Authors
Kushel HM is a mechanical engineer-turned-journalist, who loves all things football, tennis and films. He was with the news desk at the Hindustan Times, Mumbai, before joining Newschecker.
Claim
Social media campaign, urging Hindus to give a missed call to 9090902024 as a mark of support for UCC.
Fact
No such pro-UCC drive, missed call campaign was part of BJP’s mega outreach programme ahead of the 2024 general elections to mark its nine years in power.
Several social media users are circulating what appears to be a campaign for the implementation of the Uniform Civil Code (UCC), urging Hindus to give a missed call to 9090902024, so as to indicate their consent for UCC. “Already in two days 4 crore Muslims and 2 crore Christians have voted against UCC. Therefore, before the deadline, 6th July, all Hindus in the country are requested to vote in favour of the UCC. Please give missed call on 9090902024 to support UCC and save the country (sic),” read a Whatsapp forward.
The archived versions of the tweets can be seen here and here. We received this claim on our Whatsapp tipline (9999499044), too, requesting it to be fact-checked.
Fact Check
Newschecker ran a keyword search for “UCC missed call 909090204”, which did not throw up any credible news reports of such a campaign.
We, however, came across this India Today report, dated May 31, 2023, titled “BJP launches unique missed call campaign ahead of 2024 Lok Sabha polls”. “In the run-up to the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has launched a unique ‘missed call’ campaign with a special number: 9090902024. This initiative aims to expand the party’s support base and is reminiscent of the membership drive conducted by the party in 2019,” read the report, adding that the number itself holds significant symbolism, representing the nine years of the Modi government and the crucial election year of 2024. “The BJP, known for its strategic approach, has carefully chosen this number as a nod to its past nine years in power while seeking a renewed mandate from the people in the upcoming polls,” stated the report. Similar reports can be seen here and here.
“Union ministers and senior organisational members of the BJP will fan out across the country as part of its month-long mass connect exercise to mark the Modi government’s ninth anniversary in what is also seen as the ruling party’s mega outreach to drum up support as the 2024 Lok Sabha elections approach,” stated the NDTV report, adding that the month-long drive, which started from May 31, ends on June 30. “The BJP also launched a mobile number (9090902024) for people to show their support to the party by giving a missed call,” read the report.
The BJP’s press release for the drive can be seen here.
We gave a missed call to the number, following which we received an SMS, thanking us for our support to the Modi government and a link, directing us to the website that focuses on the nine years of the Narendra Modi government.
BJP’s official website, too, speaks about the missed-call campaign. There is no mention of UCC across these news reports, the BJP press release and the webpages.
We reached out to the BJP and will update this article once we receive a response.
Why Discussion Around UCC?
The BJP has reportedly initiated a discussion in the party and the country on the UCC after Prime Minister Narendra Modi spoke of the need for it. The UCC, which relates to a common law pertaining to marriage, divorce, inheritance, maintenance and succession of property for citizens of all religions, has been part of BJP’s manifesto since the inception of the party.
Conclusion
A missed-call campaign that was part of a month-long mass connect drive to mark the Narendra Modi government’s ninth anniversary has gone viral as a pro-UCC movement.
Result: False
Sources
India Today report, May 31, 2023
NDTV report, May 31, 2023
BJP press release, May 30, 2023
BJP official website
BJP webpage dedicated to the mass connect drive
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Authors
Kushel HM is a mechanical engineer-turned-journalist, who loves all things football, tennis and films. He was with the news desk at the Hindustan Times, Mumbai, before joining Newschecker.
