Mumbai Police took to Twitter to rubbish a viral WhatsApp forward that listed the dates and times for distribution of essential items such as milk, newspapers, groceries and medicines and falsely attributed it to the police commissioner.
The message also includes a line stating 'By Order of Mumbai Police Commissioner' towards the end to make it sound credible.
The viral message reads, "Dates & timings for distributions of : (1) MILK - From Morning 6 a.m to 8 a.m.(daily) (2) NEWS PAPERS - Upto 7 a.m (daily) (3) VEGETABLES, KIRANA & MEDICAL SHOPS : From Morning 8 a.m. to 11 a.m. ( on 24/26/28 & 30 March only) By Order of Mumbai Police Commissioner."
BOOM looked for the message online and found many people sharing it and believing it to be true.
Click here for the post and here for the archive.
Click here for the tweet and here for the archive.
India had confirmed 511 COVID-19 cases and 10 deaths until 24th March. Catch all the updates around COVID-19 here.
Also read: What Are The Stages Of A Pandemic? How Did COVID-19 Become One?
The forward is causing panic as Maharashtra went into a lockdown, sealing borders and prohibiting public movement except in case of emergencies. The state has the highest number of coronavirus cases which jumped from 64 to 107 in a matter of a few days. The lockdown, so far, is till March 31, 2020. It is not clear whether this will be further extended.
Fact Check
BOOM found that the message is misleading and has no truth to it at all. We looked through the timeline of Mumbai police on Twitter and found a tweet by them stating that no such directions have been given by the commissioner of police of Mumbai.
Rumours are no less infectious than #coronavirus ! This looks like a meticulous list, but a fake one too! Please note that no such directions have been given by @CPMumbaiPolice . In case of any doubt, please #Dial100 or tweet to us! #TakingOnCorona pic.twitter.com/EQcHWGa0rU
— Mumbai Police (@MumbaiPolice) March 24, 2020
We also found a tweet by Param Bir Singh, the Commissioner of Police, Mumbai as well. The tweet stated that the list has not been made on his directions and also asked people to verify every message regarding emergency services before forwarding.
Namaste, I'm the Commissioner of @MumbaiPolice & this list has definitely not been made on my directions! The last thing we want to get infected with & pass on during such crisis is rumours. Pls verify every msg regarding emergency services before you forward #StaySafeFromRumours pic.twitter.com/UO4y3gY1dm
— CP Mumbai Police (@CPMumbaiPolice) March 24, 2020