DigitEye India Fact Checkers
A fake news clipping with the headline – “We don’t need Hindus, Muslims’ votes are enough” that was posted on Tuesday night, went viral on social media the next day as the election campaign for Lok Sabha elections in Karnataka is pacing up. See the X post (deleted now):
ಅಯ್ಯೋ ಪರಮಾತ್ಮ ಶಿವ ಶಿವ pic.twitter.com/g6I4lkjbTD
— Pandu (modi ka parivara )🚩🚩 (@PanduNa81571665) April 9, 2024
It has been shared by “BJP Belagavi Rural District” and the news clip’s headline suggests that Siddaramaiah said, “We don’t need Hundus, Muslims’ votes are enough.” It has also alleged him to have said, “I wish to be born as a Muslim in the next birth. Don’t bother about BJP’s comments on Muslim appeasement.” As the Lok Sabha election campaign in the district is picking up, the news clip has been widely shared on X on Wednesday, April 10, 2024, as seen above.
FACT CHECK
Digiteye India checked for the authenticity of the news clip but no such news report has been found in any local Kannada newspapers. Soon, Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah posted his reply to the news clip terming it fake and fabricated. See his tweet here:
The miscreants supported by the unholy alliance of BJP-JDS have fabricated a piece of disinformation mimicking a report from the Kannada newspaper.This fake news is loaded with content that stirs up communal tensions and has been widely disseminated across social media platforms.… pic.twitter.com/lHh0BpqTGC
— Siddaramaiah (@siddaramaiah) April 10, 2024
The CM has also registered a police complaint against ‘unknown miscreants on the allegations’ of fabricating the news clip intended to stir up communal tensions. He said, “The miscreants supported by the unholy alliance of BJP-JDS have fabricated a piece of disinformation mimicking a report from the Kannada newspaper.This fake news is loaded with content that stirs up communal tensions and has been widely disseminated across social media platforms.
I have already lodged a complaint with the police department about this. We have information about the vested interests behind this and the police will take necessary action. Resorting to such deceitful tactics to win elections, rather than engaging with political opponents through fair and honest means, shows the intellectual bankruptcy of the BJP and JDS. A party that has ruled the country for 10 years should not have stooped to such a despicable level of manufacturing fake news to win an election. Be cautious before believing and sharing fake news..! We will root out the creators of such fake news and those backing them through legal means.” Hence, the claim is false.
News reports said that the Karnataka police arrested four person who shared the above clip on social media on Wednesday, following the complaint.
Claim: News Clip in Kannada shows Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah said, “We don’t need Hindus, Muslims’ votes are enough”
Conclusion: The news clip has been fabricated and is false. Siddaramaiah has denied and said he had lodged a police complaint.
Rating: Totally False — 
