#FactCheck - A misleading video falsely shows Former Prime Minister of India Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru admitting he had no role in India's independence
Executive Summary:
A misleading video has been widely shared online, falsely portraying Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru stating that he was not involved in the Indian independence struggle and he even opposed it. The video is a manipulated excerpt from Pandit Nehru’s final major interview in 1964 with American TV host Arnold Mich. The original footage available on India’s state broadcaster Prasar Bharati’s YouTube channel shows Pandit Nehru discussing about Muhammad Ali Jinnah, stating that Jinnah did not participate in the independence movement and opposed it. The viral video falsely edits Pandit Nehru’s comments to create a false narrative, which has been debunked upon reviewing the full, unedited interview.
Claims:
In the viral video, Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru states that he was not involved in the fight for Indian independence and even opposed it.
Fact check:
Upon receiving the posts, we thoroughly checked the video and then we divided the video into keyframes using the inVid tool. We reverse-searched one of the frames of the video. We found a video uploaded by Prasar Bharati Archives official YouTube channel on 14 May 2019.
The description of the video reads, “Full video recording of what was perhaps Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru's last significant interview to American TV Host Arnold Mich Jawaharlal Nehru's last TV Interview - May 1964e his death. Another book by Chandrika Prasad provides a date of 18th May 1964 when the interview was aired in New York, this is barely a few days before the death of Pandit Nehru on 27th May 1964.”
On reviewing the full video, we found that the viral clip of Pandit Nehru runs from 14:50 to 15:45. In this portion, Pandit Nehru is speaking about Muhammad Ali Jinnah, a key leader of the Muslim League.
At the timestamp 14:34, the American TV interviewer Arnold Mich says, “You and Mr. Gandhi and Mr. Jinnah, you were all involved at that point of Independence and then partition in the fight for Independence of India from the British domination.” Pandit Nehru replied, “Mr. Jinnah was not involved in the fight for independence at all. In fact, he opposed it. Muslim League was started in about 1911 I think. It was started really by the British encouraged by them so as to create factions, they did succeed to some extent. And ultimately there came the partition.”
Upon thoroughly analyzing we found that the viral video is an edited version of the real video to misrepresent the actual context of the video.
We also found the same interview uploaded on a Facebook page named Nehru Centre for Social Research on 1 December 2021.
Hence, the viral claim video is misleading and fake.
Hence, the viral video is fake and misleading and netizens must be careful while believing in such an edited video.
Conclusion:
In conclusion, the viral video claiming that Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru stated that he was not involved in the Indian independence struggle is found to be falsely edited. The original footage reveals that Pandit Nehru was referring to Muhammad Ali Jinnah's participation in the struggle, not his own. This explanation debunks the false story conveyed by the manipulated video.
- Claim: Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru stated that he was not involved in the struggle for Indian independence and even he opposed it.
- Claimed on: YouTube, LinkedIn, Facebook, X (Formerly known as Twitter)
- Fact Check: Fake & Misleading
Related Blogs
Executive Summary:
The video that allegedly showed cars running into an Indian flag while Pakistan flags flying in the air in Indian states, went viral on social media but it has been established to be misleading. The video posted is neither from Kerala nor Tamil Nadu as claimed, instead from Karachi, Pakistan. There are specific details like the shop's name, Pakistani flags, car’s number plate, geolocation analyses that locate where the video comes from. The false information underscores the importance of verifying information before sharing it.
Claims:
A video circulating on social media shows cars trampling the Indian Tricolour painted on a road, as Pakistani flags are raised in pride, with the incident allegedly taking place in Tamil Nadu or Kerala.
Fact Check:
Upon receiving the post we closely watched the video, and found several signs that indicated the video was from Pakistan but not from any place in India.
We divided the video into keyframes and found a shop name near the road.
We enhanced the image quality to see the shop name clearly.
We can see that it’s written as ‘Sanam’, also we can see Pakistan flags waving on the road. Taking a cue from this we did some keyword searches with the shop name. We found some shops with the name and one of the shop's name ‘Sanam Boutique’ located in Karachi, Pakistan, was found to be similar when analyzed using geospatial Techniques.
We also found a similar structure of the building while geolocating the place with the viral video.
Additional confirmation of the place is the car’s number plate found in the keyframes of the video.
We found a website that shows the details of the number Plate in Karachi, Pakistan.
Upon thorough investigation, it was found that the location in the viral video is from Karachi, Pakistan, but not from Kerala or Tamil Nadu as claimed by different users in Social Media. Hence, the claim made is false and misleading.
Conclusion:
The video circulating on social media, claiming to show cars trampling the Indian Tricolour on a road while Pakistani flags are waved, does not depict an incident in Kerala or Tamil Nadu as claimed. By fact-checking methodologies, it has been confirmed now that the location in the video is actually from Karachi, Pakistan. The misrepresentation shows the importance of verifying the source of any information before sharing it on social media to prevent the spread of false narratives.
- Claim: A video shows cars trampling the Indian Tricolour painted on a road, as Pakistani flags are raised in pride, taking place in Tamil Nadu or Kerala.
- Claimed on: X (Formerly known as Twitter)
- Fact Check: Fake & Misleading
Recently, Apple has pushed away the Advanced Data Protection feature for its customers in the UK. This was done due to a request by the UK’s Home Office, which demanded access to encrypted data stored in its cloud service, empowered by the Investigatory Powers Act (IPA). The Act compels firms to provide information to law enforcement. This move and its subsequent result, however, have raised concerns—bringing out different perspectives regarding the balance between privacy and security, along with the involvement of higher authorities and tech firms.
What is Advanced Data Protection?
Advanced Data Protection is an opt-in feature and doesn’t necessarily require activation. It is Apple’s strongest data tool, which provides end-to-end encryption for the data that the user chooses to protect. This is different from the standard (default) encrypted data services that Apple provides for photos, back-ups, and notes, among other things. The flip side of having such a strong security feature from a user perspective is that if the Apple account holder were to lose access to the account, they would lose their data as well since there are no recovery paths.
Doing away with the feature altogether, the sign-ups have been currently halted, and the company is working on removing existing user access at a later date (which is yet to be confirmed). For the UK users who hadn’t availed of this feature, there would be no change. However, for the ones who are currently trying to avail it are met with a notification on the Advanced Data Protection settings page that states that the feature cannot be enabled anymore. Consequently, there is no clarity whether the data stored by the UK users who availed the former facility would now cease to exist as even Apple doesn’t have access to it. It is important to note that withdrawing the feature does not ensure compliance with the Investigative Powers Act (IPA) as it is applicable to tech firms worldwide that have a UK market. Similar requests to access data have been previously shut down by Apple in the US.
Apple’s Stand on Encryption and Government Requests
The Tech giant has resisted court orders, rejecting requests to write software that would allow officials to access and enable identification of iPhones operated by gunmen (made in 2016 and 2020). It is said that the supposed reasons for such a demand by the UK Home Office have been made owing to the elusive role of end-to-end encryption in hiding criminal activities such as child sexual abuse and terrorism, hampering the efforts of security officials in catching them. Over the years, Apple has emphasised time and again its reluctance to create a backdoor to its encrypted data, stating the consequences of it being more vulnerable to attackers once a pathway is created. The Salt Typhoon attack on the US Telecommunication system is a recent example that has alerted officials, who now encourage the use of end-to-end encryption. Barring this, such requests could set a dangerous precedent for how tech firms and governments operate together. This comes against the backdrop of the Paris AI Action Summit, where US Vice President J.D. Vance raised concerns regarding regulation. As per reports, Apple has now filed a legal complaint against the Investigatory Powers Tribunal, the UK’s judicial body that handles complaints with respect to surveillance power usage by public authorities.
The Broader Debate on Privacy vs. Security
This standoff raises critical questions about how tech firms and governments should collaborate without compromising fundamental rights. Striking the right balance between privacy and regulation is imperative, ensuring security concerns are addressed without dismantling individual data protection. The outcome of Apple’s legal challenge against the IPA may set a significant precedent for how encryption policies evolve in the future.
References
- https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c20g288yldko
- https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cgj54eq4vejo
- https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cn524lx9445o
- https://www.yahoo.com/tech/apple-advanced-data-protection-why-184822119.html
- https://indianexpress.com/article/technology/tech-news-technology/apple-advanced-data-protection-removal-uk-9851486/
- https://www.techtarget.com/searchsecurity/news/366619638/Apple-pulls-Advanced-Data-Protection-in-UK-sparking-concerns
- https://www.computerweekly.com/news/366619614/Apple-withdraws-encrypted-iCloud-storage-from-UK-after-government-demands-back-door-access?_gl=1*1p1xpm0*_ga*NTE3NDk1NzQxLjE3MzEzMDA2NTc.*_ga_TQKE4GS5P9*MTc0MDc0MTA4Mi4zMS4xLjE3NDA3NDEwODMuMC4wLjA.
- https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2025/feb/21/apple-removes-advanced-data-protection-tool-uk-government
- https://proton.me/blog/protect-data-apple-adp-uk#:~:text=Proton-,Apple%20revoked%20advanced%20data%20protection%20
- https://www.theregister.com/2025/03/05/apple_reportedly_ipt_complaint/
- https://www.computerweekly.com/news/366616972/Government-agencies-urged-to-use-encrypted-messaging-after-Chinese-Salt-Typhoon-hack
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Introduction
The ongoing armed conflict between Israel and Hamas/ Palestine is in the news all across the world. The latest conflict was triggered by unprecedented attacks against Israel by Hamas militants on October 7, killing thousands of people. Israel has launched a massive counter-offensive against the Islamic militant group. Amid the war, the bad information and propaganda spreading on various social media platforms, tech researchers have detected a network of 67 accounts that posted false content about the war and received millions of views. The ‘European Commission’ has sent a letter to Elon Musk, directing them to remove illegal content and disinformation; otherwise, penalties can be imposed. The European Commission has formally requested information from several social media giants on their handling of content related to the Israel-Hamas war. This widespread disinformation impacts and triggers the nature of war and also impacts the world and affects the goodwill of the citizens. The bad group, in this way, weaponise the information and fuels online hate activity, terrorism and extremism, flooding political polarisation with hateful content on social media. Online misinformation about the war is inciting extremism, violence, hate and different propaganda-based ideologies. The online information environment surrounding this conflict is being flooded with disinformation and misinformation, which amplifies the nature of war and too many fake narratives and videos are flooded on social media platforms.
Response of social media platforms
As there is a proliferation of online misinformation and violent content surrounding the war, It imposes a question on social media companies in terms of content moderation and other policy shifts. It is notable that Instagram, Facebook and X(Formerly Twitter) all have certain features in place giving users the ability to decide what content they want to view. They also allow for limiting the potentially sensitive content from being displayed in search results.
The experts say that It is of paramount importance to get a sort of control in this regard and define what is permissible online and what is not, Hence, what is required is expertise to determine the situation, and most importantly, It requires robust content moderation policies.
During wartime, people who are aggrieved or provoked are often targeted by this internet disinformation that blends ideological beliefs and spreads conspiracy theories and hatred. This is not a new phenomenon, it is often observed that disinformation-spreading groups emerged and became active during such war and emergency times and spread disinformation and propaganda-based ideologies and influence the society at large by misrepresenting the facts and planted stories. Social media has made it easier to post user-generated content without properly moderating it. However, it is a shared responsibility of tech companies, users, government guidelines and policies to collectively define and follow certain mechanisms to fight against disinformation and misinformation.
Digital Services Act (DSA)
The newly enacted EU law, i.e. Digital Services Act, pushes various larger online platforms to prevent posts containing illegal content and also puts limits on targeted advertising. DSA enables to challenge the of illegal online content and also poses requirements to prevent misinformation and disinformation and ensure more transparency over what the users see on the platforms. Rules under the DSA cover everything from content moderation & user privacy to transparency in operations. DSA is a landmark EU legislation moderating online platforms. Large tech platforms are now subject to content-related regulation under this new EU law ‘The Digital Services Act’, which also requires them to prevent the spread of misinformation and disinformation and overall ensure a safer online environment.
Indian Scenario
The Indian government introduced the Intermediary Guidelines (Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media Ethics Code) Rules, updated in 2023 which talks about the establishment of a "fact check unit" to identify false or misleading online content. Digital Personal Data Protection, 2023 has also been enacted which aims to protect personal data. The upcoming Digital India bill is also proposed to be tabled in the parliament, this act will replace the current Information & Technology Act, of 2000. The upcoming Digital India bill can be seen as future-ready legislation to strengthen India’s current cybersecurity posture. It will comprehensively deal with the aspects of ensuring privacy, data protection, and fighting growing cyber crimes in the evolving digital landscape and ensuring a safe digital environment. Certain other entities including civil societies are also actively engaged in fighting misinformation and spreading awareness for safe and responsible use of the Internet.
Conclusion:
The widespread disinformation and misinformation content amid the Israel-Hamas war showcases how user-generated content on social media shows you the illusion of reality. There is widespread misinformation, misleading content or posts on social media platforms, and misuse of new advanced AI technologies that even make it easier for bad actors to create synthetic media content. It is also notable that social media has connected us like never before. Social media is a great platform with billions of active social media users around the globe, it offers various conveniences and opportunities to individuals and businesses. It is just certain aspects that require the attention of all of us to prevent the bad use of social media. The social media platforms and regulatory authorities need to be vigilant and active in clearly defining and improving the policies for content regulation and safe and responsible use of social media which can effectively combat and curtail the bad actors from misusing social media for their bad motives. As a user, it's the responsibility of users to exercise certain duties and promote responsible use of social media. With the increasing penetration of social media and the internet, misinformation is rampant all across the world and remains a global issue which needs to be addressed properly by implementing strict policies and adopting best practices to fight the misinformation. Users are encouraged to flag and report misinformative or misleading content on social media and should always verify it from authentic sources. Hence creating a safer Internet environment for everyone.
References:
- https://abcnews.go.com/US/experts-fear-hate-extremism-social-media-israel-hamas-war/story?id=104221215
- https://edition.cnn.com/2023/10/14/tech/social-media-misinformation-israel-hamas/index.html
- https://www.nytimes.com/2023/10/13/business/israel-hamas-misinformation-social-media-x.html
- https://www.africanews.com/2023/10/24/fact-check-misinformation-about-the-israel-hamas-war-is-flooding-social-media-here-are-the//
- https://www.theverge.com/23845672/eu-digital-services-act-explained
