On November 25, Indian National Congress leader Ahmed Patel passed away in New Delhi. As per The Hindu, the cause of death was multiple organ failure, a month after he was tested positive for COVID-19.
In the backdrop of this, several social media users have posted a video with the claim that it shows the funeral procession of Patel.
Alt News received several requests to authenticate this claim on our WhatsApp helpline (+917600011160) and on our official Android application. The video is shared on social media along with English, Hindi and Gujarati text that highlight the fact COVID-19 guidelines were not followed.
This video was uploaded by a Facebook user on November 27.
અહેમદ પટેલ ની અંતિમયાત્રા જુઓ આમાં ૨૦ માણસ નો કાયદો નથી ? બધું સામાન્ય માણસ ને સજા?
Posted by Kamlesh Rajput on Thursday, 26 November 2020
On November 26, Gujarat-based news outlets Khabar Ce (archived link) and Loktej (archived link) used a screenshot from the viral video as the featured image of their reports.
Fact-check
In order to authenticate the video, we looked for media reports about Patel’s funeral. The Hindu reported that Patel was laid to rest on November 26 next to his parents’ graves at his native village Piraman near Bharuch, a city in Gujarat.
Alt News also found a live stream of the funeral procession by Gujarat Tak on YouTube. As per Gujarat Tak, top INC officials were present and protocols related to COVID-19 were followed except social distancing.
At 2:01:33 mark, we can sport the stretcher that was carrying Patel’s fully covered dead body. Unlike in the viral video, the dead body is covered with a black coloured shroud.
A November 25 bulletin by YouTube Channel Hindustani Reporter includes identical funeral procession seen in the viral video. As per Hindustani Reporter, this funeral procession was of Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) leader Jameel Shaik who was shot dead on November 23 in Mumbai’s locality of Thane. MNS is a Maharashtra-based political party. The same was reported by the Mumbai Mirror which also includes the viral video. As per the media outlet, several people in this procession were not wearing masks.
A video of MNS leader Jameel Shaik’s funeral procession was shared on social media with the claim that it is of INC leader Ahmed Patel.
This post was originally published on Radio Free.
