Fact Check by BOOM: An old video of Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) Jharkhand chief Babulal Marandi criticising Prime Minister Narendra Modi has gone viral, with claims falsely linking it to the ongoing assembly election in the state. However, the claim was debunked by the fact check team as it found that the viral video dates back to December 2018 when Marandi was not part of the BJP.
The first phase of voting in Jharkhand was held on November 13, 2024, with the state recording 64.86 per cent voter turnout. The second phase of voting in the state is underway with the results to be declared on November 23. The ruling Jharkhand Mukti Morcha faces off against the BJP which is the main opposition in the state.
What did Babulal Marandi say in the viral video?
In the viral video Marandi can be heard saying, "The promises that Modi ji made in 2014 remain unfulfilled. Now they are making society fight along religious lines between Hindus and Muslims. Sometimes on the issue of cows, mosques and temples, religious convertions, and Love Jihad, People did not elect this government for this. The PM is playing a cruel joke with the poor, who will vote for such a person? Whoever votes for them is the worst. The government wants people to fight among themselves, do they want this country to become Pakistan? If Modi ji continues as prime minister, the situation in India could worsen over the next five years, leading to increased communal riots and halting the nation's progress, Who would want to see India turn into another Pakistan?"
Who shared the video?
The video was posted on X by Supreme Court advocate Prashant Bhushan.
Click here to view, and here for an archive.
The same video was also posted by political activist Yogendra Yadav with a similar caption. (Click here to view)
FACT-CHECK
Video of BJP Jharkhand chief dates back to 2018
A reverse image search on the key-frames of the video showed results that it dated back to December 2018. A local media outlet - Taaza Jharkhand had posted the same video on December 14, 2018.
The caption when translated reads to English reads, "On the question of Rafale deal, Jharkhand Vikas Morcha President and former Chief Minister Babulal Marandi said that no comment can be made on the orders of the Supreme Court. At the same time, he did not miss the opportunity to take a dig at the current central government on this issue. He said that the government was only asked to tell the price of the Rafale fighter jet, what secrecy can there be regarding security in this"
From BJP to JVM to BJP
Babulal Marandi was the first Chief Minister of Jharkhand after the state was carved out of Bihar in 2000. He resigned from the BJP in 2006 and formed his own party, the Jharkhand Vikas Morcha (JVM). In 2020, Marandi merged JVM with the BJP, and in July 2023, he was appointed as the head of the BJP's state unit in Jharkhand.
FACT CHECK: The video dates back to December 2018, when Babulal Marandi was a member of the Jharkhand Vikas Morcha (JVM). Marandi founded the JVM in 2006 which he merged with the BJP in 2020.
(Disclaimer: This story was originally published by BOOM, and republished by India TV as part of the Shakti Collective.)
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