Fact Check: Viral video falsely claims to show low attendance at K Rail project debate in Kerala
The K Rail project has been the talk of Kerala for a while now. In April, the Kerala Rail Development Corporation Ltd. hosted an open debate in response to the ongoing agitation against its proposed SilverLine semi high-speed rail project.
By Newsmeter Network Published on 12 May 2022 3:58 AM GMT
Hyderabad: The K Rail project has been the talk of Kerala for a while now. In April, the Kerala Rail Development Corporation Ltd. hosted an open debate in response to the ongoing agitation against its proposed SilverLine semi high-speed rail project. (Read more here)
In this context, a video showing a handful of people at a meeting is viral on WhatsApp with the claim that not many people turned up for the K Rail project debate.
Mocking the small crowd, the video is being shared with the message, "Sea of people at the K Rail explanation meeting held at Kozhikode yesterday. Many people got injured due to rush and rush." The caption indicates that not many people attended the much-anticipated debate.
FACT CHECK
The viral video is from a district-level inauguration programme that was held on 20 April to celebrate the first anniversary of the LDF government in Kozhikode. The same video can be seen in a video report by Manorama.
According to Manorama Online, only a few people joined the anniversary event. In fact, there were more people on the stage than in the audience. Ministers who said they would attend the event attended it online. Empty chairs were removed from the stage when the festivities began. The organisers hoped that people would arrive by the time of the inauguration but even then, the situation was the same.
The same visuals can also be seen in reports by other media organisations that covered the event.
Moreover, it should be noted that the K Rail debate took place at Taj Vivanta in Thiruvananthapuram and not in Kozhikode. According to Mathrabumi, only six people were invited, out of which four showed up. Despite the two not attending, the meeting took place.
It is clear that the viral video is not linked to the K Rail debate that took place in Thiruvananthapuram.
