Former chairman of Uttar Pradesh Shia Waqf Board Wasim Rizvi converted to Hindusim on December 6. In the backdrop of this, several social media users have shared an image of a Hindu priest surrounded by Muslim men along with the claim that after Rizvi’s conversion 34 Muslim families converted to Hinduism in Uttar Pradesh. The claim is viral ahead of UP Legislative Assembly scheduled to be held in February 2022.

[Viral text: рдпреВрдкреА рдореЗрдВ 34 рдореБрд╕реНрд▓рд┐рдо рдкрд░рд┐рд╡рд╛рд░реЛрдВ рдиреЗ рдХрд┐ рд╣рд┐рдиреНрджреВ рдзрд░реНрдо рдореЗ рд╡рд╛рдкрд╕реА ред рдЬрдп рд╢реНрд░реА рд░рд╛рдоЁЯЩПЁЯП╗ЁЯЪй рд╕рдирд╛рддрди рд╣реА рд╕рддреНрдп рд╣реИЁЯЩПЁЯП╗ЁЯЪй]

Several Facebook users posted this claim on pro-BJP or Hindutva groups тАФ рд░рд╛рд╕реНрдЯреНрд░ рд╣рд┐рдВрджреВ posted 0it on рдореЛрджреА 2.0 ЁЯЪй( рдореЛрджреА рд╕рдорд░реНрдердХ рдЬреБреЬреЗ )ЁЯЪй [gained over 4K likes]; рдШрдВрдЯрд╛рдХрд░реНрдг рдорд╣рд╛рд╡реАрд░рдореЗрд░рд╛ posted on рд╡реЛрдЯ рдореЛрджреА рдХреЛ ( Modi Voters рдЬреБреЬреЗ ) [gained ~3K likes], and Vijaybhai Kalambekar posted on рдлрд┐рд░ рдПрдХ рдмрд╛рд░ рдпреЛрдЧреА рд╕рд╛рд░рдХрд╛рд░ ( рдЗрд╕ рдмрд╛рд░ 350 рдкрд╛рд░ ) and India Needs BJP; Tirlok Dewasi in Sudarshan News. Similarly, FB pages Bramha Rashtra Ekam and рдЬрд╛рдЧреЛ рднрд╛рд░рдд рдЬрд╛рдЧреЛ also made the same claim.

Using CrowdTangle, a social media monitoring tool, we found that at least 100 accounts posted this image.

Twitter user @janardanspeaks and BJP politician Anupendra Singh shared the claim without the image.

Fact-check

Alt News performed a reverse image search on Google and found that Hindi-language news outlet Amar Ujala had published this image in 2016. As per the report, the image is from September 23, 2016, and was taken at Mathura’s Jama Masjid. It shows an anti-Pakistan demonstration held after the terrorist attack on an Indian Army brigade headquarters near the town of Uri in the former union territory Jammu and Kashmir. A video of this event can be seen on Amar Ujala’s website as well.

Alt News performed a keyword search on Google restricting results to December 6 onwards and could not find a single report corroborating the claim that 34 Muslim families had converted to Hinduism.

The false claim was, therefore, promoted using a five-year-old image.

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About the Author

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