Fact Check: Actor Pankaj Tripathi did not criticize BJP, viral video is fake

New Delhi: A video of actor Pankaj Tripathi is viral on social media these days. In this video of about 30 seconds, he/she is shown in the role of a peanut seller, in which he/she is seen appealing not to vote for BJP. This video has been shared on the social media handles of different units of the Aam Aadmi Party with the caption ‘Tell the BJP people – I am not a fool’. After investigation by PTI Fact Check Desk, the viral video was found to be edited. The original video is part of ‘I am not a fool’ campaign of ‘National Payments Corporation of India’ to avoid online fraud, in which Pankaj Tripathi was making the common people aware about online fraud. Users are tampering with the video and actor’s voice and sharing it on social media with false claims.

What is the claim in the video?

A viral video was shared on December 5 by the official account of ‘Aam Aadmi Party – Uttar Pradesh’ on social media platform ‘X’. The caption of the video reads, ‘Tell the BJP people – I am not a fool.’ of post archive link See more screenshots here.

Many other users, including social media handles of different units of Aam Aadmi Party, are also sharing this video with similar claims considering it to be true.

investigation

The desk listened carefully to the viral video to verify the claim. In this, Pankaj Tripathi reportedly says, ‘We sell peanuts, not our intelligence. Look at this message, BJP people have sent, they are saying vote for us, we will develop. Hey… we don’t know whether here we will vote for this and there the government money is missing. I am a peanut… not a fool. Remember, if BJP people give any lure then say… I am not a fool.

After listening carefully to the video, the desk noticed that after the first 10 seconds, there is a sudden change in Pankaj Tripathi’s voice and at some places the lip sync also seems to be mismatched. The desk doubted the authenticity of the video.

Taking the investigation forward, the desk reverse searched the ‘key frames’ of the video. We found the original video on the official ‘X’ account of ‘UPI NPCI’. UPI had shared Pankaj Tripathi’s video with the hashtag #MainMoorkhNahiHoon on September 23, 2024.

In the original video, Pankaj Tripathi says, ‘We sell peanuts, not our intelligence.’ See this message, it is said that lottery is going on, click on the link and enter UPI PIN, you will get money. Hey… we don’t know whether UPI PIN was entered here or money there… money is missing. I am a peanut person, not a fool. Remember UPI says, if someone tempts you, say, ‘I am not a fool.’

The desk also compared the viral video and the original video, which clearly shows that the original video has been tampered with. See the comparison screenshot here.

Delhi unit of Bharatiya Janata Party also termed the viral video on ‘X’ as fake and while sharing the original video wrote, ‘Kejriwal and his/her leaders are busy in making fake videos. The video which was made by a big actor like Pankaj Tripathi to make the public aware, was also falsified.

National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI) has appointed actor Pankaj Tripathi as its ‘UPI Safety Ambassador’ to raise security awareness on digital payment platforms. appointed Have done.

To enhance security and prevent fraud on digital payment platforms, National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI) has launched the ‘I am not a fool’ awareness campaign, in which actor Pankaj Tripathi will star in a series of six ad films. These advertisements have been made in 11 different Indian languages. This press release issued on 6 November Here See.

conclusion

From the investigation so far, it is clear that this video going viral on social media is edited and fake. The original video is part of ‘I am not a fool’ campaign of ‘National Payments Corporation of India’ to avoid online fraud, in which Pankaj Tripathi was making the common people aware about online fraud. Users are tampering with the video and actor’s voice and sharing it on social media with false claims.

(This story was originally published PTI NewsAnd republished by NBT as part of Shakti Collective.)