Fact Check: Is HM Amit Shah on Interpol's wanted list? Pakistanis' big lie amid Canada allegations exposed
By Sunita Iyer | First Published Nov 5, 2024, 10:19 AM ISTAmid heightened tensions between India and Canada, several Pakistan-based social media accounts have circulated a graphic card falsely claiming that Indian Union Home Minister Amit Shah has been placed on Interpol’s 'wanted list'.
Amid heightened tensions between India and Canada, several Pakistan-based social media accounts have circulated a graphic card falsely claiming that Indian Union Home Minister Amit Shah has been placed on Interpol’s 'wanted list'. This claim emerged shortly after Canada’s Deputy Foreign Affairs Minister David Morrison alleged that Shah authorized violence, intimidation, and intelligence-gathering efforts targeting Sikh separatists in Canada.
The Indian government has strongly condemned Morrison's accusations, calling them "absurd and baseless." New Delhi warned that such misinformation could have serious repercussions on Indo-Canadian diplomatic relations.
Latest Videos
According to news agency PTI Fact Check Desk, the graphic shared on social media is fraudulent. Investigators found no record on Interpol’s website or any credible news sources supporting the claim.
The PTI Fact Check team conducted a reverse image search using Google Lens on the viral graphic, which yielded no reliable news corroborating the story. Additionally, a direct search for "Amit Shah" on Interpol’s website confirmed that no such notice has been issued.
The rumor appears to have been propagated through a Pakistan-based Facebook page, 'Khaber.tv,' which shared a graphic card on November 1 featuring Shah's photo. The accompanying post claimed that "credible sources" reported Amit Shah’s addition to Interpol's wanted list, attributing this to the recent allegations from Canada.
Several other Pakistan-based social media users shared the shocking graphic on X, formerly Twitter, as well. However, the posts are now not available on the social media platform.
Viral image of Interpol 'wanted' notice against Amit Shah is FAKE
Asianet Newsable conducted a keyword search for "Interpol notice Amit Shah," which yielded no credible reports, either from Indian or international sources, about such a significant claim, raising suspicions about its authenticity.
Next, we searched for the alleged red notice—an international request for law enforcement to locate and provisionally arrest an individual pending extradition or legal action—on Interpol’s website.
This search did not produce any results. Additionally, searches for "Amit Shah" and "Amit Anilchandra Shah" also failed to reveal any red or yellow notices (the latter issued to assist in locating missing persons), further confirming that the viral graphic was false.
India lodges strong protest over Canada's allegations against Amit Shah
On November 2, India had lodged a strong protest over Ottawa's allegations against Amit Shah. “We had summoned the representative of the Canadian High Commission yesterday, a diplomatic note was handed over in reference to the proceedings of the Standing Committee on Public Safety and National Security in Ottawa on October 29, 2024,” MEA spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal had said.
“It was conveyed in the note that the government of India protests in the strongest terms to the absurd and baseless references made to the Union Home Minister of India before the committee by deputy minister David Morrison,” Jaiswal had added.
“Such irresponsible actions will have serious consequences for bilateral ties,” the MEA spokesperson had stated.
Diplomatic relations between India and Canada have worsened since Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau accused Indian government agents of involvement in the killing of Khalistani terrorist Hardeep Singh Nijjar in June last year.
Last month, India recalled its High Commissioner Sanjay Verma after Canada named him a "person of interest" in its investigation into Nijjar's death.
In response, New Delhi withdrew its high commissioner and expelled six Canadian diplomats from India.
subscribe to Asianet Newsable WhatsApp channel by clicking here. For more reliable and latest news
subscribe to Asianet Newsable Telegram channel by clicking here.