Claim: An image is circulating on social media which suggests Maulana Asad Mehmud, Federal Minister for Communications, put tape over a portrait of founder of Pakistan Quaid-e-Azam Muhammad Ali Jinnah hanging in his office.
Fact: Maulana Asad Mehmud did not put tape over a portrait of Quaid-e-Azam. The portrait is obscured due to the reflection of the ceiling lights in the room, the effect of which can also be observed in a picture hanging next to the Quaid-e-Azam portrait.
Fact or Fiction
A picture is circulating of Maulana Asad Mehmud in his office with a portrait of Quaid-e-Azam hanging in the background.
At first glance it appears as though tape has been plastered over part of the portrait. A number of accounts on social media have shared the image with the following caption:
“اسد محمود وفاقی وزیر برائے مواصلات نے اپنے دفتر میں بانی پاکستان قائد اعظم محمد علی جناح کی تصویر پر ٹیپ لگا کر قائد اعظم کا چہرہ مسخ کیا ہے.
کیا اسکے باپ کا آفس اور بادشاہت ہے
عدالتِ عظمی سوموٹو کب لےگی؟”
[Asad Mehmud, Federal Minister for Communications has put tape on the face of founder of Pakistan Quaid-e-Azam Muhammad Ali Jinnah to mutilate his face. Is it his father’s office or kingdom, when will the Supreme Court suo moto?]
In reality, however, the portrait appears obscured due to the reflection of ceiling lights in the room, the effect of which can also be observed in a picture hanging next to the Quaid-e-Azam portrait.
A CrowdTangle search of the caption above revealed that posts with the caption have been shared 12 times receiving a cumulative 8,310 interactions. This Facebook post has been shared over 2,200 times, receiving 858 likes and 322 comments, while this post has been shared 1,600 times, receiving 639 likes and 405 comments. This is the oldest relevant post according to the CrowdTangle search. Similar posts on Facebook can be found here, here, here and here.
On Twitter, this tweet by a user named “Dr Fatima K – PTI” received the most interactions, while the oldest one can be found here . While the image with the false caption has been shared across several tweets, examples of it can be seen here, here, here, here and here.
Conclusion: Federal Minister for Communications Maluana Asad Mehmud did not put tape over a portrait of Quaid-e-Azam hanging in his office. The portrait is obscured due to the reflection of the ceiling lights in the room.