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: A singer mixing Islamic chants with a Hindu stotras on Navaratri in front of a large crowd in West Bengal.
Fact: The video is from last year’s July 21 Martyr’s Day Rally organised by the Trinamool Congress.
A video showing a singer blending Islamic chants with a Hindu stotras in front of a large crowd, is going viral on social media platforms, with users claiming that it showed Islamic chants during Navaratri celebrations in West Bengal. A large cut out of West Bengal’s Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee can also be seen in the background of the video.
The video is being widely shared on Facebook, and one such user, who shared the video, wrote, “This is West Bengal, if you also want to have such aarti of Mata Rani in Navratri, then you can vote anyone except BJP. Your choice??”
Many users shared the same video on Twitter with similar claims, as can be seen here, and here.
However, an investigation by Newschecker found that the viral claim is false.
Fact Check/ Verification
A reverse image search of the viral clip led us to a video posted on the official YouTube channel of All India Trinamool Congress on July 21, 2023, the occasion of Martyrs’ Day. The portion of the video that is now viral can be spotted from 43:13 to 45:56 minutes mark in the larger video.
The singer seen in the viral clip is Shatntanu Roy Chowdhury. Before the song, he can be heard announcing, “The next song was recorded on the request of our Chief Minister when she took charge of the state for the first time”.
Additionally, we found that the lyrics of the song convey a message of communal harmony, highlighted by lines such as,”If I get a little touch of that fire, the blackness of the mind will burn to ashes. Religion is not written in a child’s mind and he does not know much about Rahim and Ram. Alla is God, Alla is God.”
Conclusion
Thus it is clear that a video from last year’s July 21 Martyr’s Day Rally organised by the Trinamool Congress in Kolkata is being shared as a video showing Islamic chants during Navaratri in west Bengal.
Result: False
Sources
Video uploaded on the YouTube handle of AITC, Dated July 21, 2023
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.
