Image of Bhopal’s Crematorium Ground Shared as ‘BJP-led Gujarat’
The image is of the Bhadbhada crematorium ground in Bhopal, not Gujarat.
The image shows the Bhadbhada crematorium ground in Bhopal.
(Photo: Altered by The Quint)
As India grapples with the second wave of coronavirus, an image of the Bhadbhada crematorium at Madhya Pradesh's Bhopal has been shared with the false claim that it's from Gujarat.
The claim along with the image appeals to voters in the poll-bound West Bengal, questioning whether they want Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)'s 'Sonar Bangla' if this is the condition of Gujarat, which has been led by the party for the last 25 years.
CLAIM
The image was shared on social media with the caption, "Dear People of Bengal, This is Gujarat ruled by BJP for last 25 years. Do you want BJP’s SONAR BANGLA? (sic)"
Facebook user Syed Zeenat Jameel had garnered over 1,200 likes at the time of writing this article.
You can view an archived version here.
The image was also shared by another user, Fatema Tinwala, garnering over 2,100 likes at the time of writing this article.
Archived versions of similar claims on Facebook can be viewed here and here, and on Twitter, here and here.
Another version of the image, with a campaign board for Prime Minister Narendra Modi photoshopped onto the viral image in a bid for satire, was shared by Md Ghulam Rabbani the Cabinet Minister of West Bengal's Labour Department.
WHAT WE FOUND OUT
A reverse image search led us to a cropped version of the viral image in a report by Hindi daily, Dainik Bhaskar.
The caption of the image identifies the location as the Bhadbhada crematorium in Bhopal, Madhya Pradesh.
We also found the original image on a regional news website, Madhya Kesari, identifying the location as Bhopal. The date and time of capture on the photo read, 12 April 2021, 6:22 pm.
We then looked up visuals of the Bhadbhada crematorium and found a report by News18 Hindi, carrying another image of the site.
A comparison of the two images show that several elements like the walls around the crematorium, the trees in the background, and the shed-like structures match.
Visuals of the Bhadhbhada crematorium site in a report by NDTV, titled, 'Madhya Pradesh Hiding Covid Deaths? Cremations Challenge Official Data', also match the viral image.
Further, a comparison of the original image with that of the photoshopped image circulating online, can be seen below.
While the viral image is from Bhopal, crematorium sites in Gujarat, too, face a crisis as long waits at the crematoriums have forced the families of the deceased to perform the last rites on open grounds. Overuse of crematoriums has also led to melting of gas furnaces.
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