Fact Check: Old Video of Mohan Bhagwat Commending Congress' Contribution to India's Independence Falsely Presented as Recent

Created By: Logically Facts

Co-Published By: Lokmat Times.com

A video of RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat praising Congress for its role in India's independence is circulating on social media. The clip, shared after the fifth phase of Indian general elections, suggests Bhagwat acknowledged Congress' contribution amid speculation about a change in government.

Bhagwat can be heard saying, "The people in our country have little political awareness. They do not know much about the significance of who holds power. There should be political awareness among the people of this country. And that is why a major movement in the form of the Congress emerged across the country. It also had many great men who continue to inspire our lives today. And that movement set the common people on the path to freedom. It contributed majorly to our independence movement."

This video was shared by Hitendra Pithadiya, the President of the Gujarat Congress SC Cell, with the caption, "After the fifth phase, even RSS' Mohan Bhagwat started remembering Congress' contribution.!! Modi is going.. INDIA's government is coming. This article aims to fact-check the validity of this claim.

Fact: This video is from September 2018, when Bhagwat spoke at a New Delhi RSS event about the role of Congress in India's independence struggle after the fifth phase of voting during the Indian general elections. 

The viral video carried the logos of ‘HT’ (Hindustan Times) and news agency ANI. Using this as a cue, Logically Facts found the original video uploaded on the YouTube channel of Hindustan Times on September 18, 2018. Logically Facts also mentions the date in the top left corner of the video below the location text.

The video was recorded at a three-day lecture series organized by the RSS in New Delhi. At this event, Bhagwat gave a speech and said that the Congress played a significant role in India’s freedom movement and gave India several great personalities.At the 18-second mark in the video, Bhagwat can be heard making the same remark.The same  was also uploaded on ANI's YouTube channel on September 18, 2018. To conclude this video is just misleading the audience.

This story was originally published by Logically Facts and republished by LokmatTimes.com  as part of the Shakti Collective.

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