These Celebrities Joined BJP Party in India: Fact Check

Story:

These Celebrities Joined BJP Party in India

Other Versions

1. Virat Kohli, Sachin Tendulkar, Sunny Deol and Gautam Gambhir have joined forces with the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)

2. (Hindi)

भाजपा के संग हुए विराट कोहली, सचिनतेंदुलकर, सन्नी देओल, गौतम गम्भीर |

Fact Check:

A picture message in circulation on Facebook and other social media sites purports to show some cricket and movie celebrities joined BJP party in India. It says Virat Kohli, Sachin Tendulkar, Sunny Deol and Gautam Gambhir have joined forces with the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). Despite the claim, the message saying the celebrities joined BJP party is not true.

Origin of Story

On 31st of January 2019, Facebook page I Support Modi posted a picture message saying the three well-known cricketers and Bollywood actor Sunny Deol have joined the BJP party. Amidst India gearing up for General Elections nation-wide, the post garnered thousands of shares and appeared on other social media platforms as well.

Have the Celebrities Joined BJP Party?

Firstly, the picture showing cricketer Virat Kohli meeting Indian PM Narendra Modi is an old one coming from December 2017. After their marriage, Virat Kohli and Bollywood actress Anushka Sharma met PM Modi and invited him for wedding reception. Note, the BJP party cap and shawl Virat is shown wearing are photoshop creations, which appeared before also. The BJP background behind Sachin Tendulkar is also photoshopped. The picture in fact shows the cricketing legend visiting Shree Siddhivinayak Temple in 2015 on his 42nd birthday.

Image of Virat Kohli meeting Indian PM Narendra Modi — Virat Kohli meeting Indian PM Narendra Modi

Image of Sachin Temdulkar visiting Shree Siddhivinayak Temple — Sachin Temdulkar visiting Shree Siddhivinayak Temple

The picture of Sunny Deol is real, but it is when the Bollywood actor held a roadshow campaign for Satyapal Singh back in 2014 before 2014 Lok Sabha Elections. Likewise, the picture of Cricketer Gautam Gambhir is real, but it shows the cricketer campaigning for BJP candidate Arun Jaitley in Amritsar.

Image of Sunny Deol campaigning for Satyapal Singh in 2014 — Sunny Deol campaigning for Satyapal Singh in 2014

Image of Gautam Gambhir campaigning for Arun Jaitley in 2014 — Gautam Gambhir campaigning for Arun Jaitley in 2014

There are no credible reports saying the celebrities have in fact joined the BJP Party. So, the picture message is a hoax. Note, the false stories appeared online earlier also.