FACT CHECK BY BOOM: A statement falsely linking to senior BJP leader LK Advani has gone viral in which Rahul Gandhi is being praised calling him "the hero of Indian politics".
BOOM investigation has debunked the claims, finding no credible reports to support the viral assertion about Advani's alleged statement.
The viral posts claim that Advani stated about how Rahul Gandhi was the "only person who can make India a good nation, because he has the ability to take decisions which can provide new direction to the citizens of India."
The full claim reads, "The country's former Home Minister Bharat Ratna Shri Lal Krishna Advani has given a big statement regarding Rahul Gandhi. Advani has said that even though I am from BJP, today as a social worker of India, I want to tell the Indian public that Rahul Gandhi is the only person who can make India a good nation, because he has the ability to take decisions which can provide new direction to the citizens of India. I have also served the country as a Home Minister. But I have never seen an influential leader like Rahul Gandhi in politics."
"Lal Krishna Advani's statement has come at a time when the third phase of elections is going on today. His statement is also being considered important because recently he has been given Bharat Ratna by the Modi government, in such a situation, by praising Rahul Gandhi, Lal Krishna Advani has posed a big challenge to Prime Minister Narendra Modi," it further reads.
A Facebook user posted the quote alongside a picture of Gandhi and Advani, along with a link to a website called 'avadhbhoomi.com'.
Click here to view the post and here for an archive.
The Arunachal Congress' X handle also shared the same assertion with the caption, "*Flash News* Rahul Gandhi is the hero of Indian politics: Lal Krishna Advani (LK Advani).*(http://avadhbhoomi.com)*7. May. 2024.*The country's former Home Minister Bharat Ratna Shri Lal Krishna Advani has given a big statement regarding Rahul Gandhi. @INCIndia"
Click here to view the post and here for an archive.
FACT CHECK
The investigation revealed that the claims are false, as any credible news outlet has not reported the alleged quote.
BOOM conducted a search for any remarks attributed to LK Advani about Rahul Gandhi but found no evidence to support such claims.
Based on the website name, avadhbhoomi.com, we conducted a search for any articles they published about Rahul Gandhi and LK Advani. We found a Google search result for an article titled 'Rahul Gandhi is the hero of Indian politics: LK Advani' published in Hindi by Avadhbhumi. The article had been removed, however, we managed to find its archived link.
Below is a screenshot of the archive.
The text of this article published in Hindi was similar to the caption with which the viral post was being shared. The story was written by a 'Anil Shukla Madhukar', and published on May 8, 2024. Further investigation revealed that almost all the stories on this website were written by the same person, Anil Shukla Madhukar.
Moreover, we discovered that the website's terms and conditions were drafted in accordance with the laws of the Netherlands.
Additionally, we came across a disclaimer section on the website stating that it does not guarantee the completeness, reliability, and accuracy of the information published on it.
Claim:
LK Advani recently praised Rahul Gandhi and called him the hero of Indian politics.
Claimed By:
Congress supporters, X, Facebook users
Fact Check:
False
(Disclaimer: This story was originally published by BOOM, and republished by India TV as part of the Shakti Collective.)
