BJP’s missed call campaign number falsely shared with appeal to Hindus for supporting UCC

by Abhishek Kumar

The Uniform Civil Code (UCC) has been a hotly debated issue for decades in India. The proposed legislation contains a provision to establish a common set of laws applicable to every citizen of the country, regardless of their religion, community, or province. It has also come under fire from time to time, with critics claiming that if it were to come into effect, the personal laws of Hindu, Muslim, Christian and Zoroastrian religions will end, thereby violating their rights. Recently, Prime Minister Narendra Modi mentioned the Uniform Civil Code in a program in Bhopal, after which this debate has gained momentum. Opposition parties opposed the move, while Tamil Nadu chief minister and DMK party chief MK Stalin took aim at the PM and said that it was an attempt to create instability in the country and spark religious violence. Congress leader Kapil Sibal questioned the Prime Minister on the Uniform Civil Code, asking if it would include Hindus, tribals and the people from the northeast.

On June 14, the Union ministry of law and justice issued a press release soliciting the views of stakeholders including recognized religious organisations and the public at large about the UCC. Interested individuals and organisations may submit their views to the Law Commission of India by email at [email protected]. Later, the Law Commission extended its deadline to July 28.

Since then a phone number is being circulated online with the claim that over 20 lakh Muslims and Christians had voted against the UCC. Hindus are being asked to indicate their consent for the Uniform Civil Code by giving a missed call on the phone number 9090902024. A user named Subba Rao made the same claim in a tweet.

BJP leader and Olympian Yogeshwar Dutt also posted a similar tweet mentioning the same phone number where one should register one’s support for the UCC. (Archived link)

Another user named Vinod Sharma also shared the viral mobile number linking it to the UCC. He also made an appeal to others to give a missed call on the number to register their support.

Similarly, many other users also urged Hindus to support the UCC by giving a missed call on 9090902024.

Fact Check

We searched for this number and found an India Today article published on May 31, which stated that ahead of the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) launched a unique ‘missed call’ campaign with a special phone number, 9090902024.

According to a May 31 report by The Hindu, Telangana BJP president Sanjay Kumar had announced a mobile phone number, 9090902024, for people to give missed calls in support of the Modi government.

On June 29, the BJP tweeted this number from its official handle urging people to give a missed call on 9090902024 to join the ‘Jan Sampark Se Jan Samarthan’ campaign.

On July 7, the Law Commission issued a disclaimer regarding certain fraudulent WhatsApp texts, calls, and messages being circulated regarding the Uniform Civil Code. It stated that some phone numbers were being falsely associated with the Law Commission of India. It clarified that the legal body had nothing to do with these messages and calls. At the same time, it clarified that it had no involvement or connection with the numbers.

To sum it up, several social media users falsely shared a mobile number used in a BJP campaign in the past while appealing to Hindus to show their support for the Uniform Civil Code.

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About the Author

Abhishek is a senior fact-checking journalist and researcher at Alt News. He has a keen interest in information verification and technology. He is always eager to learn new skills, explore new OSINT tools and techniques. Prior to joining Alt News, he worked in the field of content development and analysis with a major focus on Search Engine Optimization (SEO).