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: Today in Telangana, during a protest Asaduddin Owaisi’s party disrespected the Indian national flag by purportedly replacing Ashoka Chakra with the Islamic kalima.
Fact: The viral clip is not recent and it is old from 2022.
As political parties are gearing up for the Lok Sabha elections 2024, a news clip is making rounds on social media stating that Asaduddin Owaisi’s party in Telangana allegedly staged a protest event, in which the Indian flag was purportedly desecrated and the Ashoka Chakra replaced with the Islamic kalima.
Posting that clip on Facebook one wrote, “urgent information This video is very important. Send this to any big group you are associated with and tell Hindus and warn everyone. Unite, otherwise this day is not far. In place of Ashok Chakra, they wrote Islamic Kalma in the national flag of India.” (Archive Link)
Many of such posts can be seen here, here and here.
Newschecker received this claim on our Whatsapp tipline (9999499044), too, requesting it to be fact-checked.
Fact Check/ Verification
A viral video clip purportedly shows the Zee News logo and journalist Sudhir Chowdhury narrating the alleged incident. But Chowdhury left Zee News and joined AajTak as a Consulting Editor in July 2022. This raised doubts regarding the authenticity of the viral claim.
Newschecker then ran a search on the internet with the keywords, ‘Telangana national flag Islamic Kalima’ and found the same incident was reported by India Today on June 10, 2022, with the same video.
We found the original video published by Zee News on their official YouTube channel on June 10, 2022.
As per the report published on the Firstpost on the same date, the incident reportedly occurred in Telangana’s Mahabubnagar district amidst protests sparked by Nupur Sharma’s controversial comments on Prophet Muhammad.
Conclusion
Thus it is clear that the viral clip is not recent and it is old from 2022.
Result: Missing Context
Source
Video by India Today, dated June 10, 2022
Video by Zee News, dated June 10, 2022
Report by Firstpost, dated June 10, 2022
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.
