A photo of a Nandi (sacred bull of Lord Shiva) statute is being shared across social media platforms to claim that the photo is from the Kashi Vishwanath Temple in Varanasi.
It further stated that the statue faces the Gyanvapi Mosque, pushing the claim that the mosque was built after demolishing an existing Vishweshwar Temple in the 17th century.
However, this photo is from the Kashi Vishweshwar Temple in Wai, Maharashtra, and not Kashi Vishwanath Temple, Varanasi.
CLAIM
The photo is being shared with a message that reads, "Nandi always has his face towards the shivalingam but nandi of kashi vishwanath faces the Gyanvapi mosque, which was originally Viswanath Temple. Nandi gazes at the door, waiting for his master to appear (sic)."
Archived version of the post can be seen here.
(Source: Twitter/Screenshot)
WHAT WE FOUND OUT
On conducting a reverse image search on the photo of the Nandi statue, we came across the image on Alamy – a stock image website.
The description stated that the photo was from Kashi Vishweshwar Temple at Wai Satara, Maharashtra.
Nandi statue in a Maharashtra temple.
(Source: Alamy/Screenshot)
Nandi bull statue from Maharashtra's temple on Alamy.
The same reverse image search also led us to another stock photo's website Shutterstock, which had uploaded multiple photos of this statue.
The title of these images, too, stated that the pictures were from Kashi Vishweshwar Temple, Maharashtra.
In the backdrop of the ongoing dispute, several unrelated picture are being shared on the Internet linking them to the Gyanvapi Mosque. You can read some of our fact-checks here.
Clearly, this photo of Nandi statue is from Maharashtra and not Varanasi.
(Not convinced of a post or information you came across online and want it verified? Send us the details on WhatsApp at 9643651818, or e-mail it to us at webqoof@thequint.com and we'll fact-check it for you. You can also read all our fact-checked stories here.)
(At The Quint, we are answerable only to our audience. Play an active role in shaping our journalism by becoming a member. Because the truth is worth it.)