A Twitter user claimed that Smriti Irani, a Union Minister, insulted goddess Durga in a video that was shared on September 29, 2022. In a video Smriti Irani is heard saying “Durga Puja is the most controversial racial festival, where a fair skinned beautiful Durga is depicted brutally killing a dark skinned native called Mahishasur. Mahishasur, a brave self respecting leader, tricked into marriage by Aryans. They hired a sex worker called Durga, who enticed Mahishasur into marriage and killed after nine nights of honeymoon during sleep.” Did Smriti Irani really insult goddess Durga? Lets verify it.
Fact Check
In our research with the help of keyword search Smriti Irani controversial statement about goddess Durga we came across a report by Zee News. As per the report, the video footage is from 2016 Lok Sabha debate on Jawaharlal Nehru University and Hyderabad University.
Further, using the key phrase Jawaharlal University and Hyderabad University 2016 Lok Sabha debate on YouTube, we found a 48 min 59 sec long video on YouTube posted by Bharatiya Janata Party on February 24, 2016. From 31 min on, in a reply to opposition, calling out the anti national activities carried out by JNU students, Smriti Irani read the extract of a pamphlet that JNU students had distributed and said, “I may my god forgive me for reading this. Durga Puja is the most controversial racial festival, where a fair-skinned beautiful goddess Durga is depicted brutally killing a dark-skinned native called Mahishasur. Mahishasur, a brave self-respecting leader, tricked into marriage by Aryans. They hired a sex worker called Durga, who enticed Mahishasur into marriage and killed after nine nights of honeymooning during sleep.”
From 31 min onwards
The claim that Smriti Irani insulted goddess Durga and called her a sex worker is false. The video is from 2016 session of parliament, and it is being circulated in a manipulative way to mislead the populace.
| Claim | Smriti Irani insulted goddess Durga |
| Claimed by | A Twitter user |
| Fact Check | False |
The goal of the Only Fact Team is to provide authentic news facts and debunk misinformation to safeguard its readers from being misled.
Dear Readers, We are working to debunk fake news which is against India. We don’t have any corporate funding like others. Your small support will help us grow further. Please Support.
Jai Hind!
