{"id":38133,"date":"2024-11-08T07:25:06","date_gmt":"2024-11-08T12:25:06","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/newssprinters.com\/index.php\/world\/indian-politician-targeted-with-beef-eating-claim-ahead-of-maharashtra-election\/08\/11\/2024\/"},"modified":"2024-11-08T07:25:06","modified_gmt":"2024-11-08T12:25:06","slug":"indian-politician-targeted-with-beef-eating-claim-ahead-of-maharashtra-election","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/newssprinters.com\/index.php\/world\/indian-politician-targeted-with-beef-eating-claim-ahead-of-maharashtra-election\/08\/11\/2024\/","title":{"rendered":"Indian politician targeted with ‘beef eating’ claim ahead of Maharashtra election"},"content":{"rendered":"

\n<\/p>\n

\n
\"<span><\/div><\/div><\/div><div
Screenshot of the false post taken on November 5, 2024 <\/span><\/figcaption><\/div>\n

The false claim surfaced ahead of the Maharashtra\u00a0Legislative Assembly election<\/a> on November 20, where Thackeray’s Shiv Sena (UBT) has teamed up with an opposition bloc that hopes to unseat the state’s ruling coalition led by the Bharatiya Janata Party (archived link<\/a>).<\/p>\n

The video was shared with similar claims on\u00a0X<\/a> and\u00a0Facebook<\/a>. <\/p>\n

However, the video shows Thackeray referring to remarks by Kiren Rijiju — a member of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s cabinet who is Buddhist and said he eats beef.<\/p>\n

Clipped video<\/h3>\n

A reverse image search on Google found a longer version of the video posted on the Shiv Sena (UBT)’s official\u00a0YouTube channel<\/a> on October 12, 2024 (archived link<\/a>).<\/p>\n

The video is titled: “Dussehra Gathering #2024 | Shivtirth, Dadar, Mumbai” (archived link<\/a>).<\/p>\n

Below is a screenshot comparison of the video shared in false social media posts (left) and the original video on YouTube (right):<\/p>\n

\n
\n
\n
\"<span>Screenshot\"<span><button<\/svg><\/span><\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

Screenshot comparison of the video shared in false social media posts (left) and the original video on YouTube (right)<\/span><\/figcaption><\/p>\n<\/figure>\n

Exactly two hours into the video, Thackeray can be heard recalling remarks by Rijiju — the minister for minority affairs — who said in 2015 he was a Buddhist and ate beef<\/a> (archived link<\/a>).<\/p>\n

Thackeray also referred to the case of Aryan Mishra, a 19-year-old man killed in September by an armed mob that accused him of smuggling beef.<\/p>\n

Authorities in India are often accused of failing to rein<\/a> in Hindu hardliners, who form gangs of “cow vigilantes” to attack people accused of involvement in cattle slaughter (archived link<\/a>).<\/p>\n

“While Aryan Mishra was murdered on suspicion of cow smuggling, Rijiju says that I eat beef, I eat beef — if anyone can do anything to me, then do it. But no one said anything about it,” Thackeray said.<\/p>\n

“On one hand, you kill innocent people, on the other hand, you give a place in the cabinet to someone who says that he eats beef.”<\/p>\n

Thackeray does not say he ate beef anywhere in the video.<\/p>\n

AFP has previously debunked a fabricated image<\/a> that purports to show the opposition party leader bowing to the Indian National Congress party leader Rahul Gandhi.<\/p>\n

\n
\n
\n
\"\"\"\"