Thread by @BombayBombil

#Thread🧵
The official Twitter account of the High Commission of India in Canada falsely claimed that a signboard at the Shri Bhagavad Gita Park in #Canada was vandalised. The tweet did not specify what was vandalised but called it #hatecrime👇(1/n)

https://twitter.com/HCI_Ottawa/status/1576602122556420097?s=20&t=Nxs1kSRzVBrsXiUciL0lIQ

Many Indian news outlets picked up the allegation & aired the story with the @HCI_Ottawa tweet. @TimesNow @ZeeHindustan_ went a step further and claimed the name Shri Bhagavad Gita Park from the signboard was erased and replaced with an outline of a flower. (2/n)
#fakenews

BOOM found the claim to be false. The photos shared as proof of 'Before' and 'After' of vandalism actually show 2 different signboards - a temporary one used for the park name unveiling kept on a blue basketball court and the other a permanent one placed in another spot. (3/n)

A simple search for Brampton, where the park is located shows that the flower design is actually the logo of the city of Brampton and can be seen on all of the city's social media accounts. (4/n)
#fakenews #BOOMFactCheck

BOOM spoke to locals who stay around Bhagavad Gita Park in Brampton & confirmed that the pics are of two different signboards. Plus the photo of the blank signboard is the reverse side of a permanent signboard which did not have the name of park until Monday morning. (5/n)
#WATCH

We searched for Bhagavad Gita Park on Facebook and found FB live videos from the inauguration shared by local residents. These videos show the 2 signboards clearly - one placed on the blue turf and the other installed into the ground at the back of the park.(6/n)
#BOOMFactCheck

BOOM spoke to a resident who visited the park and sent us photos and videos which proved the photos shared by @HCI_Ottawa and news channels were -
1) Two different signboards. 2) Showed the reverse side of the signboard which always had the flower outline and no lettering. (7/n)

While Patrick Brown, Mayor of Brampton first tweeted & acknowledged the alleged incident, he soon deleted it. He then shared quotes from local police explaining that the blank signboard was the permanent one which did not have the Park name (8/n)

https://twitter.com/patrickbrownont/status/1576697967322415104?s=20&t=qRJEai6WcIy_DlhdUtPTOg

Peel Regional police also tweeted from its official account saying,"There was no evidence of vandalism to the permanent sign or any park structure." (9/n)
#BOOMFactCheck

https://twitter.com/PeelPolice/status/1576667664474423296?s=20&t=pcfdUUoz252iKIqFAh5GSw

Read our @boomlive_in fact check here (10/n)
boomlive.in/fact-check/fac…