Outdated news reports resurface as recent breaking developments - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
November 20, 2023
Update (20 November 2023):
Another video of the ‘Republic Bharat’ news channel is being shared on social media claiming it is the latest news report on America’s involvement in the Russo-Ukrainian war. Let’s verify the claim made in the post.
A reverse image search of the viral video has led us to the same video which was uploaded on the Republic Bharat’s YouTube Channel on 27 March 2022. The video talks about the developments during the Russo-Ukrainian war at that time and doesn’t report any current events.
Update (07 November 2023):
Another video of the ‘Republic Bharat’ news channel is being shared on social media claiming it is the latest news report on Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif fleeing to a foreign country amidst the economic crisis and bomb blasts in Pakistan. Let’s verify the claim made in the post.
When searched for the video using relevant keywords on the internet, the same video was found published by the ‘Republic Bharat’ news channel on 17 February 2023. The ‘Ye Bharat Ki Baat Hai’ news episode of the ‘Republic Bharat’ channel covers the news of Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz fleeing to a foreign nation for financial assistance amidst the economic crisis and bomb blasts in Pakistan. The news video reports the increase in petrol and other commodities prices in Pakistan and showcases Pakistan citizen’s hardships during the inflation in their country.
Update (06 November 2023):
Another video is being shared on social media claiming it is a recent news report asserting that UP MLA Mukhtar Ansari and his wife experienced simultaneous cardiac arrests. The video shows a news report published by the India TV news channel. Let’s verify the claim made in the post.
When searched for the details of the video using relevant keywords on the internet, we found the same video on India TV’s  YouTube channel on 09 January 2018. The news site published the video with the description, “UP MLA Mukhtar Ansari and his wife suffers heart attack at the same time !” Several news sites published articles reporting Mukhtar Ansari’s heart attack occurrence at Banda Jail in January 2018.  Those news reports can be seen here, here and here. From all these pieces of evidence, it is evident that the video shared in the post shows a five-year-old news report published by the India TV.  Lately, there have been no news reports informing that Mukhtar Ansari has suffered another cardiac arrest.
Update (02 November 2023):
Another video is being shared on social media claiming it as Republic Bharat channel’s latest news report on Chinese President Xi Jinping sending a detective to spy on India’s AD-1 missile which was designed and manufactured locally by the Defence Research & Development Organisation (DRDO). The report alleges that India’s successful launch of the AD-1 Ballistic Defence Interceptor missile is giving sleepless nights to Xi Jinping. Let’s verify the claim made in the post.
On searching for the video using relevant keywords on the internet, we found the same video published by the Republic TV news channel on 05 November 2022. In the video, the Republic Bharat news channel reported about the launch of the AD-1 Ballistic missile interceptor and alleged that the Chinese President sent a detective to spy on this Indian missile made by the DRDO. DRDO conducted a successful maiden flight test of Phase-II Ballistic Missile Defence (BMD) interceptor AD-1 missile with a large kill altitude bracket from APJ Abdul Kalam Island off the coast of Odisha on 02 November 2022.  So, it can be confirmed that the video shared in the post shows an old news report telecasted by the Republic Bharat news channel.
Published (22 September 2023):
A social media post, which is being widely shared, presents a breaking news report announcing the imposition of the President’s rule in Maharashtra as if it were the most recent development in the state. Through this article, let’s fact-check the authenticity of the video shared in the post.
Claim: Breaking news report announcing the imposition of President’s rule in Maharashtra
Fact: This news report is from November 2019 when President’s Rule was imposed in Maharashtra due to a government formation impasse following the October 2019 assembly elections. Presently, there is no such situation in Maharashtra, making this news outdated and misleading when shared without context. Hence, the claim made in the post is FALSE.
The viral news clip discusses the implementation of the President’s rule in Maharashtra. Nevertheless, it pertains to an older event from November 2019 when Maharashtra was subjected to President’s Rule due to a deadlock in government formation following the October 2019 assembly elections.
After a thorough examination of the viral clip, it is evident that the reporter mentions, ‘President Ram Nath Kovind has given his consent for the imposition of President’s rule in Maharashtra, following a recommendation from the state’s governor, Bhagat Singh Koshyari, who cited the failure to form a government in the state.’ This detail itself indicates that this information is outdated, as neither Bhagat Singh Koshyari is serving as the governor of Maharashtra nor Ram Nath Kovind is the President of India; he has been succeeded by Ramesh Bais.
Further search using pertinent keywords, yielded the original ABP News report that the viral clip was sourced from. ABP News originally published this clip on 12 November 2019, following the President’s decision to issue a proclamation imposing President’s rule in Maharashtra under Article 356(1). This decision was made after reviewing the governor’s report, which indicated that no party was capable of forming a government, and no coalition had been established.
Additional news reports on the President’s rule imposition in 2019, can be viewed here and here. This unequivocally confirms that the viral news clip is outdated and does not convey any recent developments in the state. Generally, the President’s Rule is imposed through the invocation of Article 356 of the Constitution by the President on the advice of the Union Council of Ministers. However, there is currently no such situation existing in Maharashtra, rendering this news a false representation, and is being shared out of context.
Previously, FACTLY has exposed several instances of outdated news reports being circulated as recent ones. Fact-check articles that debunked these viral clips can be viewed below.
To sum it up, outdated news reports resurface as recent-breaking developments.