Did Hindu Religious Narrator Chitralekha Marry A Muslim Man? No, Viral Claim Is False

An image showing 24-year-old Hindu religious narrator Devi Chitralekha seated with a man dressed in wedding finery is going viral with the claim that she married a man from the Muslim community. The image is being circulated by social media users accusing her of taking part in the right-wing conspiracy 'Love Jihad' based on her appearance at the wedding.

Claim:

The image shows Chitralekha seated alongside a man. They are both dressed in wedding finery, with the man wearing an embroidered turban and kurta. Chitralekha is dressed in white with a veil drawn over her head. Both are adorned with garlands around their neck.

The image is shared with the claim, "The woman storyteller who has no control over her senses and she has trampled the feelings of her parents and became a heretic by marrying a heretic and is engaged in the conspiracy of eternal downfall by corrupting Hindu religion; how is she going to give spiritual darshan to the common people. ..?

"At the time of marriage, she's wearing no vermilion, no bindi on the forehead and no mangalsutra around the neck. Everyone knows very well what happens in the religion; Hindu women never wear white clothes, even by mistake, their whole life. She's wearing it while being married, and it is a sign of widow…

"Devi Chitralekha married a Muslim who used to be her driver. After marriage, he changed his name to Madhav Raj so there would be no problem being a religious orator. She would easily continue his business of fooling Hindus. The woman who is herself a heretic, how can she tell Hindus about the spiritual path? Wake up Hindus who are being fooled...???"

We also came across posts from July 13, 2021, with the same image circulated with the claim, "At the time of marriage, neither vermilion nor a Bindi on the forehead. Do any Hindu women ever wear white dresses in their marriages? Chitralekha's husband used to be her driver and was Muslim once. After marriage, he changed his name to Madhav Raj."

It is being widely shared on Facebook and Twitter with a similar claim.

Fact Check:

We conducted a keyword search for the marriage of Devi Chitralekha and came across a write-up published in WikiBio that detailed events from her life. The Marriage section of the write-up reads that Chitralekha was married to Madhav Prabhu at Gau Seva Dham Hospital in Palwal, Haryana.

We also came across a video of a speech made by Chitralekha at her wedding, which took place on May 23, 2017. The video was uploaded on the official YouTube channel of Devi Chitralekha on May 25, 2017, and is titled, 'Devi Chitralekhaji - Wedding Ceremony Program - May 23, 2017, || Promise On Her Marriage'.

We also came across a video of a speech made by Chitralekha at her wedding, which took place on May 23, 2017. The video was uploaded on the official YouTube channel of Devi Chitralekha on May 25, 2017, and is titled, 'Devi Chitralekhaji - Wedding Ceremony Program - May 23 2017 || Promise On Her Marriage'.

The video shows Devi Chitralekha and her husband on a stage addressing a crowd of people. In the video, at the 0.36 mark, Devi Chitralekha says, "I have laid my life in the footsteps of the Lord and Gaumata," referring to the Hindu practice of worshipping cows as deities.

Throughout the video, she continues to refer to 'Gaumata' and her Lord and says she will continue dedicating her life to them. On the YouTube page of Devi Chitralekha, we came across an official biography of her life on the website Bhakti Darshan. The bio reads that her marriage with Madhav Prabhu occurred on May 23 2017, at Gau Sewa Dham Hospital. The biography contained the image of her marriage to Madhav Prabhu as well.

In another upload on YouTube by user Surya Vrindavan, we came across a compilation video showing various scenes from Chitralekha's wedding. She is participating in a marriage ceremony with Hindu rituals, such as the husband applying sindoor to the wife's forehead.

We also came across a post uploaded on the official Facebook page of Devi Chitralekhaji on June 2, 2020. The post contains images from the wedding ceremony of Chitralekha, which shows her performing Hindu rituals such as making offerings to a sacred flame and the husband applying sindoor to her forehead.

The text on the image reads, "Some people are spreading wrong rumours about the marriage of Devi Chitralekha. She is neither married to a Muslim, nor is her husband a driver, nor is he a tabla player. Devi Chitralekhaji's marriage took place on May 23 2017, in the holy premises of Gau Sewa Dham Hospital. The marriage was done according to Hindu customs with Mr Madhav Tiwari, son of Mr Arun Tiwari from the caste community of Kashyap Gotriya Kanyakubj Brahmin family of Bilaspur, Chhattisgarh."

The post is captioned, "False rumours debunked. On May 23, 2017, the marriage of Devi Chitralekha ji with Shri Madhav Tiwari, son of Shri Arun Tiwari, from the Kashyap Gotriya' Kanyakubj Brahmin family of Bilaspur, Chhattisgarh. The marriage took place in the holy premises of Gauseva Dham Hospital and was completed with Hindu rituals. . Please ignore the rumours."

Conclusion:

We found that Chitralekha is married to a person from the Brahmin caste community. Contrary to viral claims, she did not marry a person from the Muslim community. Thus, we can conclude that the viral claim is false.

If you have any news that you believe needs to be fact-checked, please email us at factcheck@thelogicalindian.com or WhatsApp at 6364000343.

Also Read: Did Supreme Court Pass Ruling Calling Interfaith Marriages 'Invalid'? No, Viral Claim Is Misleading