Authors
Pankaj Menon is a fact-checker based out of Delhi who enjoys ‘digital sleuthing’ and calling out misinformation. He has completed his MA in International Relations from Madras University and has worked with organisations like NDTV, Times Now and Deccan Chronicle online in the past.
Claim
An image of the Prime Minister, standing under a railway clock that reads ‘4:20’ as the time.
An archived version of the same can be seen here.
Fact check/ Verification
To find out the authenticity of the viral image, Newschecker conducted a reverse image search of the photograph. We found several news reports from December 2021 carrying the same image. They can be seen here, here, and here. However, the time displayed on the digital clock above the PM was ‘1:13’ and not ‘4:20’.
Reports indicated that the image was clicked when the PM was in Varanasi to take stock of the Kashi Vishwanath Corridor that was taking shape in Benares at the time. The PM reportedly made a surprise inspection at the Benares railway station, which was being redeveloped at a cost of Rs 100 crore in an effort to provide state-of-the-art and modern amenities to commuters.
An ABP LIVE report read “At around 1.13 AM, PM tweeted: “Next stop…Banaras station. We are working to enhance rail connectivity as well as ensure clean, modern, and passenger-friendly railway stations.”
We found the same image tweeted by the Prime Minister from his official twitter account on December 14, 2021.
The same image was also tweeted by the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting.
In all these images, we clearly see that the clock indicates the time to be 1:13am and not 4:20, proving that the image has been digitally altered.
Result: Altered Media
(This article was first published for Newschecker Tamil by Ramkumar Kaliamurthy)
Sources
Facebook Post, from Ministry of Information & Broadcasting, Government of India, Dated December 14, 2021
Twitter post by PM Narendra Modi, on December 14, 2021
News report published by ABP Live, on December 14, 2021
News report published by Asianet Hindi, on December 14, 2021
News report published by Navbharat Times, on December 14, 2021
News report published by Moneycontrol, on December 14, 2021
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Authors
Pankaj Menon is a fact-checker based out of Delhi who enjoys ‘digital sleuthing’ and calling out misinformation. He has completed his MA in International Relations from Madras University and has worked with organisations like NDTV, Times Now and Deccan Chronicle online in the past.