Oppn Leaders Slam Modi for Waving at ‘Empty Trains’, But Did He?
While it certainly seems as though the Prime Minister is indeed waving at an empty train, it is not so.
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CLAIM
Several opposition leaders on social media targeted Prime Minister Narendra Modi for ‘waving at empty trains’ in Assam during the inauguration of the Bogibeel bridge on 25 December.
The video, first posted by Facebook page Feku Express, showed PM Modi waving at a stationary train which was supposedly empty. The video has since been removed by the page.
However, the video was in turn shared by several people on Facebook, including opposition leaders and fan pages related to the Congress.
Kollywood actor-turned-politician Khushbu Sundar, a Congress leader, took to Twitter to share the video.
Similarly, on Facebook, AIMIM leader Omer Khan too shared the video with a similar claim.
TRUE OR FALSE?
While it certainly seems as though the prime minister is indeed waving at an empty train, it is not so.
A live stream of the inauguration shows that the train was filled with people, thereby busting the claim. At 9:12 minutes in the video, you can see that the train is in fact occupied by people.
Further, PIB India has tweeted out photos of PM Modi flagging off the train, the number of which corresponds with the number seen in the video. In the photos, it is clear that people are seated in the train.
Similarly, at another point in the video, it appears as though the PM, while cruising down the empty bridge, is waving at no one. He, however, is waving at people standing below the bridge, as seen in the video.
At 12:22 minutes, you can see crowds flocking the sides of the train on the adjacent roads to catch a glimpse of the prime minister.
PM INAUGURATES LONGEST RAILROAD BRIDGE
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday, 25 December, inaugurated the country's longest rail-cum-road bridge over the Brahmaputra river at Bogibeel near Dibrugarh in Assam.
The prime minister, who reached Dibrugarh in the afternoon from New Delhi, flew directly to Bogibeel in a chopper and dedicated the 4.94-km-long double-decker bridge to the nation from the south bank of the river.
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