Fact-Check: Old video of Bhojpuri actor Akanksha Dubey getting viral with misleading claim

New Delhi (Vishvas News): Since the death of Bhojpuri actress Akanksha Dubey who was found dead in a hotel in Varanasi, many of her videos are going viral on social media. Now, an old video of Akanksha Dubey and Samar Singh’s conversation is going viral with the claim that it is a live video just before the death of the actress. Vishvas News fact-checked the viral post and found the claim to be misleading. Akanksha Dubey was found in a hotel room in Varanasi on March 26. Following the complaint of Akanksha Dubey’s mother, a case has been registered against Bhojpuri singer Samar Singh and his brother Sanjay Singh.

Claim:

The Facebook page Varal News uploaded a video on March 27 with the caption, “Akanksha Dubey live Samar Singh Akanksha Dubey live death some time ago.” Assuming this video to be true, other users are also making it viral. The archived version of the post can be viewed here.

Investigation:

Vishvas News first scanned the video used in the viral post to verify its veracity. In the video, Akanksha Dubey can be heard saying that she is in Sonbhadra for the shooting of the film ‘Mitti’. However, according to the recent media reports that emerged after her death, Akanksha Dubey was shooting for a film in Varanasi, which proves that the video is old.

During the search, the original video was found on YouTube, which was uploaded on January 22, 2022. This is the same video which is being made viral just before death.

Taking the investigation forward, a news report was found published in Dainik Jagran’s e-paper on March 26. The news report stated that Akanksha was staying in room number 105 of Hotel Somendra located in Buddha City Colony of Sarnath. Police investigation revealed that she was in a relationship with Bhojpuri singer Samar Singh. She was upset because there was no conversation between the two for a few days.

In the news report published on Jagran.com on March 27, it was stated that a case has been registered against Samar Singh and his brother Sanjay Singh under charges of section 306 in Sarnath police station on the complaint of Akanksha Dubey’s mother Madhu Dubey.

During the search, a video related to the news of Akanksha Dubey’s death was found on NDTV’s YouTube channel. In this, a police officer can be heard saying that Akanksha Dubey committed suicide in room number 105 of a hotel in Varanasi.

Vishvas News further contacted Dinesh Singh, a crime reporter of Dainik Jagran, Varanasi, who covered the news related to Akanksha Dubey’s death and shared the viral video with him. He clarified that the viral video of Akanksha Dubey is not the live video before her death but an old video.