A picture of Rishi Sunak lighting up diyas is being shared on social media with a claim that he lit a lamp outside the UK Parliament after he became the leader of the Conservative Party and UK’s new Prime Minister.
The image is being shared with the text: 200 साल की गुलामी का जवाब आज एक भारतीय मूल के ऋषि सुनक ने ब्रिटेन की संसद के दरवाजे पर जलाया दीप!!! दीपावली के पावन दिन पर आज ऋषि सुनक ब्रिटेन के प्रधानमंत्री बने। ऋषि सुनक को बधाई और शुभकामनाएं। #RishiSunak जय श्री राम
(English Translation: An Indian-origin Rishi Sunak lit a lamp at the door of Britain’s Parliament in response to 200 years of slavery. Rishi Sunak became the Prime Minister of Britain today on the auspicious day of Deepawali. Congratulations and best wishes to Rishi Sunak. Hail Lord Rama.)
Here’s the link to the above post.
FACT CHECK
NewsMobile fact-checked the post and found that the picture in circulation is old.
We ran a keyword search and found the same image in a report by Economic Times dated November 13, 2020. The headline of the report read: UK Chancellor Rishi Sunak lights up Downing Street with Diwali decorations. According to the report, Sunak was lighting a Diya outside No. 11 Downing Street.
The picture was captioned, “His celebratory gesture on Thursday night marks a first for Downing Street, which annually sees the UK Prime Minister host a Diwali gathering and an Annakut, or spread of festive food, from London’s Swaminarayan Mandir next door at No. 10.”
According to a report by The Guardian, the then UK Chancellor, Rishi Sunak, lit diyas on the doorstep of his official residence at 11 Downing Street.
The same image was also uploaded on Getty Images with the caption: LONDON, ENGLAND – NOVEMBER 12: Chancellor Rishi Sunak lights a candle for Diwali in Downing Street on November 12, 2020 in London, England. The Hindu festival of lights takes place over five days starting Saturday, November 14. (Photo by Leon Neal/Getty Images)
Thus, it is clear that the picture in circulation is old and is being circulated with a misleading claim.
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