On December 18, Prime Minister Narendra Modi visited Shillong to inaugurate and lay the foundation stones for new infrastructure projects worth Rs. 2,450 crore. In Shillong, the Prime Minister wore a traditional Khasi garment. Soon after this, social media users began circulating a picture of him donning the attire claiming that he was wearing women’s clothing.
In a now-deleted tweet, Gujarat Congress chairman Hitendra Pithadiya shared a collage of two images — Narendra Modi wearing the traditional garment and a screenshot from an online portal showing a model wearing a similar dress. The tweet likened the prime minister’s attire to women’s clothing. (Archived link)
A handle by the name of United with Congress also amplified the collage. (Archived link)
Trinamool Congress leader and former cricketer Kirti Azad also shared the image and mocked PM Modi. However, this tweet was also deleted later. (Archived link)
Fact Check
We carefully examined the picture of PM Modi and the screenshot taken from the shopping website in the viral collage. The screenshot clearly appears to be morphed as the creases and folds seen in the garment are identical in both images. In other words, the tunic worn by Narendra Modi has been cropped and placed onto the picture in the shopping portal. This can be better understood in the side-by-side comparison given below.
Alt News performed a keyword search using the description of the outfit in the viral screenshot. This led us to a similar product page on a website called Sheroline Wear. When we compared the picture and description on this website with the viral screenshot, we found that this was the original photo which was morphed and circulated. The Khasi garment worn by the prime minister was added to the picture of a woman taken from this website. As seen in the side-by-side comparison given below, the prices of the item on this web-page, the payment modes, and the model’s pose all match the viral screenshot.
To sum it up, several social media users, including Trinamool Congress leader Kirti Azad and Congress leader Hitendra Pithadiya, falsely circulated a morphed picture of the Khasi dress worn by Narendra Modi in Shillong, passing it off as women’s clothing.
Kirti Azad later issued a clarification and apology on Twitter.
My recent tweet was misconstrued. It hurt sentiments of the people. To them I say sorry. have immense respect & pride for our diverse cultures. I regret the hurt caused by my unintentional remark. I reiterate my pledge to work to uphold our constitutional values always
— Kirti Azad (@KirtiAzaad) December 23, 2022
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