The horrific gang rape of a veterinary doctor in Hyderabad on November 27 has sent shock-waves all across the country with people voicing out their opinions on the affairs of women’s safety in India. This has led to a lot of users and pages on social media sharing content related to anti-rape sentiments.
Meanwhile, a video recently surfaced on Social Media which showed President Kovind saying, “For the heinous crime of rape, the Government has decided to add a provision for death for offenders.” This is followed by PM Narendra Modi and Rajnath Singh appreciating it. The captions of the video says, “#President_of_India #Ram_Nath_Kovind Rape karne wale ku Sarkar ne #Phansi ki saza dena ka faisla kiya hai…” (President Ram Nath Kovind has declared punishment by death for rapists.)
These videos have grabbed a lot of eyeballs on Facebook
https://www.facebook.com/100011381659894/videos/1164796807243030/
PRESIDENT OF INDIA RAM NATH KOVIND NE 1st JANUARY.. KO KAHA KAY RAPE KARNE WALOU KO SARKAR NE PHASI KI SAZA DENA KA FAISLA KIYA THA..MAGAR AJJ TAK USPE KOI AMAL NAHI HUWA HAI..
TNANews ಅವರಿಂದ ಈ ದಿನದಂದು ಪೋಸ್ಟ್ ಮಾಡಲಾಗಿದೆ ಮಂಗಳವಾರ, ಡಿಸೆಂಬರ್ 3, 2019
#President_of_India #Ram_Nath_KovindRape karne wale ku Sarkar ne #Phansi ki saza dena ka faisla kiya hai…
Gulbarga Like Gulbargalike ಅವರಿಂದ ಈ ದಿನದಂದು ಪೋಸ್ಟ್ ಮಾಡಲಾಗಿದೆ ಮಂಗಳವಾರ, ಡಿಸೆಂಬರ್ 3, 2019
https://www.facebook.com/100005962699380/videos/1308619442680133/
(The embedded text in the video in Kannada reads that the President has given his assent to death penalty for rapists.)
Fact Check
The Logical Indian Fact-Checking Team used a simple Google search and searched through multiple verified news websites to find out that no such claim had been made by the President.
On following the top aston band in the channel, we came across the following line (circled in yellow) written in Hindi, which translates as ‘Budget Tomorrow, Report Card Today.’ On further searching, we got to know that this was a recording from President Kovind’s address to both the Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha on January 31 2019, before the interim budget was passed on February 1 by then finance minister Piyush Goyal.
In this 42 second video from ABP News YouTube Channel, President Kovind can be seen saying, “For the heinous crime of rape of minors, the Government has decided to add a provision for death for offenders.” This video was uploaded on January 31, which was later taken, edited and then circulated online. The speech was with relation to a bill passed in April 2018 which approved death of child rapists.
Conclusion
The first few seconds of the original video have been clipped off and the new video is being circulated online. The viral video is misleading in nature. No such recent announcement on death for rapists has been made by the President.
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Also Read: Fact Check: Delhi CM Claims No. Of Dengue Cases Reported In 2019 Is 1,000, Govt Data Says Otherwise
