An old image showing a Tamil school teacher burning a tricolor to protest the Cauvery water dispute has resurfaced and is circulating on social media with false claims that a Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) worker burnt the flag.
BOOM found that the man in the photo, M Prabhu, belonged to the Tamil nationalist outfit "Tamil Desiya Periyakkam". The party held protests in April 2018 against the central government and demanded to set up a board on Cauvery river water dispute.
The government has begun an initiative named 'Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav' to celebrate 75 years of independence. Addressing the nation through his monthly radio monologue, 'Mann Ki Baat' Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday asked Indians to hoist the national flag at their homes during August 13-15 as part of 'Har Ghar Tiranga' celebration. The image has been shared in this context.
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The viral photo has been widely shared on Facebook. A text on the image reads, "RSS Member burning Indian flag is ok in new India."
Fact Check
BOOM ran a reverse image search and keywords search to find the original source of the phototgraph.
On April 2, 2018 Edxlive published a report with a title, "Art teacher from Kumbakonam burns national flag over Cauvery dispute, arrested"
According to the report, the man, identified as M Prabhu, is associated with the Tamil nationalist outfit "Tamil Desiya Periyakkam". He was held for protesting against the BJP-led central government's refusal to constitute the Cauvery Management Board (CMB) even after Supreme Court's orders.
The reports further stated that police had initiated action against M Prabhu, a resident of Matha Church Street at Puthupudaiyur near Kumbakonam in Thanjavur district, after the video clip posted by him went viral on social media. Read the Times of India report from April 2, 2018.
Samyam, a Tamil outlet published the report on April 1, 2018, about the incident. Read the Deccan Chronicle's report.
BOOM however was unable to verify if Prabhu was linked to any RSS affiliates.
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