Fact Check: Muslim women did not sing Ram Bhajan in Dubai mosque as claimed by a viral video
Bengaluru: In a viral video that is being widely shared across social media platforms several Burqa-clad women are seen singing Ram Bhajan. The video is being shared with claims that the video was shot in a Dubai mosque where the Muslim women were singing the Bhajan.
In the video, several men are also seen wearing Arab attires suggesting that the Arab leaders enjoyed Ram Bhajan and lauded the women singing it. Claims also add among the women singing Bhajans, there were many from the Arab community as well.
The video has gone viral several times in the last five years and several news agencies including ABP News, The Quint, and Alt News have fact-checked the story and have nulled the claim over the years.
The video actually dates back to 2012 and is being shared with various claims and captions ever since. The latest claims are being made in the Kannada language adding that the Muslim women sang Ram Bhajans in a mosque in Dubai and the Sheikhs of Dubai were seen dancing during their performances.
The video was earlier shared with a caption in Hindi, translated to: “If Modi is there then it is possible, Jai Shri Ram, Muslim women in Dubai performed Ram Bhajan in the mosque while taking a new initiative and their Sheikh husbands clapped and supported them. If it was in India, Islam would have been in danger. Share and reach 125 crore people)”.
While the participants in the video are certainly Muslim & are singing bhajans, it is not in a mosque or in Dubai, as claimed.
The video has been widely shared on Youtube and several other social media platforms.
The video is in fact from Sathya Sai Baba’s ashram in Puttaparthi — Prashanti Nilayam in Andhra Pradesh, India.
SO WHO ARE THE WOMEN IN THE VIDEO?
The original video, shared by Radio Sai, dates back to 10 July 2012, and the singers are from Region 94 of the Sri Sathya Sai International Organisation (Bahrain, Iran, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Syria, Turkey and United Arab Emirates), a fact-check report of The Quint had earlier claimed.
The viral video has been edited from the original video and can be traced back to 44:00 minutes in the former.
Clarifying the video over an email interaction with The Quint, the Sathya Sai Baba International Organisation said that while not all the participants seen in the video are Muslims or Arabs, some of them most definitely are.
“Devotees often perform in Prasanthi Nilayam, dressed in the traditional attire of the countries/regions they represent and that explains their appearance. But it is a regular event in Puttaparthi, of people from different religions and nationalities coming together and chanting Vedas, singing bhajans, Christmas carols, and Sufi songs.”
The clarification added that such events were often held in Prashanti Nilyayam to signify the unity of religions, which was one of Sathya Sai Baba’s primary messages to his devotees.
In conclusion, the video of burqa-clad Muslim women singing bhajans is not from a mosque in Dubai, but from a cultural event organized at Sathya Sai Baba’s ashram in Puttaparthi, Andhra Pradesh.
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Speaker rules out discussion on Guv''s conduct amid K''taka Assembly standoff
Bengaluru (PTI): In an effort to end the logjam over the Governor's address that has stalled proceedings for the past week, Karnataka Assembly Speaker U T Khader on Wednesday ruled that legislators should not discuss Thaawarchand Gehlot or his conduct in the house, saying such debates send the wrong message to the public.
The House has witnessed repeated disruptions and adjournments since the session began on January 22 over the issue of the governor's conduct.
During his address to the joint sitting of the Karnataka legislature on January 22, Gehlot read out only three sentences from the 122-paragraph speech prepared by the state government.
The speech included criticism of the Centre for replacing the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA) with the Viksit Bharat–Guarantee for Rozgar and Ajivika Mission (Gramin) (VB-G RAM G), portions of which the governor declined to read.
Concluding his address in about two minutes, the governor left the house, triggering a commotion as Congress legislators attempted to gherao him and raised slogans.
While the opposition BJP accused the ruling Congress and its ministers of "insulting" the governor and demanded action, the treasury benches countered by claiming the governor had "insulted the National Anthem by leaving before it was played."
The house again witnessed heated arguments on the issue earlier in the day, leading to adjournment.
During the interruption, Khader held a meeting with ministers and opposition members to resolve the impasse.
When proceedings resumed, the speaker delivered his ruling.
Referring to the events of January 22 and the subsequent debate, Khader said the conduct and discussions had conveyed the wrong message to the public.
"Our conduct as members of this House and the opinions expressed must be in good taste and in accordance with constitutional provisions. They must uphold the dignity of the House and its members. We must introspect in this direction," he said.
He stressed the need for caution to ensure that such incidents are not repeated in the future.
"Let us end this matter here, continue the discussion on the motion of thanks to the governor, and refrain from discussing the governor or his conduct in this house," the speaker said.
Leader of the Opposition R Ashoka said the house should express regret over what he termed an "insult" to the governor.
Responding, Chief Minister Siddaramaiah said the situation would not have arisen had the governor read out the entire address.
"Asking the house to express regret is not appropriate. Why did the governor leave even before the National Anthem was played," Siddaramaiah asked.
BJP MLA S Suresh Kumar reminded Siddaramaiah that as Leader of the Opposition in 2011, he had asked then Governor Hansraj Bhardwaj to curtail his address.
Bhardwaj had subsequently placed the address on the table of the house, requesting members to treat it as read.
Siddaramaiah said the situation in January 2011 was different from the present one.
The debate grew intense, leading to another adjournment of the house.
