Screenshot of a social media put up with a false declare (Source: Logically Facts)
https://perma.cc/46GL-KRHJMultiple social media customers have shared a collage of two photographs: one displaying the Shri Siddhivinayak Temple in Mumbai and the opposite that includes the idol of the Hindu god Ganesha positioned inside the temple. The posts declare that the Waqf Board has staked a declare to the temple.
The viral collage additionally shows the emblem of Sakal, a Marathi-language each day newspaper, on the highest proper nook, giving the impression that the put up originated from the newspaper.
One consumer wrote a put up in Marathi on X, which roughly interprets to: “Very infuriating! Waqf Board claims on Siddhivinayak Temple, which is the idol of Hindus and the identification of Mumbai! The Mahavikas Aghadi has given written consent to the calls for of the Ulema, together with the demand for Waqf. If you need to save temples and forts, vote for Mahayuti!”
The Mahayuti (translated as Grand Alliance) is the ruling coalition in Maharashtra. The alliance presently contains three main events: the BJP, Shiv Sena (SHS), and the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP).
This put up, from November 18, 2024, has garnered over 40,000 views. Archived variations of this and related posts carrying the purported Sakal information graphic, together with one by Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MLA Nitesh Rane, will be discovered right here, right here, right here, and right here.
The Waqf Board is a statutory physique in India that manages waqf properties, that are charitable endowments made by Muslims for spiritual, academic, or neighborhood functions.
Some others have shared the declare with out the viral graphic, alleging the identical. Archived variations of such posts will be discovered right here and right here.
However, our investigation discovered that the viral declare is fake and that the graphic getting used to help it has been fabricated.
What did we discover?
A reverse picture search of the viral collage with the Sakal emblem didn’t yield credible outcomes. No such graphic was discovered on Sakal Media’s social media accounts, and no report was printed by the newspaper.
A visible comparability between the viral graphic and Sakal’s official creatives posted on their social media revealed a number of discrepancies. Unlike the viral graphic, Sakal’s posts do not need borders, and the textual content in Sakal creatives is at all times left-aligned, whereas the textual content contained in the viral graphic is centered.
Further, Sakal has issued statements on its social media clarifying that the picture is pretend. A press release posted by Sakal on X (archived right here) in Marathi roughly interprets to: “Currently, a deceptive inventive within the title of ‘Sakal’ has gone viral on social media with the title ‘Waqf Board’s Claim on Siddhivinayak Temple in Mumbai.’ However, no such inventive has been created by ‘Sakal,’ and this mischief has been accomplished by utilizing the title and emblem of ‘Sakal.'”
Shital Pawar, Executive Editor of Sakal Media, additionally posted on X (archived right here), clarifying that the viral picture is pretend.
Shiv Sena (UBT) chief Aaditya Thackeray reacted to the declare, writing on X (archived right here): “The completely disgusting mentality of the BJP’s ecosystem. Divide and rule. Lie and attempt to win. Will the @ECISVEEP and @MumbaiPolice ever act and arrest such disgusting hate creators and Maharashtra haters? Don’t play with our sentiments and feelings in Maharashtra on your votes.”
What did Waqf Board and Siddhivinayak Temple say?
Logically Facts contacted the Maharashtra Waqf Board for clarification. Junaid Syed, CEO of the Maharashtra Waqf Board, instructed us: “This is pretend information. There is not any such communication, nor has the board made any such declare.”
A video that includes Pawan Kumar Tripathi, treasurer of the Sri Siddhivinayak Mandir Trust, has been extensively shared on social media, the place he will be heard saying that the temple is a logo of Mumbai’s satisfaction and that no board can lay declare to it. He additional acknowledged that the temple has at all times belonged to the devotees of Lord Ganesha and can proceed to take action.
Logically Facts contacted Tripathi for additional remark. He confirmed that the video was real and added that the temple has not obtained any communication from the Waqf Board and that he has seen no such declare from them.
The verdict
Both the temple authorities and the Maharashtra Waqf Board have confirmed to Logically Facts that no such declare has been made on the Shri Siddhivinayak Temple. Sakal Media additionally clarified in public statements that the viral social media graphic carrying the information group’s emblem is pretend.
(This story was initially printed by Logically Facts, and republished by NDTV as a part of the Shakti Collective)