A video of the Shahi Imam of Delhi Jama Masjid Ahmad Bukhari has gone viral on social media. The video shows him getting garlanded in the presence of Harsh Vardhan, BJP Lok Sabha member from Chandni Chowk. The video has been shared widely with the claim that the Imam has joined the BJP.
A Twitter user named Hisamuddin Khan shared this video with the aforementioned claim. The tweet has over 42,000 views.
Shahi Imam of Jama Masjid Delhi, Janab Ahmad Bukhari joined BJP..next election on one nation one DNA
यह लो इसको भी लगता है ED IT से डर लगै है।
अल्लाह का खौफ जब दिल से निकल जावे तो यही सब होवे है, हलाल का रिजक खाया होता तो आज यह नौबत न आती। pic.twitter.com/nmSOC7ozru— Hisamuddin Khan (@hisamuddink51) March 14, 2023
Several other Twitter and Facebook users have posted the exact same video and caption.
The video with the caption was also uploaded on YouTube several times this week.
Nighat Abbas, a spokesperson for BJP Delhi and also a lawyer, tweeted the video with a Hindi caption that translates to ‘Long live the King Shahi Imam of India.’
हिंदुस्तान के राजा शाही इमाम ज़िंदाबाद। pic.twitter.com/r9EHULDukA
— Nighat Abbass???????? (@abbas_nighat) March 15, 2023
Fact Check
Alt News contacted the deputy Shahi Imam of Jama Masjid Delhi Syed Shaban Bukhari, who is the son and successor of Shahi Imam Ahmad Bukhari. He refuted the claim of the Shahi Imam joining the BJP calling it ‘a rumor’. He got us in touch with Amanullah Bukhari, the personal secretary to the Shahi Imam, for further details about the event.
Amanullah Bukhari sent Alt News an audio statement via Whatsapp where he said that the programme where the Shahi Imam shared the stage with the BJP MP was regarding restoration of toilets in Jama Masjid. He said,
“The recent claims on social media regarding Shah Imam Ahmad Bukhari are baseless and false. The event that had taken place was in regard to the conditions of washrooms in Jama Masjid Delhi. The Masjid authorities had already sent the floor plan for restorations of these toilets to the MCD (Municipal Corporation of Delhi) but did not receive any response for the last 1.5 years. We then invited Dr. Harsh Vardhan, the Lok Sabha MP from the area, to use their funds for the betterment of these washrooms. The viral video is actually of a program that was organized to celebrate the foundation of the same.”
Readers can listen to the audio message here:
He also shared a YouTube video of the event. It’s a video report by a YouTube news channel named HINDUSTAN LIVE FARHAN YAHIYA. Here, one can see the reporter explaining the occasion of the inauguration of toilets. The relevant part can be seen from the 2:53-minute mark.
Therefore, the claims about Shahi Imam Syed Ahmad Bukhari joining the BJP are false. He was seen with Harsh Vardhan, the Chandni Chowk MP, at an event concerning restoration of toilets in Jama Masjid. The personal secretary of the Shahi Imam and a local news report confirmed this.
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