Fact Check: Viral Photo Isn’t from APJ Abdul Kalam’s Childhood
Vishvas News found in its investigation that the picture going viral on social media, claimed to be of former President Dr. APJ Abdul Kalam and his mother, actually belongs to the family of a Facebook user named Mariyala Srinivas.
- By: Pallavi Mishra
- Published: Oct 8, 2024 at 04:40 PM
New Delhi (Vishvas News). A post circulating on social media showing the picture of a woman and a child, claims it is a childhood photo of former President APJ Abdul Kalam sitting with his mother.
Vishvas News found in its investigation that this picture is not of APJ Abdul Kalam’s childhood.
What is going viral?
Instagram user healthdoj (Archive) uploaded the viral picture on his account on 2 October 2024, with the claim “This is the childhood picture of APJ Abdul Kalam, only a traitor will go without liking it.”
Investigation
This picture has previously gone viral with a similar false claim. Back then, it was shared as an image of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Vishvas News had investigated it at the time as well. To verify the truth, we conducted a Google reverse image search. The search led us to the original photo posted by a Facebook user named Mariyala Srinivas, which included additional people not shown in the cropped viral version.
On May 3, 2020, Mariyala Srinivas shared the picture and claimed that the picture was of her family. She wrote that in the picture, her brother is sitting with her mother, her sister is sitting with her father, and Mariyala herself is sitting in the middle.
In the next phase of the investigation, Vishvas News contacted Kalam’s grandson and Managing Trustee of Abdul Kalam International Foundation (AKIF) A.P.J.M.J Sheikh Salim. He told us that the viral picture is not related to former President Dr. APJ Abdul Kalam.
At the end of the investigation, Vishvas News scanned the profile of Instagram user healthdoj. The page is followed by over 2 lakh users.
Conclusion: Vishvas News found in its investigation that the picture going viral on social media, claimed to be of former President Dr. APJ Abdul Kalam and his mother, actually belongs to the family of a Facebook user named Mariyala Srinivas.
- Claim Review : APJ Abdul Kalam's Childhood picture
- Claimed By : Instagram user healthdoj
- Fact Check : False
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