A video showing Delhi's education minister and Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) member Atishi at the inauguration of a school is viral online with the false claim that she apologised for raising the slogan of 'Jai Shri Ram' at the event.
BOOM found that the claims are false, the video has been cropped out of context to make the false claim. BOOM spoke to local councillor Mohammad Aamil Malik who clarified that Atishi apologised for not taking the name of Shri Ram colony, the area where the school is located.
On March 9, 2024, Atishi inaugurated the Sarvodaya Kanya/Bal Vidyalaya, a girls' school in Shri Ram colony, a neighbourhood located in the Khajuri Khas area of New Delhi.
The viral video from this event was shared on X with the caption, "Delhi minister Atishi Marlena went to Shri Ram colony. And there he said Jai Shri Ram. Immediately a crowd of Muslims started shouting why did you say Jai Shri Ram? Then Atishi Marlena immediately apologised and said that I will not say Jai Shri Ram anymore. My Hindu brothers, you remain divided into Brahmins, Kshatriyas, Jats, upper castes and Dalits, while they are getting what they want done with the power of their vote bank. I request you with folded hands that you do not fall into their agenda of breaking Hindu unity. Keep the Hindus united."
(Original text in Hindi: "दिल्ली की मंत्री आतिशी मारलेना श्री राम कॉलोनी में गई थी और वहां उन्होंने जय श्री राम बोल दिया. तुरंत मुसलमान की भीड़ उठी हंगामा की कि आपने जय श्री राम क्यों बोला ? फिर आतिशी मारलेना ने तुरंत माफी मांग ली कि मैं अब जय श्री राम नहीं बोलूंगी. मेरे हिंदू भाइयों तुम उधर ब्राह्मण, क्षत्रिय, जाट, अगड़ा पिछड़ा दलित में बंटे रहो और उधर वह अपनी वोट बैंक की ताकत से जो चाह रहे हैं वह करवा रहे हैं. मेरी आपसे हाथ जोड़कर निवेदन है कि आप हिंदू एकता तोड़ने के उनके एजेंडे में मत आइये. हिंदुओं को संगठित कर रखिए !!")
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Another user on Facebook wrote, "Delhi Education Minister Atishi Marlena had visited the newly built school of Shri Ram colony and there she said Jai Shri Ram. She must have thought that the place is Shriram colony, so there would be more Hindus here, but here it is the opposite. Immediately the crowd of Muslims got up and started making ruckus as to why did you say Jai Shri Ram? Again Atishi Marlena immediately apologised that I will no longer say Jai Shri Ram."
(Original text in Hindi: "दिल्ली की शिक्षा मंत्री आतिशी मारलेना अपने क्षेत्र श्री राम कॉलोनी के नये बने स्कूल में आई थी और वहां उसने जय श्री राम बोल दिया।उसे लगा होगा कि वो जगह श्रीराम कालोनी है तो यहाँ हिन्दू ज्यादा रहते होंगे, लेकिन यहाँ उसका उल्टा हो गया। तुरंत मुसलमान की भीड़ उठी और हंगामा करने लगी कि आपने जय श्री राम क्यों बोला ? फिर आतिशी मारलेना ने तुरंत माफी मांग ली कि मैं अब जय श्री राम नहीं बोलूंगी।")
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BOOM also received the video on its WhatsApp Tipline (+917700906588)
FACT CHECK
BOOM found that the claims are false, Atishi is heard apologising for not naming the Shri Ram colony where the school is located; the incident does not involve any slogans of Jai Shri Ram.
Upon hearing the viral video closely, we found that some members of the audience began to voice their protest while Atishi was addressing the crowd. They were heard saying in Hindi, "Say Shri Ram colony. This is Shri Ram colony's school. Nobody seems to know that."
After this, Atishi is heard saying, "I would like to apologise to the residents of Shri Ram colony. This is the school of Shri Ram colony, where the children of Shri Ram colony will also study, the children of Khajuri Khas will also study, the children of Karawal Nagar will also study and the children of Sonia Vihar will also study."
The viral video carries no mention of people protesting over the slogan of 'Jai Shri Ram', instead they can clearly be heard saying the words 'Shri Ram colony' and demanding that it be mentioned in Atishi's speech.
We ran a keyword search using 'Atishi inaugurated school in Shri Ram colony' and found a press release by the AAP from March 9, 2024. According to this release, the Kejriwal government inaugurated two schools in the Shri Ram colony of North East Delhi. It further adds, "On the occasion of the school inauguration, Education Minister Atishi stated that this school in Shriram Colony is among the best schools in Delhi."
Taking a cue from this, we found a livestream of the event shared on YouTube on March 9, 2024. At the 32:14 mark, Atishi is heard raising slogans of Bharat Mata ki Jai, Vande Mataram, and Inquilab Zinadabad. Contrary to the viral claim, she did not raise slogans of Jai Shri Ram or any other religious slogan. She further mentioned Sonia Vihar, Karawal Nagar, and Khajuri Khas.
The portion of the viral video begins from around the 41:16 mark, where Atishi is heard asking about the reason for the commotion. Mohammad Aamil Malik, the local councillor, asks her to mention Shri Ram colony by saying "Please say Shri Ram colony once."
She then asks the displeased members of the audience to sit down and apologises to the residents of Shri Ram colony. This portion of the viral video has been clipped and shared out of context to make the false claim.
BOOM then reached out to Mohammad Aamil Malik, who refuted the viral claim. His statement, translated from Hindi to English is, "The school was inaugurated in Shri Ram Colony, which is located near Khajuri Khas Chowk. Atishi did not take the name of Shri Ram colony in her speech. The local people had expressed their displeasure regarding this matter, on which she corrected herself and apologised." He further clarified that "no religious slogans were raised there (at the event)."
We found that the address of the school, 'Sarvodaya Kanya/Bal Vidyalaya, Shri Ram colony, Khajuri Khas Chowk,' was mentioned on a poster used during the event.
Shri Ram colony is a densely populated Muslim-majority region located in the Karawal Nagar area of North East Delhi. During the 2020 Delhi riots, the Shri Ram colony made headlines for sheltering several affected Muslim families in this area.
We also found that the Shri Ram colony was located in the D Block of Khajuri Khas' Rajiv Nagar area.