A set of images featuring photographs of cow carcasses is circulating on Facebook with a false claim that it shows how neglect of cows in shelters and corruption are resulting in their deaths.
BOOM found that all the images are old and two of the three images are not from India.
The caption with the photos in Hindi translates to, "Killing a cow is a sin, but keeping them hungry and thirsty for months after being imprisoned in the boundary wall in a cowshed, is it a virtue to kill by tormenting them? In the name of each cow, about Rs 160-165 is given by the government for the arrangement of their food. Where does this money go, will someone explain?..."
(Original Text in Hindi: गाय को मारना पाप है लेकिन गौशाला मे चारदीवारी मे कैद करके महीनो तक भूखी प्यासी रखना उन्हे तड़पा तड़पा कर मारना क्या ये पुण्य है? प्रत्येक गाय के नाम पर लगभग 160-165 रूपये उनके भोजन की व्यवस्था के लिए सरकार द्वारा दिया जाता है... ये पैसा कहाँ जाता है कोई बताएगा?...)
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The same set of images were earlier viral with a caption in Assamese. The caption with the photos in Assamese translates to, "BJP is doing politics in the name of Gomata, why Gomata is dying in Goshala like this ?? BJP government should answer that first ?? Then give speeches about Gomata !! BJP government cannot protect any animal."
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Fact Check
BOOM did reverse image search on each of the photos seen in the viral set and found that the photos are old and unrelated.
Image 1
We did a reverse image search on the photo and found a NBC news article published on December 17, 2009 carrying the same photo. According to the caption, the photograph is from Kenya. The photograph has been credited to a photographer Thomas Mukoya on behalf of international news agency Reuters.
Taking a cue from this, we did a related keyword search on Reuters' website and found the photo. The photo caption reads, "A worker tries to lift up a weak cow from among the carcasses of drought-stricken cows in a paddock at the Kenya Meat Commission (KMC) factory near Athi River, 50km (31 miles) east of the capital Nairobi, September 16, 2009. Farmers are making their way to the recently revived KMC in a bid to cut their losses by selling their drought-stricken livestock for meat."
Image 2
We found the photo on The Lallantop article published on August 6, 2016 stating it to be from Rajasthan's Hingonia gaushala. The article reported about the death of cows due to hunger and thirst for a long period of time.
According to a The Indian Express report published on August 5, 2016, "Following the death of hundreds of cows in the past few weeks at a government-run cowshed in Jaipur, considered to be the largest in the state, the Chief Minister's Office (CMO) has issued a statement stating that most of the cows which died were already unwell and suffering from malnutrition. The statement also said that the cows were recently brought at the cowshed. The CMO also asserted that it was doing everything that it could to save the animals at the cowshed, with Rs 10.78 crore being spent in financial year 2015-16, compared to Rs 3.59 crore in 2011-12."
India TV news bulletin from 2016 also used the same image as thumbnail reporting about the incident happened in Rajasthan's Hingonia gaushala.
Image 3
A reverse image search led us to an African news article named Nation published on October 3, 2009 carrying the same photo. The photo caption reads, "A truck offloads dead cows for burial in Athi River. Hundreds of cows have died at the Kenya Meat Commission while awaiting slaughter. Photo/ABEL MOSINGISI."
The image can be seen below.
Screenshot From Nation Article
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The same image was also published in an online slideshow by Kenyan newspaper, The East African.
