India TV Fact Check: A collage of four images has been circulating on social media, with the claim that a 1,500-year-old idol of a Vishnu statue, along with symbols like the Sudarshan Chakra and other Hindu symbols, were discovered during a survey of a Mughal-era mosque in Sambhal district, Uttar Pradesh.
What is going viral?
The collage which is going viral shows Shivling, two idols of the Lord Vishnu, and another item resembling the Sudarshan Chakra. A Facebook user shared the collage with the caption in Telugu, which translates to, "1500-year-old Vishnu statue, Sudarshana Chakra, and Hindu symbols discovered during the survey of the Sambhal Mosque. Every Hindu should share and preserve Hinduism."
This is going viral
Notably, Sambhal has been in the news recently as a court-ordered survey of a mosque (Shahi Jama Masjid) led to clashes between protesters and security personnel, leaving four people dead and many injured.
India TV did investigation
As the post went viral, we decided to investigate the claim. We conducted a reverse image search of the viral collage, which led us to an X post by NDTV on February 7, 2024, titled "Centuries-Old Vishnu Idol, Shivling Found In Karnataka Riverbed." Three of the images seen here match those shared in the now-viral claim.
A detailed report by NDTV stated that a 1,000-year-old Vishnu idol and the Shivling were recovered from the Krishna riverbed in an area called Shakti Nagar in Karnataka's Raichur district. As per the report, the Vishnu idol and the Shivling are now in the possession of the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI). The Vishnu idol resembles the feature of the Ram Lalla statue installed at the newly inaugurated Ram temple in Ayodhya. The Ram Lalla statue was carved by Arun Yogiraj, a popular sculptor from the state.
NDTV news report
These images were also published in reports by The Times of India and local news channel TV9 Kannada in February 2024, corroborating the details mentioned above.
Further, we found the fourth image in the collage, believed to be the Sudarshan Chakra, on an online shopping website called Indiamart. The caption under the image reads, "Material: Brass Sudarshanachakra Kalasham, Temple." According to the website, the material is manufactured and sold by Kolcharam Art Creations in Hyderabad.
Sudharshan Chakra image on online shopping website called Indiamart
What came out in fact check?
A fact-check by India TV has debunked the viral social media post, revealing it to be manipulated and misleading. The post falsely claims that idols were discovered during a survey of a mosque in Sambhal. In reality, three of the images of idols of the Hindu God were recovered in Karnataka, while the fourth image is from a shopping website.
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