Old Graffiti From Kolkata Revived After PM Modi’s Tamil Nadu Visit

The image dates back to January 2020 when PM Narendra Modi had visited the state of West Bengal.

The image dates back to January 2020 when PM Modi had visited the state of West Bengal and anti-CAA protests erupted in Kolkata’s Esplanade area.

(Photo: Altered by The Quint)

An old graffiti from West Bengal that reads ‘Modi Go Back’ has been revived in the backdrop of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to poll-bound Tamil Nadu on Sunday, 14 February.

However, the image is from Kolkata and dates back to January 2020 when protests against the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) were being held across the country.

CLAIM

The image is being shared with the claim: “#GoBackModi festival all over the street...(state of Tamil Nadu big breaking) (sic)”

You can view the archived version here.(Source: Facebook/ Screenshot)

Several social media users shared the image on Twitter and Facebook claiming to show the ‘mood in Tamil Nadu’.

You can view the archived version here.(Source: Twitter/ Screenshot)

You can view the archived version here.(Source: Twitter/ Screenshot)

You can view the archived version here.(Source: Facebook/ Screenshot)

You can view the archived version here.(Source: Facebook/ Screenshot)

WHAT WE FOUND OUT

On conducting a reverse image search, we came across a tweet by journalist Mayukh Ranjan Ghosh shared on 11 January 2020.

The tweet that carried the viral image reads: “This is one of the busiest roads in Kolkata. #Esplanade. Lakhs and lakhs of people commute, jam packed traffic r seen. Just look at this place tonight. Roads turned into graffitis, no traffic, all roads blocked, students protesting overnight. (sic)”

(Source: Twitter/ Screenshot)

On carefully looking at the viral image, we noticed a text on the building that read: ‘Metro Channel Control Post Hare Street Police Station.’

(Source: Twitter/Altered by The Quint)

We then searched for the said location on Google Maps and found that it is located in Kolkata.

Further, a visual comparison of the viral image with the one available on Google Maps showed several similarities.

Left: Viral Image. Right: Image on Google Maps.(Photo: Altered by The Quint)

Media outlets such as Scroll and The Times of India carried reports from January 2020 that showed images of the graffiti from different angles.

(Source: Website/ Screenshot)

The articles stated that people protesting against the Citizenship Amendment Act in Kolkata’s Esplanade area had ’left behind a message’ for PM Narendra Modi, who was visiting West Bengal at the time.

We had earlier debunked the viral image, which was then being claimed to be from Bihar in the light of Bihar Assembly elections.

Evidently, an old image from Kolkata is being falsely shared as one from Tamil Nadu.

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