A 28-second clip of the former chief minister of Maharashtra Uddhav Thackeray is viral on social media. In the clip, the Shiv Sena leader is seen standing on a dais surrounded by men. The video is being shared with the claim that Thackeray was stopped from speaking by Congress members and he was pleading with them to give him 5 minutes to make a speech.
Premium subscribed X (formerly Twitter) user Sameet Thakkar (Modi Ka Parivar) (@thakkar_sameet) shared the clip on April 28 with the following caption: “What a fall !!
Uddhav Thackeray is the other name of SHAMELESSNESS.
Watch how congress workers of Wardha denied Uddhav to even make speech in a rally.
Ye log ladenge Modi see ??”
The tweet has received over 3 Lakh 86,000 views and has been retweeted over 2,700 times.
What a fall !!
Uddhav Thackeray is the other name of SHAMELESSNESS.
Watch how congress workers of Wardha denied Uddhav to even make speech in a rally.
Ye log ladenge Modi se ?? pic.twitter.com/WcOFs0TaKV
— Sameet Thakkar (Modi Ka Parivar) (@thakkar_sameet) April 28, 2024
Several other users shared the video claiming the same. Below are a few instances.
Fact Check
We noticed the logo of TV9 Marathi on the top right corner of the frame in the viral video. Besides, the word ‘Wardha’ is written on the top left in Devanagari script. Taking a cue from this we ran a relevant keyword search on YouTube and found the 1 hour 46 min long recorded live stream of the event where Uddhav Thackeray was present. The video was posted on April 22.
In the video, several NCP leaders such as Sharad Pawar and Amar Kale can be seen delivering their speeches. At the 1:33:21 mark of the YouTube video, Amar Kale is interrupted by another person following which he stops his speech. Another man announces Uddhav Thackeray’s name requesting him to deliver a speech.
Thackeray, then, walks up to the mic with NCP Lok Sabha candidate Amar Kale next to him. The viral part of the video starts at the 1:35:04 mark where the Shiv Sena leader can be heard saying, “I will speak for five minutes”, in response to which, the people surrounding him ask him to speak for at least 15 minutes. This part — the response of the men around Thackeray — is missing from the viral clip. After this point, Thackeray delivers a 10-minute-long speech.
Further, we found a 4.17-minute-long video from the same event posted by the official X page of the Office of Uddhav Thackeray (@OfficeofUT) on April 22 wherein the Shiv Sena president is seen delivering a speech. The caption accompanying the video mentions that the video was from a poll campaign rally for the Maha Vikas Aghadi Lok Sabha candidate Amar Kale from the Wardha constituency in Hinganghat.
The Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) is a coalition of ten political parties with Uddhav Thackeray as the president.
महाविकास आघाडीचे वर्धा लोकसभेचे उमेदवार अमर काळे ह्यांच्या प्रचारार्थ पक्षप्रमुख मा. श्री. उद्धवसाहेब ठाकरे ह्यांचे प्रमुख मार्गदर्शन । वर्धा लोकसभा मतदार संघ । हिंगणघाट – #LIVE https://t.co/8M3hzThIfN
— Office of Uddhav Thackeray (@OfficeofUT) April 22, 2024
India Today spoke to Atul Wandile, the state secretary general of the NCP, who called the claim “baseless”. He said that since some of the speeches of the NCP members were extended and Thackeray had to leave early for his programs in Nagpur, he initially said that he would speak for five minutes. The NCP members insisted he speak for at least 10 or 15 minutes as many had come to hear him.
Therefore, the claim that Uddhav Thackeray was not allowed to speak is false. The viral clip is edited.
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