A photo from 2015 of Canadian Prime Minisiter Justin Trudeau attending a Diwali celebration at a Gurudwara in Ottawa is viral with a false claim that it shows him participating in a protest with members of the Sikh community against the new farm laws in India.
Thousands of farmers from Haryana and Punjab are currently protesting in Delhi, with many of them camped at the borders of the capital protesting against three recent legislations by the Bharatiya Janata Party led central government. The farmers have steadfastly refused to budge from the borders, braving tear gas, lathi charge and barricading by the police and paramilitary forces.
Also Read:I Am Right Here If They Want To See My Injuries: Lathi-Charged Farmer
The viral posts showing Justin Trudeau sitting with other members of the Sikh community soon went viral with captions claiming, he had joined the protest and was sitting on a dharna. The caption in Hindi translates to, "Here is Canada's Prime Minister sitting in protest in support of farmer brothers."
(Original text in Hindi - "किसान" भाईयो के "समर्थन" मे धरने पर बैठे "कनाडा" के प्रधानमंत्री! इसको कहते है विदेश मे डंका बजना!)
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The photo of Justin Trudeau is being shared after his recent comment aimed at the Indian government for its handling of the protest. Trudeau who currently has three Sikh ministers in his Cabinet has been an active and vocal supporter of the community. On the occasion of Guru Nanak jayanti, Trudeau, in an online address, said, "We are all concerned about the family and friends of the protesters. I want to remind you that Canada has always been vigilant about the right to peaceful protest. We believe in the importance of dialogue. We have spoken directly with the Indian authorities about this."
The statement has ruffled feathers at New Delhi with the Ministry of External Affairs spokesperson calling the comments 'ill informed', 'unwarranted' and 'pertaining to the internal affairs of a democratic country.'
Also Read:Farmers' Protest: What Is MSP And Why Is It Causing A Stir?
Also Read:2017 Image Of Jat Stir In Haryana Peddled As Farmers' Protest In Delhi
FACT CHECK
We ran a reverse search on the image and found that it is from 2015 when Justin Trudeau visited a gurudwara in Ottawa to take part in Diwali celebrations organised by the local Sikh community.
We found the same photo published in a news story by the Hindustan Times on November 24, 2015 titled 'Canadian PM Justin Trudeau visits temple, Gurdwara on Diwali'. The story described how Trudeau visited a Hindu temple and a Gurudwara in Ottawa to celebrate Diwali with the Indo-Canadian community.
The story credited Reuters for the photo and a search on the photo wire agency's website led us to results from 2015 with the caption saying the photo was shot by Patrik Doyle at the Gurdwara Sahib Ottawa Sikh Society in Ottawa, Canada. The photo was published on November 11, 2015, the same date the event was held, as mentioned in the caption.
You can view the photo on the Reuters site here
Reuters also carried other photos from the same event held at the Gurudwara where Trudeau can be seen wearing the same red headscarf.
