A 33-second video is viral with the claim that BJP leaders are begging defence minister Rajnath Singh to repeal the farm bills. “#BJP leaders begging Defence Minister @rajnathsingh to cancel 3 #FarmBills2020 They are telling him that these bills are in the interest of only 5% & against 70%,” reads the viral message.
#BJP leaders begging Defence Minister @rajnathsingh to cancel 3 #FarmBills2020 They are telling him that these bills are in the interest of only 5% & against 70% #farmers #26JanDelhiTractorParade #FarmerSuicideModiQuiet #FarmersProtests pic.twitter.com/rC0MtBV5VV
— I_am_Gurvinder_Singh (@bawa_gurvinder) January 11, 2021
It is also circulating on WhatsApp.
Viral in 2020 with a different claim
Last year, the video with viral with the claim that BJP MPs are requesting defence minister Rajnath Singh to revoke the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) and the National Register of Citizens (NRC). A tweet shared along with the video read, “No media is ready to show this, 88 MP from BJP has met Rajnath Singh and requested to take back NRC and CAB.”
No media is ready to show this,
88 MP’s from BJP met Rajnath Singh and requested to take back NRC and CAA…
India against #CAA #NRC and #NPR
Posted by Adv Meer Adil Ali on Tuesday, 7 January 2020
It had also been shared with a Hindi caption – “88 सांसदों के दल ने राजनाथ जी से हाथ जोड़कर एनआरसी को लागू न करने का आग्रह किया लेकिन कोई भी न्यू” – that alleged the same.
False claim
Alt News found the same video uploaded on August 11, 2018, with the claim that it shows BJP MLA Rajendra Singh giving his resignation to Rajnath Singh, then union home minister. According to the post, this was in protest against the SC/ST Act. MLA Singh tells the union minister, “The 78% will continue to oppress the 22%. I know you very well, we have slept on the same bed together and now I am begging in front of you for that 22%.”
Sc/St act ka gyapan dete grih mantri rajnath singh ko….
Rajnath Singh murdabad……
Narendra modi murdabad……..
BJP sarkar murdabad…………………Posted by Deepak Das Ambedkar on Friday, 10 August 2018
We found several other posts on Facebook and YouTube form 2018 which also said that the clip shows BJP MLA Rajendra Singh resigning from his post over the SC/ST Act.
In March 2018, a Supreme Court judgement watered-down provisions of the Scheduled Caste/Scheduled Tribe (Prevention of Atrocities) Act that provided for the mandatory arrest of an accused named under the law. The verdict was met with massive protests across the country.
As the viral video has existed on the internet since 2018, it cannot be representative of protests against the farm bills. The claim that it shows BJP leaders requesting Rajnath Singh to roll back the new laws is false.
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