Fact Check: Man in viral video calling for introducing Hinduism in Indian schools is not UK Muslim minister
A video of a man discussing the need to reintroduce Hinduism as a subject in Indian schools is circulating on social media with the claim that he is a Muslim minister from the UK.
By Newsmeter Network Published on 12 Oct 2021 3:30 AM GMT
Hyderabad: A video of a man discussing the need to reintroduce Hinduism as a subject in Indian schools is circulating on social media with the claim that he is a Muslim minister from the UK.
In the video, the man can be heard saying, "In the United kingdom, I can teach Hinduism at every school I like, private, public whatever… In India, for some very weird reason they decided to take Hinduism out of the syllabus. You can't teach Hinduism in a single Indian school. And how did this come about? I will be very blunt and honest on camera. This came about with the compliments of Nehru. This foolish man thought Hinduism should be taken out of the syllabus as it's a secular world. In India, which is supposed to be a spiritual nation, they took Hinduism out of the syllabus."
The man further adds that he tried asking Prime Minister Narendra Modi to reintroduce the same in the curriculum.
Fact Check:
The claim that the man in the viral video is a Muslim minister from UK is false.
NewsMeter performed a keyword search on YouTube and found the viral video uploaded on 'Hindu Academy' in February 2017.
Hindu Academy is a platform that "aims to promote a Comprehensive and Rational vision of Hinduism incorporating ideas of Religious Pluralism, Spiritual Humanism, and resonance between Science and Spirituality". It operates with the education establishments by working with schools, colleges and universities as well as in the mainstream media.
The man in the video is the late Jay Lakhani, a theoretical physicist and global speaker. He is the first Hindu tutor at Eton College. He was a Gujarati based in the UK and ran the YouTube channel Hindu Academy. He has published several books on Hinduism and is known for his GCSE and A-Level Hinduism classes. He passed away on 4 December 2020. (Source: Global News, Hindu Post, and Linkedin)
There is no record of Lakhani having held a ministerial post in the UK government.
Thus, the claim that the man in the video is a Muslim minister in the United Kingdom is false.
