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CLAIM
Amid the coronavirus crisis, a press release allegedly issued by the Prime Minister’s Office is being circulated on various social media platforms.
The document claims:
These instructions are followed by an attachment listing the functioning of various public sector departments.
The advisory has stirred massive confusion on WhatsApp and Twitter.
TRUE OR FALSE?
The Quint can confirm that the aforementioned advisory has not been released by the PMO and does not pertain to India.
A careful look at the advisory raised certain red flags. The last line of the advisory mentions Malaysian citizens and Indians. There is also a mention of PDRM, an acronym for Royal Malaysia Police and RELA (The People’s Volunteer Corps) another Malaysian government agency.
We also looked up for “Prevention and Control of Infectious Diseases (Measures Within the Infected Local Areas) Regulations 2020” mentioned in the advisory. A google keywords search suggested that the Act was passed by the Malaysian government on 18 March.
To verify that this advisory was indeed issued by the Malaysian government, we checked the official website of the government and found the advisory there.
Finally, state broadcaster Prasar Bharati News Services (PBNS) also took to Twitter to clarify the same.
Evidently, an advisory from the Malaysian government for their citizens is being circulated without context in India which is leading to panic ahead to Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s addressed to the nation at 8 pm.
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