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  • 2022-01-24 (xsd:date)
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  • Doctored image of Indian opposition leaders in front of liquor store circulates ahead of state polls (en)
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  • An image that appears to show Indian opposition leaders Arvind Kejriwal and Bhagwant Mann sitting in front of a liquor store has been shared thousands of times in social media posts. The image -- which some social media users appeared to believe was genuine -- circulated weeks before state elections in Punjab which the politicians' party is fielding candidates for. However, the image has been doctored to change the backdrop -- the original photo shows the two politicians sitting in a field. The image was shared on Twitter by Naveen Kumar Jindal, spokesman for India’s ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), which is a rival to Kejriwal and Mann's Aam Aadmi Party (AAP). Jindal’s post has been retweeted more than 2,300 times after it was published on January 16. A screenshot of the misleading post. Captured on January 21, 2022 The image appears to show Kejriwal and Mann in front of a store named [Local] Alcohol Store Shop and English Liquor Store. Both are sitting exactly in their respective places, the Hindi-language tweet reads. Kejriwal is the chief minister of Delhi which late last year introduced a policy that eased access to alcohol in shops. He is also the founder of the AAP, which will field candidates in the upcoming Punjab elections on February 20. The party -- which is positioning itself as an alternative to the BJP and the opposition Congress party -- has fielded former comedian Bhagwant Mann as the chief ministerial candidate in Punjab. The same image was also shared on Facebook here and on Twitter here , here and here . Responding to the image, one social media user wrote: If such an image is in the public eye, then it is difficult to change the perception of the public quickly. Kejriwal's attempt to make people accept Bhagwant Mann as CM is going to be very difficult. Another said: And together these two have gone to make Punjab a drug-free state. However, the image has been doctored. A reverse image search found that the photo of Kejriwal and Mann was published here by the Indian newspaper The Tribune on January 14, 2022. The report states they were in fact sitting in a mustard field while meeting some farmers. In a short video of the meeting released by the party on Friday, Kejriwal and Mann are seen sitting on a cot placed in the mustard fields and interacting with some farmers, the report reads. The photo of Kejriwal and Mann published by the Indian newspaper The Tribune on January 14, 2022 The photo corresponds to the 34-second mark of the video of the event posted on Twitter and YouTube by the AAP. The background of the photo has been digitally altered in the misleading posts. The flowers of the mustard field have been replaced with an image of a liquor shop that was originally published by local media Navbharat Times in November 2020. Below is a screenshot comparison of the altered image (left), the original photo of Kejriwal and Mann (middle), and the photo of the liquor store (right): A screenshot comparison of the altered image (left), the original photo of Kejriwal and Mann (middle), and the photo of the liquor store (right) (en)
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