Fact Check: BJP supporter in viral photos is not the man held for remarks on PM Modi in Bihar

Hyderabad: A 20-year-old man named Mohammad Rizvi (alias Raja) was arrested in Darbhanga, Bihar, for using abusive language against Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his late mother during the Mahagathbandhan ‘Voter Adhikar Yatra’ rally.

The BJP has condemned the use of abusive language and demanded an apology from Rahul Gandhi and the Congress party regarding this matter.

In this context, photos have been circulating on social media showing a man wearing a BJP scarf and posing with BJP leaders. These images are being shared with the claim that they depict Mohammad Rizvi as a BJP worker who was allegedly planted in the Opposition’s program to deliberately use expletives against PM Modi.

An X user shared the photos with the caption, “Mohammad Rizvi, accused of abusing Narendra Modi, has been spotted with BJP leader and Union minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan. It appears that the BJP is now dispatching its own members to Congress rallies to verbally attack Narendra Modi and his mother and play the victim card. BJP is a national SHAME!” (Archive)

Another X user shared one of the photos with the caption, “Mohammad Rizvi, the man who abused Narendra Modi. So, BJP sent someone to abuse Narendra Modi on Congress stage.” (Archive)

Fact Check

NewsMeter found that the claim is false, as the viral photos show Nek Mohmmad Rizvi, not Mohmmad Rizvi, arrested for using abusive language against PM Modi.

We ran a keyword search and found a report by The Hindu published on August 29.

According to the report, the accused, identified as Mohammad Rizvi alias Raza (20), was arrested from the Singhwara locality in Darbhanga town. A case was filed against him and others following a complaint by the BJP’s Darbhanga district president, Aditya Narayan Choudhary.

According to The Times of India’s report of August 29, the accused hails from Bhopura village in the Jale Assembly Constituency of Darbhanga district, Bihar.

The reports did not carry photos of Mohammad Rizvi. We then tried to find the person in the viral images being shared as Rizvi’s photos.

Who is the person in the viral photos?

Through a reverse image search of the viral photos, we found they were originally posted by Nek Mohammad Rizvi on his Facebook and Instagram accounts.

One Facebook post from July 18 shows Rizvi extending birthday wishes to ‘respected Shri Pushpendra Jain ji,’ who is identified as the BJP Kotma Mandal President. Another image, posted on Instagram on March 5, features Rizvi wishing a happy birthday to Shivraj Singh Chouhan, the former Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister and current Union Agriculture Minister.

We checked Nek Mohmmad Rizvi’s Facebook and Instagram accounts and found several posts amplifying the BJP’s work or programme and supporting the party.

According to the bio on his Facebook profile, Rizvi works for the BJP. His profile indicates he is from Kotam town in Madhya Pradesh and currently resides in Bhopal.

There is no mention of him being arrested for making remarks on PM Modi.

What did Nek Mohammad Rizvi say about the claim that him being arrested?

On August 29, Rizvi posted screenshots of X handles that were claiming he was the person arrested and allegedly planted to use expletives against PM Modi.

In his post, he clarified that rumours were being spread about him and sought to address the misinformation linking him to the incident.

In the comment section of the above post, Rizvi also posted a video filmed outside the Kotam police station, holding a copy of his complaint.

In the video, he stated, “Some people have conspired against me regarding the Bihar elections. They have taken my photos from my social media accounts and are portraying me as someone who abused Modi ji. I have filed a complaint at the police station about this and have also submitted screenshots of all those who have spread false information against me. There is an attempt being made to damage my image and the BJP’s image.”