Lighthouse Journalism came across a picture that is being widely shared on social media platforms. The picture featured a man standing in front of an auto-rickshaw. It was claimed that this was an old picture of former Maharashtra chief minister and now caretaker CM of the state, Shiv Sena leader Eknath Shinde. During the investigation, we found that the person seen in the picture is the founder president of Maharashtra Rickshaw Panchayat, Baba Kamble who looks like Maharashtra’s chief minister in certain pictures
Claim:
X user Harkesh Nagrwal shared the viral picture along with a misleading claim.
Other users too are sharing the same picture with misleading claims.
Investigation:
We started our investigation by closely observing the picture. The number plate of the auto-rickshaw seen in the picture is, ‘MH 14 8172’.
We then checked from where the code, ‘MH 14‘ is from. According to RTO vehicle registration details, ‘MH-14’ is from Pimpri Chinchwad in Maharashtra which is in Pune. However, it should be noted that Eknath Shinde is from Thane, Navi Mumbai.
We then ran a Google Reverse Image search on the picture and came across a post on Facebook by महाराष्ट्र रिक्षा पंचायत पुणे.
The caption stated that the picture was from 1997 of the founder of Maharashtra Rikshaw Panchayat, Baba Kamble. The picture was clicked at Raatrani Rickshaw Stand after he did a puja of this vehicle.
We then reached out to Baba Kamble. He said, “The picture was clicked in 1997, at Raatrani rickshaw stand in Pimpri Chinchwad, Pune after the puja that we perform in the month of Shravan. Even Deputy CM Ajit Pawar had called me in the past and asked if the person in the picture was me. He too had clarified it back then, but people still share this picture thinking this to be Eknath Shinde’s picture.” Baba Kamble is now a national president of Kashtakari Janata Aghadi.
Conclusion: The person seen standing in front of an auto-rickshaw in the viral picture is not the former chief minister and now caretaker CM of Maharashtra Eknath Shinde. He is the national president of Kashtakari Janata Aghadi, Baba Kamble. The picture was taken in 1997. The viral claim is misleading.
