసుకున్నందుకు క్రిస్టియన్ స్కూల్లో యాసిడ్ తో బాత్రూమ్ క్లీన్ చేపించిన స్కూల్ యాజమాన్యం. యాసిడ్ పడి గాయపడిన బాలుడు.” The same set of images was also shared by Twitter user SahaJio (@oldhandhyd) with an English text which suggested that the incident took place in Good Shepherd school, Tamil Nadu. “Punishment for wearing Ayyappa Mala. – cleaning school toilet with acid. Acid spills on to child’s hands. Injured. TN, Tuticorin, Eral, Idayarkadu TNTA(DNDA ? ) Good Shepherd School. Govt. Aided..! #noconversion,” he wrote. The English message has been circulated by several other Twiiter users – @ByRakeshSimha and @nandaji1958 – and Facebook pages (TheEducatedIndianNews). A similar claim has also been made in Hindi – “#HinduKid : तमिलनाडु के एक सरकारी मद से चलने वाले स्कूल में “अय्यप्पा माला” पहनने पर एक हिंदू बच्चे को एसिड से विद्यालय के सारे टायलेट साफ करने की सजा मिली, बच्चा एसिड से झुलस गया #Secularism #Tamilnadu और हम ,हमारे बच्चों को क्रिसमस का केक कटवा रहे हैं, और वो हमारे बच्चों को एसिड से नहला‌ रहे हैं.” A keyword search on Google led Alt News to a December 5 report in The Times of India. According to the article, a 12-year-old boy Maharaja suffered burn injuries “on a major portion of his left hand and toes while removing acid bottles from a chemistry lab on the instructions of the headmaster.” The report further adds, “According to preliminary inquiries, termites damaged a portion of the chemistry laboratory, following which the headmaster engaged the boys to clear it.” Five students – Maharaja, Pramodh, Velraj, Murugaperuman, Jayakumar and Vasurajan – were given the task of removing acid bottles during which Maharaja suffered serious injuries and Pramodh suffered mild burns. Maharaja was quoted in The Times of India as stating that an ‘important’ person was visiting the school hence a few students “were asked to dispose of the waste from the laboratory. I was carrying a bottle of acid. A boy behind me stumbled and fell on me. My bottle did not break, but his bottle broke and fell on me,” he said. Chief education officer (CEO) of Tuticorin district A Gnanagowri told the media outlet that “a circular would be sent to all the schools in the district not to use students to handle acid and inflammable and other dangerous materials.” Alt News contacted Gnanagowri who termed social media claims “false” and informed that the incident had no communal or religious bearings. “What the headmaster did was wrong. He should not have asked students to clean the lab. But claims that he did so because a student was wearing an Ayyappa mala is also wrong. Around five students were given the task and all of them belonged to different communities,” she said. The CEO added that the school is government-aided and not wholly managed by the state. However, the headmaster was suspended the same day at her direction. As per another report in The New Indian Express, the boys were “admitted to a private hospital before being referred to the Thoothukudi Medical College Hospital.” An image of an incident where two schoolboys suffered burn injuries after acid spilt on them while cleaning the chemistry lab in Good Shepherd Higher School at Edayarkadu near Palayakayal, Tamil Nadu, was presented with a communal angle on social media. The claim that one of the boys was made to clean the school bathroom with acid for adorning an Ayyappa necklace is baseless. Five students were given the task of disposing of waste in the chemistry laboratory and two of them suffered burns when a bottle of acid broke. Pooja Chaudhuri is a senior editor at Alt News. Rahul and Priyanka Gandhi recently performed aarti at the Narmada Ghat in Madhya Pradesh’s Omkareshwar… In the wake of the alleged murder of Shraddha Walkar by his partner Aftab Amin… The video of a group of people stopping an e-rickshaw with BJP flags attached to… Last week during the G20 summit in Bali, world leaders were informed of a missile… Recently, several prominent BJP leaders claimed that Prime Minister Narendra Modi had intervened to stop…	news-altnews	2024-05-27T18:24:05.489452	10th December 2019 / 4:34 pm / Last updated: 10th December 2019	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/image-of-boy-with-acid-burns-viral-as-child-punished-for-wearing-ayyappa-necklace-in-tamil-nadu-school/", "author": "Pooja Chaudhuri" }
1,525	Image of convict hanged in Nirbhaya rape case falsely as juvenile convict - Alt News Kinjal 19th October 2020 / 12:53 pm An image of a man escorted by the police has been shared on Twitter and Facebook with the claim that he is the juvenile convict in the 2012 Nirbhaya rape case. Twitter handle @Tiwari_Sintu999 shared this image. (archive link) 2012 निर्भया रेप का अपराधी मोहम्मद अफरोज अब बालिग हो गया है क्या अब उसको फांसी होनी चाहिए❓ Yes से आवाज़ उठाए 😡🚩 pic.twitter.com/0V47c09H5p — Sintu Tiwari🇮🇳 💯🚩% FB (@Tiwari_Sintu999) October 7, 2020 The same image was posted on Facebook group Love Jihad on October 12. Another Twitter user shared a graphic featuring SP leader Akhilesh Yadav along with the same claim. The text ascribed to Yadav says, “Most Muslims are less educated. Due to their imprudence, they commit mistakes like rape. They are not criminals.” (archive link) 2012 निर्भया रेप का अपराधी मोहम्मद अफरोज अब बालिग हो गया है अब उसको फांसी होनी चाहिए ? yes से आवाज़ उठाए 😡😡😡 टोटी चोर 🙄 रिश्तेदार का बचाव कर रहा !!! ये लोग क्या बहन बेटी या देश की रक्षा करेगे🙄😏😡😡👇👇 pic.twitter.com/HpdmIt8aV0 — 🅰️ru राजgor T.A.B 🇮🇳🧡 (@GorAruna) October 7, 2020 The man wearing a white T-shirt in the viral image is indeed one of the convicts in the December 2012 Delhi gang-rape case. However, he is not the juvenile convict. The man in the image is Vinay Sharma. In December 2019, another image of Vinay Sharma was circulated on social media as the juvenile convict. A report published by The New Indian Express on February 2020 carried the image of Sharma now viral. According to this article, Sharma’s plea seeking treatment for ‘insanity’ was dismissed by a Delhi court. “Four men convicted of the notorious gang rape and murder of a student in the Indian capital Delhi in 2012 have been executed. Mukesh Singh, Vinay Sharma, Akshay Thakur and Pawan Gupta were hanged on the premises of the Tihar jail. Courts convicted six people for the rape and murder of a 23-year-old physiotherapy student in a moving bus.” stated a report by BBC published on March 20. The report also informed that one who was a juvenile at the time of committing rape was released in 2015 after serving three years in a reform facility. The sixth convict died in jail. False statement ascribed to Akhilesh Yadav A Google search with the verbatim text attributed to the former Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister yielded no results. Lack of media reports on a remark this controversial points to its falseness. 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	19th October 2020 / 12:53 pm	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/image-of-convict-hanged-in-nirbhaya-rape-case-falsely-as-juvenile-convict/", "author": "Kinjal" }
1,526	Image of couple at Barcelona airport shared as Italian doctors infected with coronavirus - Alt News Archit 24th March 2020 / 3:41 pm / Last updated: 24th March 2020 Several social media users have posted an image of a couple, with medical masks undone, holding each other. It is being claimed that they are husband and wife working as doctors in Italy. “They worked day and night and saved the lives of 134 patients. But on the eighth day, they caught coronavirus,” reads the message. इटली के यह दोनों पति पत्नी डॉ है और दोनों ने दिन रात लग कर 134 मरोजो को बचाया लेकिन खुद 8 वे दिन कोरोना वायरस से बीमार हो गए और अलग अलग कमरे में शिफ्ट कर दिए गए जब दोनों मिया बीवी डाक्टर को लगा कि हम बच नहीं पाएंगे दोनों हॉस्पिटल के लांज में,खड़े होकर मुहब्बत भरी नज़रों से एक pic.twitter.com/fJJmxDlfDp — Dr Monika Singh (@DrMonikaSingh_) March 23, 2020 The complete message is as follows: “इटली के यह दोनों पति पत्नी डॉ है और दोनों ने दिन रात लग कर 134 मरोजो को बचाया! लेकिन खुद 8 वे दिन कोरोना वायरस से बीमार हो गए और अलग अलग कमरे में शिफ्ट कर दिए गए! जब दोनों मिया बीवी डाक्टर को लगा कि हम बच नहीं पाएंगे! दोनों हॉस्पिटल के लांज में,खड़े होकर मुहब्बत भरी नज़रों से.” Several Twitter users tweeted the viral image along with the claim. Alt News also received several requests to fact-check the images on WhatsApp (+91 76000 11160) and on our official Android application. Alt News performed a reverse image search on TinEye and found that the photograph was clicked by Emilio Morenatti for Associated Press on March 12. According to the caption, the image shows a man and a woman kissing at Barcelona airport on March 12, 2020. “President Donald Trump, who had downplayed the coronavirus for weeks, suddenly struck a different tone, announcing strict rules on restricting travel from much of Europe to begin this weekend,” per the description. This image was carried by several media outlets including Chicago Tribune, Boston Globe and Fox Tribune. Thus the social media claim associated with the viral image is false and misleading. They are not Italian doctors who caught coronavirus infection after treating over 100 patients. 🙏 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 March 2020 / 3:41 pm / Last updated: 24th March 2020	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/image-of-couple-at-barcelona-airport-shared-as-italian-doctors-infected-with-coronavirus/", "author": "Archit" }
1,527	Image of COVID-19 test kit shared as newly developed 'coronavirus vaccine' by Roche - Alt News Jignesh Patel 23rd March 2020 / 5:07 pm / Last updated: 23rd March 2020 A message circulating on WhatsApp claims that US scientists have developed a vaccine for coronavirus. It claims that President Donald Trump has announced that “Roche Medical Company” will launch the vaccine this sunday. “Great news! Carona virus vaccine ready. Able to cure patient within 3 hours after injection. Hats off to US Scientists. Right now Trump announced that Roche Medical Company will launch the vaccine next Sunday, and millions of doses are ready from it,” reads the viral message. It is also viral on Twitter and Facebook. Alt News has received several requests on its official Android application to fact-check the claim. First of all, no vaccine has yet been developed for coronavirus but is still either in the trial stage or research is underway. Alt News had earlier debunked a video which was claimed to be the announcement of the launch of coronavirus vaccine manufactured by drugmaker Roche. A clipped video of the press conference, where CEO of Roche Diagnostics spoke about testing and NOT the vaccine, was shared on social media. You can read our detailed fact-check here. Does the photo represent coronavirus vaccine? A Google search revealed that it’s not a vaccine but a test kit for the novel coronavirus, technically known as SARS-CoV-2. “SGTi-flex COVID-19 IgM/IgG is a gold nanoparticle-based immunochromatographic test kit for qualitative determination of COVID-19’s IgM and IgG antibodies in human whole blood (finger prick or venous), serum or plasma.”, says the website of the test kit manufacturer Sugentech. According to the about-us section, Sugentech, a Republic of Korea-based manufacturer, “develops in-vitro diagnostic systems and products based on BT-IT-NT convergence technology.” SD Biosensor is another Republic of Korea-based company which manufactures test kits for “qualitative presumptive detection of specific IgM and IgG to 2019 novel coronavirus”. Therefore, an image of a novel coronavirus test kit was shared on social media to claim that US scientists have developed a vaccine for COVID-19 and that Swiss drugmaker Roche Diagnostics will launch the vaccine next Sunday. 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	23rd March 2020 / 5:07 pm / Last updated: 23rd March 2020	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/image-of-covid-19-test-kit-shared-as-newly-developed-coronavirus-vaccine-by-roche/", "author": "Jignesh Patel" }
1,528	Image of forest department building shared as Church on Tirumala Hills, Andhra Pradesh - Alt News Pooja Chaudhuri 27th August 2019 / 7:09 pm A photograph of a building atop a hill is doing rounds on social media with many suggesting that it is a church on Tirumala Hills – the same place where the Tirumala Venkateswara Temple is situated. A Twitter user @krupashanker was among those who shared the image. This tweet drew over 1,200 likes at the time of writing this article. @krupashanker is followed by Railway Minister Piyush Goyal’s office. In fact, several others who are followed by Goyal’s office have circulated the same photograph with an identical claim. From what it seems, the claim has found a place on WhatsApp and Facebook as well. @narendramodi church invasion into Tirumala? pic.twitter.com/5Ro1kXgAsy — Narasimhan (@Narasim20561265) August 26, 2019 The building atop the hill is not a church but an office of Seshachalam Biosphere Reserve under the government of Andhra Pradesh. A cross visible on top of the building isn’t a Christian cross but a pole with CCTV cameras. A ground report by Telugu media outlet Bharat Today debunks the false social media claims. The complete broadcast by Bharat Today can be viewed here. Similarities between the viral photograph and the building featured on Bharat Today broadcast are evident. A photograph of a building of the forest department on Tirumala Hills, Andhra Pradesh was shared as a church. Alt News had recently debunked another piece of misinformation targeting the southern state – a video of a ruckus at a temple in UP was shared as “Christian police manhandling Hindu devotees at Tirumala.” 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 August 2019 / 7:09 pm	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/image-of-forest-department-building-shared-as-church-on-tirumala-hills-andhra-pradesh/", "author": "Pooja Chaudhuri" }
1,529	Image of govt hospital in MP shared as Delhi govt school - Alt News Pooja Chaudhuri 29th October 2019 / 6:54 pm An aerial image of a majestic building has been shared on social media with the claim that it is a government school in Dwarka, Delhi. “Yeh 5 star Hotel nahi hai Delhi government School hai,” reads the accompanying message. The photograph has been shared by several individuals on Facebook. A reverse image search on Google reveals that the photograph is of Chhindwara Institute of Medical Sciences in Madhya Pradesh. CMO MP had tweeted the same image in February 28 when the hospital was inaugurated. Today Chief Minister Shri Kamal Nath will also inaugurate Chhindwara Medical College. During his Chhindwara visit HCM will Inaugurate and lay foundation stone of different development projects costing over 1944 Crore rupee.@MOHedump @JansamparkMP @dmchhindwara @prochhindwara pic.twitter.com/Z0sCLO8md9 — CMO Madhya Pradesh (@CMMadhyaPradesh) February 28, 2019 The same image also adorns the home page of the institute’s website. An image of a government medical college in Chhindwara, Madhya Pradesh was shared as a government school in Delhi. Pooja Chaudhuri is a senior editor at Alt News. Rahul and Priyanka Gandhi recently performed aarti at the Narmada Ghat in Madhya Pradesh’s Omkareshwar… In the wake of the alleged murder of Shraddha Walkar by his partner Aftab Amin… The video of a group of people stopping an e-rickshaw with BJP flags attached to… Last week during the G20 summit in Bali, world leaders were informed of a missile… Recently, several prominent BJP leaders claimed that Prime Minister Narendra Modi had intervened to stop…	news-altnews	2024-05-27T18:24:05.489452	29th October 2019 / 6:54 pm	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/image-of-govt-hospital-in-mp-shared-as-delhi-govt-school/", "author": "Pooja Chaudhuri" }
1,530	Image of Indian army handing over a 7-yo Pakistani child’s dead body shared with a false claim - Alt News Arjun Sidharth 5th August 2019 / 8:55 pm / Last updated: 5th August 2019 “What a Proud moment! Indian Army like a boss,told pakistanis to come with a white flag & take the dead bodies! White flag is raised in surrender! This picture takes me back to 1971 where 93,000 Pakistanis raised white flag & Surrendered to the Indian Army!” The above text has been tweeted along with a photograph showing an Indian army soldier in the foreground, overlooking a valley, and a group of soldiers with a white flag in the background. It may be noted that Indian security forces recently foiled an infiltration bid along the LoC by Pakistani special forces, in which at least five personnel of Pakistan’s Border Action Team (BAT) were gunned down. Later, the Indian side had offered the Pakistan army to retrieve the dead bodies. What a Proud moment! Indian Army like a boss,told pakistanis to come with a white flag & take the dead bodies! White flag is raised in surrender! This picture takes me back to 1971 where 93,000 Pakistanis raised white flag & Surrendered to the Indian Army!#IndianarmyinKashmir pic.twitter.com/bn5dPfdUzW — Aviral sharma (@sharmaAvl) August 4, 2019 The above tweet has been retweeted over 1400 times since it was posted on August 4. Another tweet by a user has garnered over 500 retweets so far. What a Proud moment! Indian Army like a boss,told pakistanis to come with a white flag & take the dead bodies! White flag is raised in surrender! This picture takes me back to 1971 where 93,000 Pakistanis raised white flag & Surrendered to the Indian Army!#IndianarmyinKashmir pic.twitter.com/Ns1uemWoKe — #DJ 🇮🇳 (@i_mdj) August 4, 2019 A simple reverse-image search of the picture on Google was enough to establish that it is not related to the recent skirmish on the LoC. The photograph is of July 2019, and pertains to the handing over of the body of a seven year old Pakistani boy who had fallen off a cliff into the river in Pakistan Occupied Kashmir (POK). According to a report by NDTV published on July 12, 2019, “Three days after the body of an eight-year-old boy from Pakistan Occupied Kashmir (PoK) was pulled out of the Kishenganga River in Jammu and Kashmir’s Gurez sector, the army on Thursday handed over the body to the Pakistan army.“. The report further said, “8-year-old Abid Sheikh had reportedly fallen off the cliff in PoK’s Minimarg area, just four kilometres away from the Line of Control (LoC) and into the river. The body of the boy reached the Jammu and Kashmir side of the border on June 9.” Moreover, the same information was tweeted on July 11, 2019, by the official Twitter account of the Indian army. Journalist Aditya Raj Kaul had also tweeted about it, along with the picture now being shared with the false narrative. In accordance to #IndianArmy ethos & as a #Humanitarian gesture Indian Army handed over mortal remains of seven year old Abid Ahmad Sheikh,who belongs to Minimarg, Gilgit to Pakistan authorities. #Humanity #OurMoralOurValues #IndianArmy. Read full story..https://t.co/d9KwgBzVY4 pic.twitter.com/SyyjCP1wAp — ADG PI – INDIAN ARMY (@adgpi) July 11, 2019 In conclusion, it may be stated that the photograph in question is of July 2019 and is unrelated to the recent combat at the Line of Control in J&K. 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	5th August 2019 / 8:55 pm / Last updated: 5th August 2019	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/image-of-indian-army-handing-over-a-7-yo-pakistani-childs-dead-body-shared-with-a-false-claim/", "author": "Arjun Sidharth" }
1,531	Image of injured woman from Muharram procession shared in the backdrop of JNU students' protest - Alt News Jignesh Patel 20th November 2019 / 8:26 pm “आस्था की बात करे तो फूल बरसाए जाते है और शिक्ष। की बात करे तो लाठीया बरसाई जाती है 👇👇👇👇👇👇👇👇👇👇👇👇👇👇यही असलियत है योगी और मोदी की उनका मतलब हैं कि कोई भी गरीब परिवार का छात्र शिक्षित न हो (When we talk about faith, flowers are showered and if we speak about education,👇👇👇👇👇👇👇👇👇👇👇👇👇👇. This is the reality of Yogi and Modi as they want that no one from a poor upbringing gets educated -translated)” The above message is being shared on social media with a photograph of a woman who is copiously bleeding from her wounds. One post by Facebook user Divyanshi Jatav has amassed over 1,500 shares so far. It is being shared in the wake of JNU students’ protest held in New Delhi against exponential hike in hostel fee. According to a report by Hindustan Times, at least 15 students were injured over the eight-hour protest on November 19, 2019. Several other users on Facebook shared the image with a similar claim. It was also shared on Twitter. Alt News had earlier debunked the image in September this year and found that image is not from India. According to an article published by a Shia News website called JafariyaNews.com in February 2005, these images depict the observation of Ashura on the tenth day of Muharram. Hence the suggestion that image was clicked during the recent students’ fee hike protest is false. It has existed on the Internet at least from last 14-years. The Shia Muslim sect mourns the sacrifice of Imam Hussein, the son of Hazrat Ali and the grandson of Prophet Muhammad on this day. The sect commonly practices chest-beating (Latyma), self-flagellation and cut their foreheads during the procession. In the article, the image was posted under the section whose title read, “Lebanon”, thus suggesting that the picture could possibly be from Lebanon. You can read our detailed fact-check here. In conclusion, an old image clicked during a Muharram procession is being shared with the claim that it depicted a student who was beaten up. This image has been shared with the subject of JNU students’ protest becoming a national issue and thus giving an impression that the image of the bloodied woman may be linked to the police action against the protests. Jignesh is a writer and researcher at Alt News. He has a knack for visual investigation with a major interest in fact-checking videos and images. He has completed his Masters in Journalism from Gujarat University. Rahul and Priyanka Gandhi recently performed aarti at the Narmada Ghat in Madhya Pradesh’s Omkareshwar… In the wake of the alleged murder of Shraddha Walkar by his partner Aftab Amin… The video of a group of people stopping an e-rickshaw with BJP flags attached to… Last week during the G20 summit in Bali, world leaders were informed of a missile… Recently, several prominent BJP leaders claimed that Prime Minister Narendra Modi had intervened to stop…	news-altnews	2024-05-27T18:24:05.489452	20th November 2019 / 8:26 pm	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/image-of-injured-woman-from-muharram-procession-shared-in-the-backdrop-of-jnu-students-protest/", "author": "Jignesh Patel" }
1,532	Image of Iraqi Army personnel circulated as Indian army during Kerala flood rescue - Alt News Alt News Desk 22nd August 2018 / 4:13 pm “No words 🙏 True Indian can never ignore this pic. This is our army… They will do anything for us🙏.” This text accompanies a picture of a soldier bending down so a woman can use his back to step out of a truck. It has been shared by Facebook pages that routinely use themes of nationalism and Indian Army to strike an emotional chord with their readers. Post Card Fans, India against Paid Media, My India and Narendra Modi – True Indian are some of the pages that have posted this image, which has a combined share count of over 18,000. No words 🙏 True Indian can never ignore this pic. This is our army… They will do anything for us🙏🇮🇳 Posted by Narendra Modi – True Indian on Sunday, 19 August 2018 There are enough clues in the photograph that point out it is not of rescue operations in Kerala. However, as always, the emotional appeal of the message clouds judgement and the picture is currently viral on the internet. A Twitter user, Jitendra Pratap Singh, who is followed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi has tweeted, “इतनी भी तमीज नही की जवान के पीठ पर पैर रखने के पहले जूती उतार लें ..जूती के सोल की नोक कितनी चुभी होगी ..इनके मां बाप कभी इन्हें तमीज सलीका सँस्कार नही सिखाते” (She doesn’t even have the manners to take off her shoes….the heel of the shoe must have hurt him so much…their parents never teach them manners, principles and values – translated) इतनी भी तमीज नही की जवान के पीठ पर पैर रखने के पहले जूती उतार लें ..जूती के सोल की नोक कितनी चुभी होगी ..इनके मां बाप कभी इन्हें तमीज सलीका सँस्कार नही सिखाते @ShayarImran @RifatJawaid @LambaAlka @ShefVaidya @pooja303singh @Shehla_Rashid pic.twitter.com/6FR9w6jit0 — Jitendra pratap singh (@jpsin1) August 20, 2018 A simple Google reverse search reveals some interesting details about the picture. It is of a member of the Iraqi PMU (Popular Mobilization Units) helping a civilian after the city of Fallujah was freed from ISIS in June 2016. The image has been at the center of an international fake news controversy. In December 2016, the Syrian envoy to the United Nations was widely criticized for using it to show how pro-government forces were ‘liberating’ city of Aleppo. “Syria UN ambassador caught using fake photo at council” ran an Al Jazeera headline at the time. The photograph has now traveled around the world and reached India. Syria’s UN Ambassador Used A Photo From Iraq And Claimed It Was From Aleppo https://t.co/E9Ty4KP5CR via @rose_catb — Borzou Daragahi 🖊🗒 (@borzou) December 14, 2016 The same image was also circulated during Kashmir floods, claiming it as that of Indian army. These pictures speaks itself how Indian army is killing innocent kashmiris. Some of the picture is taken during floods. I Salute them 💞 pic.twitter.com/esHZMkAeHr — Ibn -i- Sina (@Ibne_Sena) July 16, 2017 In the past, it has also been shared claiming that the image is of Turkish army. Both armies are now the targets of massive Information War, Psy-Ops & propaganda. Enemies know that unless these two armies remain in the Muslim world, Zionists can never achieve their expansion projects. Arab/Iran armies are not a threat for Israel or India…. pic.twitter.com/AzaKiEO80L — Zaid Hamid (@ZaidZamanHamid) March 13, 2018 The Indian army is playing a stellar role in Kerala flood rescue operations. It doesn’t need those circulating misleading images to whip up support. 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	22nd August 2018 / 4:13 pm	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/image-of-iraqi-army-personnel-circulated-as-indian-army-during-kerala-flood-rescue/", "author": "Alt News Desk" }
1,533	Image of man suffering from bubonic plague shared as hands burnt for burning Quran - Alt News Jignesh Patel 2nd December 2019 / 3:40 pm / Last updated: 2nd December 2019 “خدا کا عذاب۔۔قرآن مجید جلانے والے خنزیر کے حادثے میں ہاتھ جل گئے شئیر کر کے ساری دنیا کو دکھا دیں کہ بے شک قرآن پاک کی حفاظت کا زمہ خود اللہ نے لیا ہے…. زیادہ سے زیادہ شیر کرے. (God’s punishment, the pig (Khinzeer), who burned the holy Quran, got his hands burnt in an incident. Share this and let everyone know that Allah is himself protecting the holy Quran -translated)” Two images are being shared with the claim that a man who had burnt the Quran was punished by Allah. According to the claim, the man’s hand got burnt in a separate incident and this was Allah’s ‘retaliation’ to his impious act. Facebook user Hania Khan posted the message with the above claim. Umpteen accounts on Facebook and Twitter shared the images with the same narrative. With the help of reverse image on Russian search engine Yandex, Alt News found that the two images are unrelated. The first image depicts Stop Islamization of Norway (SIAN) group leader Lars Thorsen who defied a police order against burning the holy Muslim book. “The rally had been approved by local authorities, but police had warned SIAN against desecrating the Koran, after the group said it planned to do so. Two copies of the religious text were thrown in a trash can during the rally, while Thorsen set fire to another one. The unsanctioned actions infuriated counter-protesters, who vaulted over a fence and attacked SIAN’s leader.”, reported Russian state-owned news outlet Russia Today on November 19, 2019. The man in the second image is Paul Gaylord, a resident of Oregon, USA, who suffered from bubonic plague. “Doctors amputated the blackened extremities of Paul ‘Steve’ Gaylord in an operation that lasted two-and-a-half hours on Monday at the St Charles Medical Center in Bend, Oregon. The 60-year-old Prineville man told The Oregonian the surgery was a success but painful.”, stated an article published by UK’s Daily Mail on September 19, 2012. According to a report by Oregon Live, Gaylord was hospitalized in critical condition with plague in June 2012, after he was infected by a cat which was originally infected by a plague-carrying rodent. “Charlie(the cat) came home one day choking with a mouse stuck in the back of his mouth. Gaylord tried to pull the mouse out and in the process, Charlie bit him”, said the July 2012 report. It was later confirmed that the cat had the plague. In January 2014, Gaylord recalled the time when doctors decided to amputate his limbs in a piece penned for UK-based news outlet The Guardian. He writes, “After a month in hospital, I went home. I had to live for six weeks with the dead fingers and toes, so doctors could work out which parts were going to heal before they performed the amputations. They wanted to take off my hands and feet at the wrists and ankles, but I didn’t want that. Instead, they removed my fingers; I still have my hands and part of my thumbs. They took off all the toes on my left foot, and about a third of my right foot is gone.” American News outlet CNN’s Health unit quoted Gaylord in a September 2015 report saying that he has prosthetics but he doesn’t use them because they hurt to use. In conclusion, an old and unrelated image of a patient who suffered from bubonic plague is being shared on social media to falsely claim that Lars Thorsen, the man who burnt a Quran in Norway, was punished by Allah and his hands were charred as a result. 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	2nd December 2019 / 3:40 pm / Last updated: 2nd December 2019	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/image-of-man-suffering-from-bubonic-plague-shared-as-mans-hands-burnt-for-burning-quran/", "author": "Jignesh Patel" }
1,534	Image of mosque in crowded locality in MP viral as Mumbai - Alt News Archit 11th September 2020 / 6:50 pm / Last updated: 11th September 2020 Several users on Twitter and Facebook shared an aerial image of a crowded locality. The most prominent structure in the image is a mosque. As per the viral claim, the image is from Mumbai. The state of Maharashtra has been in the news amidst actor Kangana Ranaut’s tussle with Shiv Sena. After alleged illegal construction at the actor’s office in Palli Hill was demolished by the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC), some social media users wonder when will mosques in the city be torn down. A Facebook user Vinit Hindu shared the viral image and wrote in Hindi, “In Mumbai, over 200 illegal mosques are built in the middle of thousands of roads. But BMC is only busy with Kangna’s illegal office construction. #Shameful.” This post has been shared over 3,000 times. (archived link) (Translated from मुंबई में 200 से ज्यादा अवैध मस्जिदें हजारों मजारें सड़कों के बीच बनी हैं! पर BMC को सिर्फ कंगना का ऑफिस अवैध निर्माण लगा! #लानत_है) Hindu Yuva Vahini member Yogi Devnath tweeted the viral image and wrote, “This is also illegal construction, when will Uddhav break this. (ये भी अवैध निर्माण हैं इसे कब तोड़ेंगे उद्धव).” This tweet has been retweeted close to 4,000 times. (archived link) Alt News performed a reverse image search and found that the image was published by Dainik Bhaskar in August. The image is a drone shot of the Katra Bazaar area in Sagar city of Madhya Pradesh. The photographer is Tonu Nirmal as per the photo credits. According to the report, the market was crowded due to the relaxation in lockdown, and the fact that festivals of Eid and Rakshabandhan were around the corner. When we looked for mosques in the same area on Google, we noticed that Jama Masjid (Marqaz) has the same green-coloured shed on top and is located in the middle of a crossway junction just like the mosque in the viral image. Additionally, we compared a photo of the mosque uploaded on Google Maps with the viral image and found five visual points to authenticate that the viral image is of Jama Masjid in Sagar, MP and not Mumbai. 1) Green shed 2) Two domes and a minaret 3) Seven windows in the same sequence 2,2,3 (from right to left) 4) Exact windows beneath the domes 5) Identical slanting wall Thus the social media claim that the mosque is in Mumbai is false. It’s from Sagar’s Katra Bazaar in Madhya Pradesh. 🙏 Blessed to have worked as a fact-checking journalist from November 2019 to February 2023. Rahul and Priyanka Gandhi recently performed aarti at the Narmada Ghat in Madhya Pradesh’s Omkareshwar… In the wake of the alleged murder of Shraddha Walkar by his partner Aftab Amin… The CCTV footage of a man violently flinging a child on the ground has created… The video of a group of people stopping an e-rickshaw with BJP flags attached to… A minute-long video clip of a woman being physically assaulted is viral on social media….	news-altnews	2024-05-27T18:24:05.489452	11th September 2020 / 6:50 pm / Last updated: 11th September 2020	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/image-of-mosque-in-crowded-locality-in-mp-viral-as-mumbai/", "author": "Archit" }
1,535	Image of Muslim-owned shop gutted in Amravati violence shared as "violence against Hindus" - Alt News Pooja Chaudhuri 16th November 2021 / 7:44 pm Curfew was imposed in Maharashtra’s Amravati on November 14 after violence that broke out the previous day continued with a mob destroying private and public property. “On November 12, Muslim organisations called for a bandh in several cities of Maharashtra protesting against the incidents in Tripura where Muslims were allegedly targeted. The bandh turned violent in Malegaon, Nanded and Amravati cities as the mob threw stones and damaged private properties,” reported The Hindu. The next day, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) called for a bandh in Amravati. The bandh, however, turned violent. Stone-pelting, vandalism and incidents of arson were reported from the city. OpIndia published an article where BJP’s Tushar Bhartiya was quoted as saying that Muslim mobs attacked Hindu establishments with swords and stones. The pro-BJP propaganda outlet used an image that showed a cop attempting to douse the fire in a shop. Sudarshan News posted a video of the same shop engulfed in flames and alleged “jihadi violence”. आज भी सुलग रहा महाराष्ट्र- कल नांदेड़, मालेगांव व अमरावती में हुई थी जिहादी हिंसा#amaravati #Nanded pic.twitter.com/SHB5Tznp7E — Sudarshan News (@SudarshanNewsTV) November 13, 2021 OpIndia has used a cropped photo of the burning shop “Khan Electricals”. The original picture is a PTI image and is described as, “Policemen try to douse a fire in a shop after a mob went on a rampage during a bandh allegedly organised by BJP in Amravati on Saturday.” The shop is right beside “Choube’s Nukkad Kachori”, which according to Google Maps is barely a kilometre from Rajkamal Chowk where BJP, Bajrang Dal, Vishwa Hindu Parishad and Maharashtra Navnirman Sena took out a march on Saturday. “Shadab Khan, 36, whose shop established in 1970 for repairing electronic items was gutted too, fought back tears as he counted his losses,” reported The Indian Express. The Wire also spoke to Khan. He said that “he received a call from his uncle on Saturday morning informing him that Hindutva rioters had broken down the lock of his shop. Khan’s attempt to reach his shop was cut short after the police stopped him on the way. Within a few hours, the rioters had set fire to his shop”. The Indian Express further reported that two shops and three two-wheelers parked outside one of the two shops that were burnt were set on fire. The other shop gutted was a two-wheeler repair shop owned by Feroze Ahmed, 37. One other shop was damaged, and the shop owner’s vehicle also burnt. Two shrines were also damaged. It is noteworthy that another report in The Wire says that eye-witnesses claim that the Shani Mandir in Sakkar Saath was attacked by Muslim mobs but the police said that damage was done during “intermittent stone-pelting”. On Friday, November 12, a protest march was called by Raza Academy in Amravati against the alleged anti-Muslim violence in Tripura. A few participants from the march allegedly stormed and ransacked Hindu shops and when the crowd was passing through the Kotwali area, stones were thrown at the house of local BJP leader Pravin Pote. In response, the local BJP unit called for a bandh on Saturday, sparking more violence. The authorities said that hundreds of people gathered chanting slogans and raising saffron flags. Properties belonging to Muslims were damaged in the violence. “More than 70 persons have been arrested thus far and more than 25 FIRs registered at four police stations in Amravati in connection with the violence and vandalism that occurred on November 12 and 13. Officials said Mr. Bonde — the State Agriculture Minister under the erstwhile BJP regime — and Mr. Pote [BJP MLC from Amravati] were instrumental among others in calling for and organising the BJP’s shutdown on November 13,” reported The Hindu. Bonde, Amravati district BJP president Nivedita Chaudhary, city mayor Chetan Gawande, BJP state spokesperson Shivrai Kulkarni were arrested by the police but later granted bail by a court. 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 November 2021 / 7:44 pm	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/image-of-muslim-owned-shop-gutted-in-amravati-violence-shared-as-violence-against-hindus/", "author": "Pooja Chaudhuri" }
1,536	Image of Muslims offering namaz on rooftops in groups is from Dubai - Alt News Jignesh Patel & Mohammed Zubair 14th April 2020 / 10:44 pm / Last updated: 14th April 2020 An image of a group of people offering namaz together on the terrace of buildings is going viral on social media. Film director Vivek Agnihotri tweeted the image and asked, “Any idea where is this? #Quarantine”. It has been retweeted close to 5,000 times so far. Facebook page Hukka aur Khat posted the image with the message, “ये मजहब से वफ़ादारी हो सकती है परन्तु क्या यह वतन से गद्दारी नही.? (This might be loyalty towards the religion but isn’t it being a traitor to the country -translated)”. The post has been shared more than 400 times so far. While the text doesn’t mention the location where the image was shot, it implicitly targets the Muslim community in India. It is important to note that the image tweeted by Agnihotri has been cropped to remove certain structures in the background which are visible in other posts that have tweeted the full photograph. The image was shared on Facebook with the Kannada text, “ಆರೋಗ್ಯ, ಸಮಾಜ ಹಾಗೂ ವೈಜ್ಞಾನಿಕತೆ ಬಗ್ಗೆ #ಕೆಲವರಿಗೆ ಮನವರಿಕೆ ಮಾಡೋದು.! #ಕತ್ತೆ_ಮುಂದೆ_ಕಿನ್ನರಿ_ಬಾರಿಸಿದಂತೆ..?”. Posts by Facebook Pages – Namo and Modi Kingdom – have garnered over 4,300 shares. Alt News has received several requests on its official Android application to fact-check the image. With a Google reverse image search, Alt News found that this image was earlier shared in Saudi Arabia and Kuwait. We found multiple tweets by individuals from these countries. However, the location couldn’t be ascertained. We then closely analysed the image and found that there is a mosque, a water body (possibly a sea), and a water ferry visible in the background. A Google search with the keywords and an assumption that it could possibly be from Dubai led us to the location. We were able to locate the tall building seen in the background of the image near the Dubai creek. The dome and minaret like structures are located inside the Architectural Heritage Department in Dubai, UAE. In the comparison below, we have pointed out the same structure seen in the viral image and the image of the Architectural Heritage Department available on Google. Moreover, we matched the shed or covers seen in the viral image with a Google Earth view of these buildings. The sheds are highlighted with purple stripes. Another image from Google Earth shows the top view of these buildings and the angle from which the image was shot. The reference points were the dome and the minaret in the background circled in yellow. In the comparison below, we were able to match the shopping mall seen in the background of these buildings and further ascertain the location. The image on the top left is the Google Street View while on the right is the Google Earth view of the shopping mall. The image placed on the bottom shows the same shopping mall seen in the viral image. While Alt News could independently verify the location of this image, it is unclear if is recent or an old. An image from Dubai where members of the Muslim community are seen offering namaz has been shared in India with an implied attack on the community for violating lockdown protocol. 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 April 2020 / 10:44 pm / Last updated: 14th April 2020	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/image-of-muslims-offering-namaz-on-rooftops-in-groups-in-from-dubai/", "author": "Jignesh Patel & Mohammed Zubair" }
1,537	Image of Narasimha idol in ISKCON, WB viral as 32,000 year old idol found in Germany - Alt News Archit 28th November 2019 / 3:57 pm An image of Narasimha, part lion and part man avatar of the Hindu god Vishnu, has gone viral on social media. According to a post by Facebook page संस्कृत का उदय (Sanskrit Ka Uday), “जर्मनी में भगवान नरसिंह की ३२००० साल पुरानी मूर्ति (A 32,000-year-old idol of Lord Narasimha found in Germany.)” This post drew over 8,000 likes and more than 3,000 shares before it was deleted. Alt News found that the claim associated with the viral image has been circulating online for several years. There are several posts in Kannada on Facebook from 2012 which claim “ಜರ್ಮನಿಯಲ್ಲಿ ಸಿಕ್ಕ 32000 ವರ್ಷ ಹಳೆಯದಾದ ನರಸಿಂಹರ ವಿಗ್ರಹ (A 32,000-year-old idol of Lord Narasimha found in Germany).” In 2017, Postcard News published the article “32,000 years old Lord Narasimha Idol discovered in Germany”, which shows a different man-lion figurine. The article even highlights “Yes! 32,000-year-old Lord Narasimha Idol was discovered in Southern Germany.” This post has been shared more than 5,000 times. There are also YouTube videos with similar claims. The one attached below has drawn 1,80,000 views since it was uploaded in August 2017. Alt News found that are also several posts on social media with the claim that the same ‘Lord Narasimha’ idol dates back 40,000 years. After performing a reverse image search on Google, Alt News found that the viral image is from a feature story published in 2009 on the Sampradaya Sun’s website. The location of the idol is mentioned in the caption of the image, as highlighted below. Sridham Mayapur refers to ISKCON Mayapur which is located in West Bengal. Thus, the claim that the idol in the viral image is from Germany is incorrect. Alt News also found a video uploaded by Hare Krsna TV – ISKCON Desire Tree, a verified YouTube account which shows the same idol. A reverse image search of the figurine’s photo used in Postcard News, revealed to Alt News that it is the Löwenmensch figurine or Lion-man of the Hohlenstein-Stadel, a cave located in the Jura, Germany. According to a 2011 report by Der Spiegel, the fragments of the mammoth-ivory figurine were discovered by geologist Otto Völzing in August 1939. Currently is displayed in Ulm Museum, Germany. According to the museum, the lion-man is from the Upper Palaeolithic period from 40,000 years ago. The British Museum’s blog post ‘The Lion Man: an Ice Age’ masterpiece states, “He is the oldest known representation of a being that does not exist in physical form but symbolises ideas about the supernatural… It is impossible to know what that story was about or whether he was deity, an avatar to the spirit world, part of a creation story or a human whose experiences on a journey through the cosmos to communicate with spirits caused this transformation.” Therefore the claim in the viral posts that the figurine from Germany is around 32,000 to 40,000 years old is true. However, no credible sources claim the figurine represents Lord Narasimha. An image of a Narasimha idol in ISKCON Mayapur, West Bengal is viral on social media as a 32,000-year-old sculpture of the Hindu god excavated in Germany. Another image, of a prehistoric lion-man figurine, was shared with a similar claim. 🙏 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	28th November 2019 / 3:57 pm	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/image-of-narasimha-idol-in-iskcon-wb-viral-as-32000-year-old-idol-found-in-germany/", "author": "Archit" }
1,538	Image of NATO-G7 emergency meeting shared with a misleading claim about Modi not being invited - Alt News Kalim Ahmed 21st November 2022 / 7:06 pm Last week during the G20 summit in Bali, world leaders were informed of a missile attack in Przewodow, a village in eastern Poland near the border with Ukraine. The explosion in the NATO member state, which is understood to have killed at least two people, came as a wave of Russian missiles hit civilian targets across Ukraine, including the capital Kyiv. In the context of this critical situation, journalists reported that on November 16, US President Joe Biden had called for an emergency meeting of like-minded leaders. A photo of the emergency meeting was also shared across social media. President Biden is hosting a meeting of likeminded leaders here in Bali imminently on Ukraine, Poland and the explosions in Poland that may have been caused by a Russian rocket. — Josh Wingrove (@josh_wingrove) November 16, 2022 Professor Ashok Swain, a strong critic of Prime Minister Modi tweeted a photo of the meeting with the caption, “Biden called an emergency meeting at #G20 – India’s so-called Vishwaguru Modi is missing!”. Professor Swain’s caption took a dig at PM Modi for not being invited to the meeting despite being the “vishwaguru” (world leader). Twitter user Kamran also shared the photo on the platform with similar captions as Ashok Swain. While replying to a tweet of BJP leader Subramanian Swamy, user @cheroor2010 also added the viral photo with similar captions. The user also described India’s foreign policy as “Hijda”, a pejorative for transgender people in South Asia. We performed a Google search using relevant keywords and came across various news reports regarding the emergency meeting held by President Biden. As per CNN, this roundtable meeting involved leaders from Canada, the European Union, Spain, Italy, France, Germany, the Netherlands, and Japan. The Independent reported that President Biden had convened an ‘emergency’ G7 and Nato meeting after Russian-made rockets strike Poland. The New York Times reported that NATO and G7 leaders issued a statement offering their full support to Poland’s ongoing investigation. Based on this, we performed a subsequent keyword search and found the full statement on the website of the White House. The heading of the statement highlights that it is a joint statement of NATO and G7 leaders and the first paragraph also mentions the countries that were present at the meeting. It is important to note that India is neither a NATO member state nor a G7 country. The NATO website says, “NATO is an Alliance that consists of 30 independent member countries.” We did not find India on the list. The G7 Germany website highlights Canada, the United Kingdom, The European Union, Germany, Italy, France, Japan, and the USA. During a press conference on November 16, Polish President Andrzej Duda said that there was a “high chance” it was an air defence missile from the Ukrainian side and likely had fallen in Poland in “an accident” while intercepting incoming Russian missiles. Reuters reported, “The United States and its NATO allies are investigating the blast that killed two people in Poland, but early information suggests it may not have been caused by a missile fired from Russia, U.S. President Joe Biden said.” In summary, a meeting chaired by President Biden with G7 and NATO leaders did not include India because it is neither a NATO member nor a G7 member. Critics of PM Modi wrongly assumed that the leader was not invited due to its foreign policy. Despite being corrected that this was a NATO-G7 meeting, Professor Swain kept asking users to explain why Japan was included in the meeting. Japan is a G7 country. Kalim is a journalist with a keen interest in tech, misinformation, culture, etc Rahul and Priyanka Gandhi recently performed aarti at the Narmada Ghat in Madhya Pradesh’s Omkareshwar… In the wake of the alleged murder of Shraddha Walkar by his partner Aftab Amin… The video of a group of people stopping an e-rickshaw with BJP flags attached to… Recently, several prominent BJP leaders claimed that Prime Minister Narendra Modi had intervened to stop… Soon after the news of the alleged murder of 26-year-old Shraddha Walker in Delhi’s Mehrauli…	news-altnews	2024-05-27T18:24:05.489452	21st November 2022 / 7:06 pm	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/image-of-nato-g7-emergency-meeting-shared-with-a-misleading-claim-about-modi-not-being-invited/", "author": "Kalim Ahmed" }
1,539	Image of Pakistani flag at immigration centre, Katarpur corridor shared as Gurudwara Darbar Sahib - Alt News Jignesh Patel 14th November 2019 / 9:19 pm / Last updated: 14th November 2019 Images of a building whose rooftop is painted with the Pakistani national flag are being circulated on social media. They were shared by a Facebook page with the claim that the rooftop is of Gurudwara Darbar Sahib Kartarpur where ideally a Khanda flag should be placed. “Pakistan puts their flags on the rooftop of Kartarpur Gurudwara, instead of khanda flag”, reads the post. On November 9, Prime Minister Narendra Modi flagged off the Kartarpur corridor on the occasion of 550th birth anniversary of Sikhism founder Guru Nanak Dev. The India-Pakistan corridor links the Sikh shrines Dera Baba Nanak in Gurdaspur, India and Gurdwara Darbar Sahib, Kartarpur in Pakistan. The Kartarpur Gurudwara is believed to the final resting place of Guru Nanak. A few more people on Twitter and Facebook shared the images with identical narrative. These pictures have been circulating on social media since the beginning of November. With the help of a Google reverse image search, Alt News found that the building shown in the images is the immigration centre at the Kartarpur border. We traced back the image to a report published by Pakistani English daily The Express Tribune on November 4, 2019. “A green flag, which stretches 150 feet high, has been hoisted near the immigration centre. Buses will be ready to receive Indian guests from the border. Scanners, for checking luggage, have also been installed at the gates of Gurdwara Sahib.”, states the report. You can view the aerial image of the immigration centre here. As seen on Google Maps, the immigration centre at the Kartarpur corridor is situated at a distance from Gurudwara Darbar Sahib Kartapur. According to a report in The Economic Times, the immigration centre was set up in the connection with the Kartarpur corridor in Narowal, which is close to 120 km from Lahore, the capital city of Punjab Province in Pakistan. Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) Deputy Director (Punjab) Mufakhar Adeel was quoted by the media outlet as saying that the border crossing could be an easy target for “terrorists, human traffickers and drug dealers” hence the centre was built to keep the situation under control on both sides of the border. In the below video, one can see the immigration centre and the Pakistani flag hoisted at the venue. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EyZq-kt2MAU Khand flag is a Sikh religious flag usually hoisted outside gurudwaras. Social media claims suggested that the flag is not raised at Kartapur Gurudwara. However, in the image below, one can see a Khanda flag hoisted beside the place of worship. It is also noteworthy that apart from the immigration centre which is situated at a distance from the Gurudwara, one of the structures situated in the Gurudwara’s corridor also adorns the Pakistani national flag on the rooftop. We corroborated the same flag in an image posted by the official Twitter handle of Pakistani PM Imran Khan. In conclusion, photographs of the immigration centre at Kartarpur corridor are being circulated with the claim that the Pakistani national flag was painted over the rooftop of Gurudwara Darbar Sahib. 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	14th November 2019 / 9:19 pm / Last updated: 14th November 2019	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/image-of-pakistani-flag-at-immigration-centre-katarpur-corridor-shared-as-gurudwara-darbar-sahib/", "author": "Jignesh Patel" }
1,540	Images of PM Modi taking a dip during 2004 Kumbh Mela shared as recent - Alt News Jignesh Patel 18th January 2019 / 6:37 pm / Last updated: 18th January 2019 A set of images featuring Prime Minister Narendra Modi taking a holy dip in a river has gone viral on social media. It is claimed that the Prime Minister took the holy dip in Uttar Pradesh during the ongoing Kumbh Mela. Facebook pages- We Support Nationalism , I Support Modi, and Akhand bharat have shared the images with the identical narrative, garnering a combined share count of nearly 4,000. Several other individuals on Facebook and Twitter have shared the images with the same narrative. Alt News did a Google reverse image search and found an article published in May, 2016. In the year 2004, PM Modi had taken a holy dip during the Ujjain Simhastha, one of the four religio-cultural fairs widely recognised as the ‘Kumbh Mela’. A report by Patrika ascertains that Narendra Modi was at the 2004 Ujjain Simhastha held every 12 years on the banks of the Shipra river. These images pertain to that event. In conclusion, the set of images viral on social media featuring the Prime Minister are old and unrelated to the ongoing Kumbh Mela in Uttar Pradesh. Those who are sharing these images would be well aware that every public appearance of the Prime Minister is widely covered, and had the PM visited the Kumbh mela, it would have been reported across all mainstream media outlets. Despite such obvious fallacy, various propaganda pages that favour the BJP tried to mislead their audience. 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	18th January 2019 / 6:37 pm / Last updated: 18th January 2019	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/image-of-pm-modi-taking-a-dip-during-2004-kumbh-mela-shared-as-recent/", "author": "Jignesh Patel" }
1,541	Fact-check: Sikh group in Jalandhar protested against the film Laal Singh Chaddha? - Alt News Abhishek Kumar 17th August 2022 / 10:02 am Aamir Khan’s film Laal Singh Chaddha has been released in the midst of a wave of controversy. Outraged by an old statement made by Khan, Hindu organizations announced that they would boycott the film, and called the actor anti-Hindu. A related hashtag campaign has also been circulating online for several days. Against this backdrop, a picture of a group of people holding a poster of the film is viral on social media. It has been claimed that the group pictured here had come to protest against the film. Aaj Tak used the photo as the thumbnail of an article with the caption, “Protest against Laal Singh Chaddha in Jalandhar”. The outlet later removed the picture and replaced it with a file photo of the film. (Archived link) BJP leader Arun Yadav tweeted the picture and wrote, “Protest against Laal Singh Chaddha in Jalandhar, slogans of Aamir Khan Murdabad (Down with Aamir Khan) raised.” (Archived link) Sadhvi Prachi also made a similar claim while sharing the photo on Facebook. The image and accompanying claim are also widespread on Facebook and Twitter. Alt News performed a reverse image search of the viral photo, this led us to an article by The Indian Express carrying a picture which resembles the one in circulation. The accompanying caption states, “Sikhs protest in favour of Laal Singh Chaddha”. The article also explains that those associated with the Shiv Sena protested against the film by gathering in front of the cinema hall earlier. Following this, a group of Sikhs held a demonstration in support of the film. We also found a video report by The Tribune covering the incident. As per the outlet, the Sikh Talmel Committee demonstrated outside a cinema hall in support of the film Laal Singh Chaddha and said that they would not allow any other organization to stop the screening of the film. [youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y8GrD9hI3z0] To sum it up, a picture of a demonstration by members of the Sikh Talmel Committee in Jalandhar in support of the Bollywood film Laal Singh Chaddha was falsely shared by BJP leaders and social media users with a misleading claim. 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	17th August 2022 / 10:02 am	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/image-of-protest-in-support-of-amirs-laal-singh-chadda-shared-with-false-claim/", "author": "Abhishek Kumar" }
1,542	Image of Rahul Gandhi with portrait of Aurangzeb in background viral on social media - Alt News Jignesh Patel 17th July 2018 / 8:37 pm An image of Rahul Gandhi captioned “इन देशभक्तों ने यह कौन से देश भक्त की तस्वीर लगा रखी है” (Which nationalist’s portrait have these patriots put up- translated) has been posted by Facebook page, हिंदुत्व को बचाना है भगवा लाना है Mission 2024 Successfull. It had been shared more than 12700 times at the time of writing. इन देशभक्तों ने यह कौन से देश भक्त की तस्वीर लगा रखी है Posted by हिंदुत्व को बचाना है भगवा लाना है Mission 2024 Successfull on Wednesday, 27 June 2018 Moreover, It has been shared by another page, We Support Namo नरेंद्र मोदी. The text sarcastically points out the highlighted photo frame of Aurangzeb painting calling it a picture of a patriot. Alt News did a Google reverse image search and found a list of news reports on Rahul Gandhi filing his nomination for Congress President. An article published in The Indian Express article on Dec 4, 2017 was titled, “Congress hails Rahul Gandhi’s elevation as beginning ‘new era’: Who said what”. The original image has a Mahatma Gandhi portrait in the background. At times when social media is rife with photoshopped images, users can utilize image verification tools like Google reverse image search which comes handy in debunking misinformation. In this case, however, it is plain ridiculous to believe that a political party would have a picture of Aurangzeb on their wall. Posts like these are aimed at the most gullible who unfortunately tend to believe and share such content. 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	17th July 2018 / 8:37 pm	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/image-of-rahul-gandhi-with-portrait-of-aurangzeb-in-background-viral-on-social-media/", "author": "Jignesh Patel" }
1,543	Photo of railway station in Ukraine viral as mosque built by Bangladesh' cricketer Shakib Al Hasan - Alt News Kinjal 13th March 2021 / 2:29 pm / Last updated: 13th March 2021 A wedding picture of Bangladeshi cricketer Shakib Al Hasan has been shared with an image of a large building. It has been claimed that the building is a mosque built by Hasan and his wife in Bangladesh that cost the couple Rs 90 lakh. Facebook group ‘मौलाना साद साहब के चाहने वालों का ग्रूप’ (Maulana Saad Saheb’s Fans Group) shared the claim, gathering more than 10,000 likes and 500 shares at the time of writing. Twitter user Dr Mohammad Shakir Khan shared the pictures with the same claim. (Archive link) बांग्लादेश के मुसलमान खिलाड़ी साकिब अल हसन और उसकी पत्नी ने अपने शहर में एक मस्जिद बनवाई जिसमें लगभग 90 लाख रुपए का खर्चा आया। इस खर्चे को पूरा शाकिब अल हसन ने अपनी जेब से दिया या अल्लाह इस के नेक इरादों को पूरा करें🤲🤲🤲 #अलहमदुलिल्लाह!👇 pic.twitter.com/l2rVtMhYQg — Dr Mohd Shakir Khan ( 30K ) (@prof_shak) March 11, 2021 The images are viral on Facebook and have also made their way to WhatsApp. Alt News performed a keyword search on Google and did not find any reports corroborating the viral claim. Moreover, the supposed picture of the mosque is actually a railway station in Kharkiv, the second-largest city in Ukraine. There are several photos of this station on Google. ‘Iuic.info‘, which contains information on different cities, has shared a picture of this railway station. It closely resembles the viral photo. Using Google Street View, we were able to confirm this picture is Ukraine’s Kharkiv Railway Station. A picture of a railway station in Ukraine was falsely shared as a mosque built by Bangladeshi cricketer Shakib Al Hasan in his country. 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	13th March 2021 / 2:29 pm / Last updated: 13th March 2021	{ "license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "url": "https://www.altnews.in/englishclone/image-of-railway-station-in-ukraine-shared-with-false-claim-that-cricketer-shakib-al-hasan-made-mosque/", "author": "Kinjal" }

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