A video (here, here and here) is circulating on social media platforms in which BJP leader Uma Bharti can be seen referring to Prime Minister Narendra Modi as a ‘Vinash Purush’ or destroyer. We fact-check this claim through this article.
Claim: BJP leader Uma Bharti called PM Narendra Modi a ‘destroyer’ or ‘Vinash Purush’ in a recent press conference.
Fact: The video in question is not recent but dates back to a time when Uma Bharti was not a part of the Bharatiya Janata Party. Hence, the claim made in the post is False.
To verify the claim, we began by conducting a keyword search on the internet. This led us to multiple news reports (here, here and here) from 2014 that were linked to the video. It was reported that ahead of the general elections in 2014, the Congress party had released this video clip. The video featured BJP leader Uma Bharti referring to Narendra Modi as a ‘vinash purush.’
However, it is critical to note that this video was recorded during the time when Uma Bharti was not a part of the Bharatiya Janata Party. She was expelled from the party in 2005 due to ‘indiscipline and anti-party activities’ and rejoined BJP in 2011.
In 2014, when the video resurfaced, Uma Bharti filed a complaint against the Congress party for releasing the video.
A report from NDTV in 2014 suggested that these comments were made by her following her expulsion from the party.
To sum up, the video of Uma Bharti criticizing PM Modi is old and dates back to the time when Bharti was not a part of the BJP.
