Fact Check: Amit Shah announces death penalty for drugs and ragging crimes? Find the truth here

Hyderabad: A news card attributing a statement about creating a ‘drug-free India’ to Amit Shah has been circulating on social media. The news claims that the Union home minister has announced the enforcement of the death penalty for drug-related offences, ragging and murder cases.

A Facebook user shared the news card and wrote, “This is a good decision—everyone should accept it without looking at it politically. Only a bold leader can make such a move. There’s no need to justify everything like a spectator; we need action. Solidarity with the Central government for good initiatives!” (Translated from Malayalam) (Archive)

Fact Check

NewsMeter found that the claim is false. The viral news card has been edited, and Amit Shah has not made any such announcement.

An analysis of the circulating card showed discrepancies in the sentence structure and the fonts used which indicated that the top lines were not part of the original news card. The lines on the top of the news card are about the death penalty in cases related to drugs, ragging and murders.

Further, we found the original news card posted by Janam TV on March 2, with the caption stating that the Union government’s aim is a drug-free India. However, this news card does not state that Shah has announced the death penalty for drug-related offences, ragging and murder cases.

The Janam TV card is based on Amit Shah’s statement that strict action will be taken against the drug mafia and that the government’s goal is a drug-free India. This confirmed that the news card was edited by adding lines about the death penalty.

Here is a comparison of the edited and original cards.

Subsequently, we came across a video report published on Janam TV’s YouTube channel on March 2, which was based on Amit Shah’s X post regarding the Union government’s goal of a drug-free India. Taking this lead, we reviewed Shah’s post, which was only about drug-related issues. There was no mention of ragging or murder. Additionally, the statement emphasised strengthening measures to control drug mafias, with no reference to the death penalty.

In his post, Shah stated that, during the investigation into various cases across the country, 29 drug syndicates have been apprehended, and such strict actions will continue.

This confirmed that the circulating card is fake, and Amit Shah made no reference to the death penalty for drug-related crimes. The claim is false, and the news card in circulation has been created by editing the original card of Janam TV.