As Rishi Sunak took over as the new Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, many photos and videos related to him are being shared widely on social media. Let’s fact-check the claims made in different posts.
Claim: Video shows Rishi Sunak’s ‘griha pravesh’ (housewarming) at 10 Downing Street.
Fact: The video was taken at Bhaktivedanta Manor (a Hare Krishna Temple in the UK), not at 10 Downing Street. Also, it was shot before Rishi Sunak became the UK’s PM. Hence the claim made in the post is FALSE.
Many social media users have also posted the same video with the following description – “Rishi Sunak visited the Bhaktivedanta Manor temple with his wife Akshata”. When we searched with keywords, it was found that Rishi Sunak posted about his visit to Bhaktivedanta Manor temple (a Hare Krishna Temple in the UK) in August 2022 i.e., before he became UK’s PM. The Facebook page of Bhaktivedanta Manor temple has also posted photos from his visit. People in the same dresses from the video can be found in the posted photos. So, the posted video was not shot at 10 Downing Street (the official residence and the office of the British Prime Minister).
Claim: Video shows new UK PM Rishi Sunak taking blessings from Vedic pundits on 24 October 2022.
Fact: The video was taken in August 2022 i.e., before Rishi Sunak became UK’s PM in October 2022. Hence the claim made in the post is FALSE.
In the video, on a flex in the background, it is written – ‘The Conservative Friends of India’. So, when searched with keywords, a Facebook post by ‘Conservative Friends of India’ about Rishi Sunak in August 2022 was found. Also, the official ‘Ready4Rishi’ campaign Twitter account posted visuals from the same event in August 2022. People in the same dresses from the video can be found in the posted photos. So, the posted video was not shot recently on 24 October 2022.
Claim: Recent photo of new UK PM Rishi Sunak lighting diyas (lamps) outside 11 Downing Street on Diwali.
Fact: The photo was taken in 2020. Rishi Sunak was Britain’s Chancellor of the Exchequer at that time. 11 Downing Street is the official residence of Britain’s Chancellor of the Exchequer. Hence the claim made in the post is MISLEADING.
The uncropped version of the same photo can be found on the ‘Reuters’ website with the following description – “Britain’s Chancellor of the Exchequer Rishi Sunak lights candles outside Downing Street ahead of the Hindu festival of Diwali, in London, Britain, November 12, 2020”. Similar visuals can be seen in Rishi Sunak’s tweet from 2020.
To sum it up, old and unrelated visuals of Rishi Sunak are being shared as recent visuals after he took over as the PM of UK.
