BJP Delhi’s media head Naveen Kumar Jindal posted a 30-second clip of Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal from an India TV interview. In the video, CM Kejriwal can be heard saying, “Earlier money would reach the chief minister… the entire system was created to facilitate the lower levels to take money… Money was collected from all departments, police, and revenue department officials and sent to the top. Now our Bhagwant Mann takes money, I take money, and even our MLAs and members take money. There was a meeting of revenue department officials in Punjab. They said – take money at lower levels or send it to the top…”

Pro-BJP government Facebook pages such as Narendra Modi fans and India With MODI also shared the video.

Doctored video

The clip posted by BJP’s Naveen Kumar Jindal is from an India TV interview from April 4. The pertinent 30 seconds begin from the 6:54 mark. In order to understand the viral portions, the viewers must know what was Kejriwal responding to in the interview.

Around the 6:23 mark, the interviewer asked, “In your visit to Gujarat, you said in front of Bhagwant Mann ji that he got rid of corruption in 10 days. People… your political opponents made fun of you and asked you to reveal how you did that in ten days?”

At the 6:34 mark, CM Kejriwal responded, “Why don’t you visit and see for yourself? I’m inviting you. Send your local reporters or stringers to any registrar’s office, revenue department’s office, police station or anywhere for that matter. Ask them to bribe the officials to get work done. People aren’t taking bribes. Why aren’t they taking bribes? Try to understand. Because earlier money would reach the chief minister… the entire system was created to facilitate the lower levels to take money… Money was collected from all departments, police, and revenue department officials and sent to the top. Now our Bhagwant Mann doesn’t take money, I don’t take money, and even our MLAs and members don’t take money. There was a meeting of revenue department officials in Punjab. They said there is no need to take money at lower levels or send it to the top since no one is taking money…”

The bold text highlights the audio heard in the viral segment. The portion of the interview shared by Jindal was edited in parts to change the meaning of what was said by Kejriwal.

To sum it up, Naveen Kumar Jindal shared a doctored clip of CM Kejriwal’s interview with India TV. In the interview, CM Kejriwal claimed that none of AAP’s officials in Punjab take bribes. However, the viral clip was edited to mislead the viewer by making it appear that CM Kejriwal admitted that he and his officials in Punjab accept bribes.

Donate to Alt News!
Independent journalism that speaks truth to power and is free of corporate and political control is possible only when people start contributing towards the same. Please consider donating towards this endeavour to fight fake news and misinformation.

Donate Now

About the Author

🙏 Blessed to have worked as a fact-checking journalist from November 2019 to February 2023.