News outlet Republic TV misreported a fake document claiming Muhammad Yunus, chief adviser to Bangladesh's interim government referred to Donald Trump as a "messiah" in his congratulatory message to the new president-elect of the US.
BOOM found that while Yunus did convey his wish for Trump's success and his second term as US President, the original does not have the term "messiah" or anything denoting exaggerated reverence.
The much scrutinised US presidential race came to an unofficial end on November 6, 2024, with Donald Trump on track to win the Electoral College by a wide margin, leaving main opponent Kamala Harris far behind. Trump in addition to being the oldest person to be elected US president, is also the first convicted felon to win the presidency, with three criminal cases against him still pending.
The fake document came a day after the results of the US elections were called by prominent US news outlets, claiming it was a press release signed and released by Yunus's office.
In his October 31 campaign speech, Trump spoke about the recent political upheaval in Bangladesh, condemning violence against the Hindus, Christians and other minorities in the country. He also stated that Bangladesh was in "a total state of chaos" under the interim government led by Muhammad Yunus.
The viral document carrying a fake signature by Yunus, refers to Trump as "president of the free world", "messiah" and has Yunus saying that he has been a "secret admirer of Trump since 2016".
Republic TV quoted the document and aired a breaking news alert on the channel with the text, "Muhammad Yunus now sees messiah in Trump" calling it his "indirect response" to Trump.
Click here to view an archive.
Bangladeshi journalist Salah Uddin Shoaib Choudhury and the verified X handle Voice of Bangladeshi Hindus also shared the press release, presenting it as a statement from Yunus.
Click here and here to view the posts.
Fact Check
BOOM checked the official social media accounts of the Chief Adviser of the Government of Bangladesh currently being run by Yunus' office but did not find anything similar to the viral statement.
On November 6, 2024, the X account of the Chief Adviser, Bangladesh posted a congratulatory letter from Yunus where he expressed hope for Trump's efforts in addressing global challenges in "pursuit of peace, harmony, stability, and prosperity for all."
Click here to view the post and here for an archive.
We compared the text in the viral statement and the original letter from Yunus and found the text to be completely different. In the original, Yunus does not use any words denoting exaggerated reverence towards Trump, instead talking about the long relationship between the two countries.
We also noticed further differences in the design of the document itself - like the colour of the government emblem, the official stamp used by his office and Yunus's signature itself.
The differences are highlighted below.