CLAIM
A viral letter allegedly signed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi urges people to buy only made-in-India products while shopping for Diwali this year.
The letter has been doing rounds on social media platform Twitter. The Quint also received queries on WhatsApp asking to verify the authenticity of the letter.
The content of the letter, which is in Hindi, loosely translates to:
“My beloved Indians, you just have to do this much, in the upcoming festival of Diwali use only made-in-India products in lights, decorations and sweets. I hope you will listen to this civil servant. If you cooperate with me, I promise you, India will be at the forefront in the world.”
WHAT WE FOUND
The letter is fake and is not issued by the prime minister.
On multiple reverse image searches on Google and Yandex, we found a tweet from 2016 by the official Twitter handle of PMO India that dismisses the claim.
The tweet read as “Few appeals with PM’s ‘signature’ are circulated on social media. Such documents are not authentic.”
The same letter was circulated in 2016 as well before Diwali and was also tweeted by the Puducherry Governor Kiran Bedi.
Multiple 2016 media reports also carried the PMO’s clarification against the false viral message.
Although the letter is fake, the signature used in the letter is of PM Modi’s which makes it easier for the person to believe its authenticity. Since a png file of the signature is available online, it makes it easier for miscreants to misuse it.
In the above picture, the first picture is of PM Modi’s signature on his letter to former President Pranab Mukherjee on his last day in office and the second is from the viral claim. Both look the same and hence makes it difficult for people to differentiate between fake and real announcements issued by the prime minister.
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