Fact Check: Image of TMC MPs Mahua Moitra, Sayani Ghosh ‘sleeping’ in Parliament is misleading
The viral image is a screengrab from a specific moment in a video, and the video does not show them sleeping.
By Md Mahfooz Alam Published on 28 Jun 2024 3:29 PM GMT
Claim: The viral image shows TMC MPs Mahua Moitra and Sayani Ghosh sleeping during Lok Sabha proceedings.
Fact: The claim is false. The viral image is a screengrab from a video taken at a specific moment to make it look like the two MPs were sleeping.
Hyderabad: An image of newly elected Trinamool Congress (TMC) MPs Mahua Moitra from Krishnanagar and Sayani Ghosh from Jadavpur attending the Lok Sabha is making rounds on social media. The accompanying claim suggests that Moitra and Ghosh were sleeping in Parliament.
Taking a jibe at them, an X user shared the image and wrote, “West Bengal’s Krishna Nagar MP Mahua Moitra and Jadavpur MP Sayani Ghosh spent the whole night thinking about the development projects of respective regions. Hence they decided to sleep in the Parliament. Krishnanagar and Jadavpur people are really ‘FORTUNATE’ to get them. (sic)” (Archive)
Another X user shared the image and wrote, “Krishnanagar & Jadavpur is sleeping!! (sic)” (Archive)
Fact Check
NewsMeter found that the claim is false. The viral image is a screengrab from a specific moment in a video, and the video does not show them sleeping.
We noticed Shiv Sena (Uddhav Balasaheb Thackeray) Arvind Ganpat Sawant, the MP from Mumbai South in the viral screengrab. Using this clue, we conducted a targeted keyword search and found a video published by Sansad TV on June 26, 2024, titled ‘Arvind Ganpat Sawant congratulates Om Birla on being re-elected as Lok Sabha Speaker.’
The viral screengrab was taken from the video. The visual appears at the 1:57 minute mark. At this exact moment in the video, a screen capture was made while Moitra was lifting her head and Ghosh was patting the desk with her head downwards. The screengrab was deliberately taken at that moment to make it look like they were sleeping.
Here is a comparison of the viral screengrab with the visual of Moitra and Ghosh captured by us from the same point in the video.
We also found Sawant’s congratulatory video published by TV9 Marathi and Maharashtra Times on June 26. These videos also do not show Ghosh and Moitra sleeping.
Hence, we conclude that the viral screengrab is misleading, and the claim that the newly elected TMC MPs were sleeping in Parliament is false.
