By Swasti Chatterjee
An image of Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde eating with social media influencer Kamiya Jani has surfaced with false claims that the Shiv Sena leader ate in mutton during the Navratri festival.
BOOM found that the claims are false and Shinde was eating a vegetarian sabji meal in Umred, Maharashtra.
The photograph shows Shinde and Jani sitting in front of an elaborate spread of food and salad. It is circulating with a caption in Hindi that roughly translates to: Why did the lapdog media, which beat its chest when Tejaswi Yadav ate fish during Navratri, disappear when Eknath Shinde ate mutton? (Original text in Hindi: नवरात्रि में तेजस्वी यादव के मछली खाने पर छाती पीटने वाला गोदी मीडिया एकनाथ शिंदे के मटन खाने पर गायब क्यों हो गया? देश की मीडिया और अंधभक्तों से कही बेहतर वैश्याएं होती है। शर्म करो)
Click here to view the post and here for an archive of the X post.
The photo is also circulating with an English caption, "The media's hypocrisy was evident when they made a big deal out of Tejaswi Yadav eating fish during Navratri but conveniently looked the other way when Eknath Shinde consumed mutton. It's a clear example of selective outrage." Click here to view the post and here for an archive of the Facebook post.
The caption above refers to a video of former deputy chief minister of Bihar, Tejashwi Yadav eating roti and fish during campaigning. Following which Prime Minister Narendra Modi alleged that opposition leaders were eating meat during Navaratri and recording videos to mock the sentiments of Hindus.
Fact Check
BOOM ran a relevant keyword search and found a video shared on Instagram by Kamiya Jani and Eknath Shinde. The video was uploaded by Jani on April 18 and captioned as, "On the auspicious day of Ram Navami, I enjoyed a very hearty veg saoji meal with Maharashtra’s CM Shri Eknath Shinde."
Jani further wrote in the caption, "Local women of the village prepared a very special veg saoji meal for us and it was super delicious." Comprising of delectable vegetarian and non-vegetarian dishes, Saoji food originates from the Saoji community, a weaver community that settled in Nagpur from Madhya Pradesh. According to an article, the Saoji cuisine is characterised by fiery spices including a 32-mix spice mixed with jute and linseed oil to make a paste.
In the video Shinde can be seen entering a house where women prepared a vegetarian meal for him. Shinde then speaks about the dishes served to him, which includes baingan bharta (roasted brinjal), baingan sabzi (a curry made out of brinjal), patodi wadi - a diamond shaped fritter dipped in spicy gravy, a Saoji specialty.
We also found a report on Curly Tales' website about Shinde and Jani's lunch together. An excerpt from the report reads, "This Ram Navami celebration in Umred wasn’t just about the delicious food or the esteemed company... The dedication of the local women in preparing the vegetarian saoji feast, the vibrant festive spirit in the village, and the opportunity to connect with the Chief Minister – all these elements combined to create a truly memorable Ram Navami experience."
