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Image Credit: Twitter, Wikipedia/Jawahar Lal Nehru
These Set Of Viral Images Are Circulated With False Claims To Malign The Reputation Of Jawaharlal Nehru On His Birth Anniversary
Writer: Jakir Hassan
A journalist at heart loves the in-depth work of reporting, writing, editing, research, and data analysis. A digital and social media enthusiast.
India, 15 Nov 2022 11:52 AM GMT
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Creatives : Jakir Hassan
A journalist at heart loves the in-depth work of reporting, writing, editing, research, and data analysis. A digital and social media enthusiast.
These images circulated on the birth anniversary of Jawaharlal Nehru were circulated with either misleading or false captions. The images have been circulated now and many times in the past to malign the reputation of the former Prime Minister of India.
A set of images purportedly showing Jawaharlal Nehru in various situations is going viral across social media. The images are being widely circulated in the context of the 133rd Birth Anniversary of the first Prime Minister of India.
On his 133rd Birth Anniversary, Congress leaders such as Sonia Gandhi and Mallikarjun Kharge, alongwith PM Modi, paid eloquent tributes to Jawaharlal Nehru. On this occasion, social media was flooded with users offering tributes and circulating several viral images.
Image 1:
Claim:
User @VhpSanjeet1108 tweeted the image with the claim that Nehru was captured treating a "rare condition" and referred to him as the "greatest doctor of that time." The post is an allegory for Nehru's purported romantic exploits.
Fact Check:
We conducted a reverse image search on the viral image and came across the same image on the website History Workshop. The image is a part of a review article on Howard Brenton's 2013 play, 'Drawing the Line.' The play is centred on Cyril Radcliffe and his role in the partition of India in 1947.
As per the review, the play depicts a fictional relationship between the historical characters of Nehru and the wife of the Last Viceroy-General of India, Louis Mountbatten. The review notes, "Howard Brenton suggests that one reason for Mountbatten's indecent haste in partitioning India was to prise his wife free of India's first Prime Minister."
Image Credit Hostoryworkshop.org.uk
We also came across the same image in a Metro article published on December 11, 2013. Thus, we can conclude that the viral image does not show Nehru but instead a theatre actor.
Image 2:
User @Saritasrajput shared the image with the claim that Nehru was a pervert, as he is seen sharing a cigarette with a woman in the viral image.
The image has been circulating for a long time, with the claim that it shows Nehru and Edwina Mountbatten sharing an intimate moment.
Fact Check:
We conducted a keyword search and found an article by MensXP containing the viral image. The image's caption read, ' Nehru lighting a cigarette for Mrs. Simon, the wife of the British Deputy High Commissioner, onboard the first BOAC flight.'
We also came across a report by The Hindu published on January 21, 2022. The report is an obituary of Homai Vyarawalla, the photographer who reportedly captured the moment between Nehru and Mrs. Simon. The image is captioned, "Prime Minister Nehru with Mrs. Simon, the wife ofthe British Deputy High Commissioner, on board thefirst BOAC flight in India."
We also came across a BBC report published on 30 December 2017, which is another obituary article of Homai Vyarawalla. The image is captioned, "Mr Nehru lights a cigarette for the wife of a British diplomat".
Image 3:
An image showing Nehru being embraced and kissed is going viral with the claim that it shows Nehru being shown affection by a lover. The hashtag labels him as a pervert.
Fact Check:
We conducted a reverse image search on the image and came across the original image on Alamy's website.
The caption of the image reads, "Jul. 07, 1955 - A kiss for Mr. Nehru.: The Indian Prime Minister, Mr. Nehru, was met on his arrival at London Airport last night by Sir Anthony Eden. Also at the Airport to greet Mr. Nehru was his sister, Mrs. Pandit, India's High Commissioner here. Photo shows when Mr. Nehru arrived at London Airport last night one of his countrymen who was at the airport to meet him gave him a kiss. Looking on is Sir Anthony Eden and Mrs. Pandit"
We conducted a keyword search with this cue and came across a video titled, 'Mr Nehru Arrives At London Airport (1955)' uploaded on the YouTube channel, 'British Pathe'.
At the 0.27 mark in the video, Nehru can be seen being greeted by his niece Nayantara Sahgal.
Image 4:
For the other images, we came across this collage posted by user @DhirenP66827872. In one image, Nehru can be seen embracing a woman. The image is also shared with the claim that it shows Nehru as a pervert and womanizer.
Fact Check:
A reverse image search led us to this article published in the Indian Express on August 20, 2015. The article titled, 'World Photography Day: Indian Express presents unseen pictures of Nehru, Indira and Madhuri', contained a compilation of pictures present in the Indian Express archive.
The image of Nehru embracing the woman is captioned, "Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru, the former prime minister of India, meeting his sister Mrs. Vijayalaxmi Pandit."
The BBC report, which is an obituary of the photojournalist, Homai Vyarawalla, contained the image of Nehru with his sister Vijayalaxmi Pandit. The caption read, "Mr Nehru with his sister Vijayalaxmi Pandit."
Image 5:
The image shows a person resembling Nehru who is being kissed on the cheek by a woman.
Fact Check:
We conducted a reverse image search and came across this article on Outlook titled, 'BJP IT Cell Head Tweets Pictures Of Nehru Embracing..His Sister Vijayalakshmi PanditMr Nehru with his sister Vijayalaxmi Pandit'.
The caption of the image reads, "Nehru is greeting Vijayalakshmi Pandit on his 1949 US visit." Nehru was India's ambassador to the United States in 1949. In the picture, Nehru's sister is seen welcoming her brother on his state visit to the US.
Image 6:
This image shows Nehru holding a woman in the attire of a classical dancer close to him.
Fact Check:
The Outlook article debunks the claims for this image as well with the caption, "Nehru is seen congratulating Mrinalini Sarabhai."
As per the report, Mrinalini, who was the daughter of Nehru's family friend Ammu Swaminadhan, had performed Manushya, a dance-drama, in New Delhi. The picture was taken here. Mrinalini Sarabhai is quoted as saying, "In those days, Kathakali was not approved of and not many people appreciated it, especially in Delhi. But Jawaharji came for the performance and afterwards he came to see me. He hugged me and congratulated me."
We also came across a report by Mint published on November 13, 2009. The report contained an interview with Mrinalini Sarabhai and excerpts from her autobiography, 'The Voice of Her Heart'. The Mint report mentions that Mrinalini Sarabhai had a double connection with Jawaharlal Nehru. Her mother, Ammu Swaminadhan was a politician and freedom fighter who knew Nehru, while her husband Vikram Sarabhai, had a close association with him.
Image 7:
The viral image shows Nehru purportedly standing amidst a group of dancers. The image is captioned, 'Look at the lust in his eyes, even a dog would feel ashamed looking at this.'
Fact Check:
Conducting a reverse image search, we came across the original image on the website Flashbak. The image did not contain Nehru standing amidst the dancers.
Fact-checker and Alt News co-founder Mohammed Zubair tweeted the original image in a tweet dated October 12, 2022.
Image 8:
This image shows Nehru applying something on a lady's forehead.
Fact Check:
After conducting a reverse image search, we found that the image shows Jawaharlal Nehru applying tilak on the forehead of Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis, who was the first Lady of the United States. The image was available on the Indian Express website, within its photo archives.
Conclusion:
All the images circulated on the birth anniversary of Jawaharlal Nehru were circulated with either misleading or false captions. The images have been circulated now and many times in the past to malign the reputation of the former Prime Minister of India. Thus, we can conclude that the set of images are not circulated with factually correct captions.If you have any news that you believe needs to be fact-checked, please email us at factcheck@thelogicalindian.com or WhatsApp at 6364000343.
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