Fact Check: Massive protest against Amit Shah for remark on Ambedkar? No, viral video is old
Claim: The video shows a massive protest against Amit Shah’s statement on Dr BR Ambedkar in Parliament.
Fact: The claim is false. The video was from February 2022 and shows a protest by Dalit groups in Bengaluru against a judge.
Hyderabad: Union Home Minister Amit Shah’s statements on Dr BR Ambedkar have caused quite a stir with the Opposition protesting for action to be taken against Amit Shah for the remarks.
Amid this, a video claiming to show a massive protest against Amit Shah has gone viral. The video shows a huge protest march on a flyover amid police security.
A Facebook user shared the video and wrote, “Amit Shah should apologize. The fire that has started in the country has now become a volcano, and this volcano is spreading all over the world. There are people who love Baba Saheb Ambedkar all over the world.” (Translated from Hindi) (Archive)
Similar posts can be seen here, and here. (Archive 1, Archive 2)
Fact Check
NewsMeter found that the claim is false. The video shows a protest march by Dalit groups against a judge.
Using keyframes from the video, we conducted a reverse image search and found an article by The News Minute titled, ‘Ambedkar photo row: Massive protest by Dalit groups in Bengaluru against judge,’ published on February 20, 2022.
The photos from the article and the viral video are identical. Here is a comparison of the TNM photo and the viral video.
The article mentioned that the video is from a protest held in Bengaluru on February 19, 2022. Dalit groups demanded the suspension of a Karnataka district judge who objected to placing Dr Ambedkar’s portrait next to Mahatma Gandhi’s during Republic Day celebrations in Raichur. The massive rally, which clogged the Anand Rao Circle flyover, prompted Karnataka Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai to meet the protesters at Freedom Park.
Through a keyword search, we also found a longer video of the protest on YouTube, posted by SahilOnline TV News on February 20, 2022. The description confirmed it was a Dalit groups protest against the Raichur judge.
Additionally, Asianet News also published a video the same day, reporting heavy protests in Karnataka over the judge’s actions.
Therefore, we conclude that the viral video is not related to a protest against Amit Shah’s statement. It shows a protest from February 2022 by Dalit groups in Bengaluru demanding action against a judge.
(This story was originally published by newsmeter, and republished by english.varthabharati.in as part of the Shakti Collective)
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Air India resorts to cost-cutting ways amid 'tough times'; layoffs not anticipated
New Delhi/Mumbai (PTI): Hit hard by Pakistan airspace closure and Iran war, Air India has resorted to cost-cutting measures, including holding back annual increments for staff and asking them to cut discretionary spending as well as non-critical expenditures, warning of "tough times".
On Friday, Air India Chief Executive Officer & Managing Director (CEO & MD) Campbell Wilson told the staff it is going to be a "very, very difficult year" if things don't improve on the Middle East front.
A day after the loss-making airline's board discussed various cost-saving steps, Wilson, along with Chief Financial Officer (CFO) Sanjay Sharma and Chief Human Resources Officer (CHRO) Ravindra Kumar GP, addressed the employees during a townhall on Friday where the emphasis on the need to keep a close watch on costs.
With higher jet fuel prices due to the West Asia conflict and airspace curbs, the loss-making airline's expenses have spiralled in recent times and against this backdrop, Sharma also told staffers that FY26 has seen a softening in revenue amid heightened external uncertainties.
Calling for a relentless focus on costs in these tough times, Wilson urged employees to suspend discretionary spending, renegotiate rates where feasible, and defer non-critical expenditures.
"There must be a laser-sharp focus on eliminating wastage and leakages," he said.
Stressing the need to tighten the belt for a while, Wilson sounded optimistic that travel demand would rebound and the industry would continue on its upward path.
CHRO Ravindra Kumar told staff that the airline will proceed with variable pay for the last financial year and continue with planned promotions while noting that annual increments will be deferred by at least one quarter.
"We don't anticipate layoffs," he said.
At the airline's board meeting on Thursday, various cost-saving steps, including likely furloughs, were discussed. The Tata Group-owned airline has around 24,000 employees.
Generally, furlough refers to sending staff on unpaid leaves by companies during a tough financial situation.
During the townhall, CFO Sanjay Sharma said while strong revenue growth and fleet expansion drove financial momentum through FY25, FY26 has seen a softening in revenue amid heightened external uncertainties.
Air India has seen around 40 per cent CAGR (Compounded Annual Growth Rate) in revenue between 2022 and 2025, he added.
The airline was acquired by the Tata Group from the government in January 2022.
The Air India CEO mentioned the external challenges being facing the aviation industry as a whole, including the continued closure of Pakistan airspace that is expected to persist for the foreseeable future and geopolitical conflicts leading to disruptions and airspace closures across West Asia.
Wilson, who is set to step down later this year, also flagged a sharp depreciation of the rupee and a 2.5-3 times increase in jet fuel prices, and added that these factors have adversely affected travel sentiment and consumer confidence, as per the sources.
If the Strait of Hormuz opens, oil prices fall and consumer as well as business confidence come back, there is a decent chance of a solid recovery, Wilson said, adding that unless those circumstances happen, it was going to be "a very, very difficult year".
"I feel somewhat responsible that we ended up with probably the biggest surprise of the year in the external environment which was a full-scale war in our neighbouring region in the Gulf. That has had a huge impact on airspace," he said.
For Air India, Wilson said the situation is compounded by the fact that the airline cannot fly over the neighbouring country and has to take a much longer routing for any west-bound destination.
"Every airline is reporting that they are under some sort of financial pressure as a result of higher fuel prices and economic uncertainty. So, it is unfortunately not a great environment to be running an airline," the Air India CEO said.
The Air India Group -- Air India and Air India Express -- is projected to have incurred more than Rs 22,000 crore loss in the financial year ended March 2026.
At the townhall, Wilson also highlighted various initiatives, including completion of the retrofit of its legacy narrow-body aircraft and rapid network optimisation to redeploy capacity more efficiently.
