Fact-Check: Misleading Visuals of PM Modi Holding Upside-Down Tagore Art

GG News Bureau
New Delhi, 15th May. Visuals of Prime Minister Narendra Modi accepting upside-down artwork depicting Nobel Laureate Rabindranath Tagore are circulating on social media, purportedly to mock the Prime Minister during his campaign for the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections in West Bengal.

The Claim: The visuals, shared by All India Trinamool Congress’ (TMC) official social media account and MP Sagarika Ghose, allege that PM Modi accepted the artwork incorrectly.

Verdict: False. The visuals are misleading as they are cropped. In the full video, individuals around PM Modi quickly rectify the error, turning the portrait the right way up.

How the Truth was Established: A thorough investigation was conducted by accessing PM Modi’s verified YouTube channel to find visuals of his recent rallies in West Bengal. A video of his campaign speech in Barrackpore on May 13 revealed the incident.

At the 2:45-minute mark of the video, PM Modi is seen accepting the artwork, initially upside-down, as claimed. However, individuals sharing the stage promptly correct the mistake, flipping the portrait the correct way up.

Conclusion: The video and screenshot circulating on social media are misleading, presenting an out-of-context depiction of PM Modi holding Tagore’s art upside-down.