New Delhi Vishvas News – A video depicting individuals collecting money from a donation box is going viral on social media. The claim accompanying the video suggests that it is of Ram Temple, recently inaugurated in Ayodhya. It is being claimed that after the temple doors opened for common devotees to seek darshan, people generously filled the donation boxes on the inaugural day.

Upon conducting an investigation, Vishvas News found that the claim surrounding the viral video was misleading. In reality, the viral video does not depict the Ram Temple but rather the Sanvaliya Seth Temple situated in Rajasthan. This video is now being circulated on social media with misleading claims by users.

What Is Going Viral?

Facebook user ‘Ravi Arya‘, while sharing the viral video on January 25, 2024, wrote in the caption, “So much money was donated in the donation box on the first day that the donation box was filled within half a day. Donation of Rs 3.17 crore in Ram temple Ayodhya in the first day itself.”

Investigation:

To investigate the viral claim, we searched on Google using relevant keywords and found a video uploaded on the Instagram account “Jai Shree Shyam.” The video, shared on January 19, 2024, purported to be from the Sanwaliya Seth Temple in Rajasthan. However, it was observed that the consecration ceremony of Ram Lala took place on January 22. This timeline discrepancy makes it evident that the video does not pertain to the Ram Temple.

Further investigation revealed that the same video with the aforementioned information was shared on various Facebook accounts, including “sanwaliya_seth_1007,” on January 16, 2024. An individual wearing a maroon-coloured kurta, identified as Nitin Vaishnav, was seen collecting money from a donation box in the video. Nitin, in his caption, claimed a record cash donation of Rs 12.69 crore at Shri Sanwaliya Seth Temple.

Upon examining Nitin’s Instagram account, we discovered numerous videos featuring the temple, all described as being from Sanwaliya Seth Temple in Rajasthan. A comparison of Nitin’s video with images of Saawariya Seth temple revealed notable similarities. Further validation came from a news report on the website of ABP News on January 16, 2024, stating that the Sanvaliya Seth Temple in Rajasthan received donations worth crores in a single day.

In seeking additional information, we contacted Rama Sharan Awasthi, the editorial in-charge of Ayodhya Dainik Jagran. He confirmed that the video in question is not from the Ram Temple. According to news reports on Aaj Tak and ABP’s websites on January 25, 2024, offerings totalling Rs 3.7 crore were made at the Ram Temple on the first day.

Finally, we examined the account of the user who shared the video with the false claim. The user, a resident of Uttar Pradesh, frequently shares posts related to a particular ideology.