India Today anchor Gaurav Sawant read out on air a tweet from a parody X handle impersonating Prime Minister Narendra Modi purporting to wish Donald Trump, claiming that the former said he had set up a call with the United States president-elect to discuss violence against Hindus in Bangladesh and "Khalistani terrorism enabled by Justin Trudeau in Canada."
Sawant later on admitted on air he had made a mistake and read Modi's actual congratulatory tweet to Trump, while covering the results of the 2024 US presidential election.
On November 6, 2024, former US President Donald Trump paved his way to the White House in historic fashion for a second term surpassing the 270 electoral votes needed to secure the presidency and defeating the incumbent vice president and Democratic Party candidate, Kamala Harris.
Gaurav Sawant quoted a tweet from a parody handle impersonating Modi, describing it as 'a strong statement' from Modi following Trump's 'spectacular victory' during the election coverage on Wednesday.
Sawant was heard saying, "There's actually a big statement from Prime Minister Narendra Modi. He has said, have set up a call with my friend president Donald Trump to congratulate him on his historic win. Among other things, we will discuss the current violence against Hindus in Bangladesh, "Khalistani terrorism enabled by Justin Trudeau in Canada" along with the Ukraine war."
Below is a snippet from the bulletin.
The text from the parody handle was also picked up by several Facebook users who posted it claiming to be Modi's message for Trump after his win.
Post from parody X handle of Modi
BOOM ran a related keyword search on X and found that the same statement was posted by the handle @narendram0dee on November 6, 2024.
The X handle, which identified itself as a 'Parody account of the Prime Minister of India' in both its bio and name , was created in October this year.
Below is a screenshot of the post.
Click here to view the post and here for an archive.
Modi's Congratulatory Tweet Did Not Mention Canada Or Bangladesh
In an X post from his official handle, Modi shared several pictures of his previous meetings with Trump and said the two would toward strengthening India-US relations.
However, Modi did not mention anything on Bangladesh, the Russia-Ukraine war or Canada in his congratulatory tweet.
"Heartiest congratulations my friend Donald Trump on your historic election victory. As you build on the successes of your previous term, I look forward to renewing our collaboration to further strengthen the India-US Comprehensive Global and Strategic Partnership. Together, let’s work for the betterment of our people and to promote global peace, stability and prosperity," Narendra Modi's verified handle tweeted.
The account has a grey verification badge on X meant for government and multilateral organisations.
Click here to view the post and here for an archive.
On October 31, 2024 Donald Trump tweeted a Diwali message where he condemned violence against Hindus, Christians and other minorities in Bangladesh. He accused Kamala Harris and outgoing US President Joe Biden of ignoring Hindus both globally and in America during their time in office. Trump also pledged that, if re-elected, his administration would strengthen ties with India while working with Modi whom he described as his "good friend".