Image of IUML party office is passed off as Congress party office in Wayanad - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
April 20, 2021
A post accompanying an image of a green coloured building with a crescent moon and a star symbol painted on it is being shared across social media platforms with a claim that the building is the Congress party office in Wayanad, Kerala. Through this article let’s fact-check the claim made in the post.
Claim: Image of Congress party office building in Wayanad.
Fact: The image is actually of the Indian Union Muslim League party office in Kanhangad, Kerala. The painting of the ladder and the portrait of the man on the building indicates that the building is associated with IUML. The building has nothing to do with the Congress party. Hence the claim made in the post is FALSE.
Reverse image search of the photo in the post led us to 2019 twitter post with an image of the front view of the same building. Upon careful observation of this image, we can spot the ladder symbol on the top left corner of the building. Taking a cue from this image, a search on the Election Commission of India website about political parties associated with the symbol tells us that the symbol is allotted to ‘Indian Union Muslim League’, a recognised state party in Kerala.
Through Google search we found that the green flag with a crescent and a moon is the flag of IUML party. Also, the person seen on the left side of the image in the post is Syed Muhammedali Shihab. He was the President of the Kerala state committee of the Indian Union Muslim League.
The top right sentence written in Malayalam on the building translates to ‘Iqbal Nagar League House’. We can even spot ‘IQBAL NAGAR’ written on the electric poles in front of the building. Taking a cue from this, further search led us to a 2019 Facebook post which shared the images of the same building but from a different angle. The post is an invitation for the inauguration of the building. As per this post, the building is the party office IUML in Iqbal Nagar, Kanhangad which is part of Kasaragod constituency. Although we could not independently verify the veracity of the location, all the above mentioned evidence suggests that the image is of IUML party building and not the Congress party building in Wayanad.
To sum it up, an image of IUML party office is passed off as a Congress party building in Wayanad.