New Delhi: The BJP on Tuesday countered claims by Samajwadi Party (SP) president Akhilesh Yadav about “demolition of temples” in Varanasi, issuing three fact checks for countering attempts to use AI and “mislead” the nation for political gain.
Amit Malviya, In-charge of the BJP’s National Information and Technology Department, wrote on X, “In yet another attempt to mislead the nation for political gain, the Opposition is spreading false claims about damage to temples and idols in Kashi, using fake and AI-generated visuals circulated online.”
“The ground reality, however, is entirely different. This report exposes the misinformation and sets the record straight, he said, sharing a list of false claims and the factual situation related to these claims.
Malviya wrote, “False Claim 1: A temple was demolished to make way for a hotel. FACT: The hotel is being constructed on the site of a hospital that shut down in 2010.”
“False Claim 2: Temples and idols were damaged. FACT: No damage has been found to any temple or idol,” said the BJP leader.
He added, “False Claim 3: The idol of Ahilyabai was demolished. FACT: The Ahilyabai artwork has been re-established.”
The BJP’s strong counter to false claims related to Varanasi demolitions came close to Samajwadi Party (SP) president Akhilesh Yadav attacking the Uttar Pradesh government amid a growing controversy over allegations that temples and statues were razed during road-widening work in Varanasi’s Dal Mandi area, close to Manikarnika Ghat.
In a cryptic post in Hindi on social media, Yadav wrote, “Heritages are threaded like pearls; they are not demolished, they are cherished.”
The former chief minister accompanied the post with photographs purporting to show statues before and after the redevelopment work. On one image, he wrote, “Ahilyabai statue in debris.”
Yadav’s remarks came days after he launched a political attack on the BJP over the Dal Mandi redevelopment project. On Friday, the SP chief had accused the ruling party of targeting small traders and residents in the area.
(IANS)
