No, Narendra Modi didn't 'snub' Hindu monk at Ambani wedding over his Ram Temple criticism

What is the claim?

A 24-second video featuring Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi greeting a monk clad in saffron has gone viral, with claims that Modi only sought blessings from one Shankaracharya (head of the Hindu monasteries established by the Hindu guru Adi Shankaracharya) and ignored the other.

This video is being circulated with the claim that Modi snubbed the second monk due to his comments on the Ram temple in Ayodhya and his refusal to attend the temple’s consecration in January 2024.

An X (formerly Twitter) user shared the video with the caption: “During Anant Ambani's wedding, Modiji touched the feet of one of the two Shankaracharyas present and received his blessings. The other Shankaracharya raised questions about the Ram temple and declined the invitation to its inauguration. Modiji did not even look back at him, a grave insult (translated from Hindi).” Archive links to similar posts can be found here and here.

Screenshot of the posts circulating online (Source: X/Modified by Logically Facts)

The video refers to the wedding of Anant Ambani—son of businessman and chairman of Reliance Industries Mukesh Ambani—and Radhika Merchant, on July 13, 2024. In addition to the prime minister and various other celebrities, the Shankaracharya of Dwarka Peeth, Swami Sadanand Saraswati, and the Shankaracharya of Jyotimath, Swami Avimukteshwaranand, were also present.

In January 2024, Swami Avimukteshwaranand announced he would not attend the consecration of the Ram temple in Ayodhya, expressing concerns about the temple's completion.

However, despite the misleading claim in the video, which suggests Modi 'ignored' the monk who criticized the temple, evidence shows that the prime minister sought blessings from both monks at the wedding.

Here are the facts

The viral video features the India TV logo in the top right corner. India TV shared the video (archived here) on Instagram on July 14, 2024, with a caption stating that Shankaracharya Swami Sadanand Saraswati blessed Prime Minister Modi and presented him with a shawl.

However, another video shared by the channel on Instagram (archived here) shows Modi receiving blessings from the other Shankaracharya as well. The video description notes that Shankaracharya Avimukteshwaranand removed the ‘Rudraksha’ garland he was wearing and gave it to Modi, demonstrating that the prime minister did not ignore him.

A screenshot of the IndiaTV Instagram post that shows Modi meeting Swami Avimukteshwaranand. (Source: Instagram/IndiaTV)

A livestream by CNN-News18 of the Ambani wedding (archived here) also captures Modi receiving blessings from Swami Avimuktheswaranand at 2:58:08.

Additionally, a report by Gujarati Jagran includes a picture of Modi and Avimuktheswaranand at the event and a video of Shankaracharya discussing Modi’s visit and seeking his blessings.

The report by Gujarati Jagran that shows Modi meeting the monk (Source: gujaratijagran.com/Screenshot)

Following the wedding, Shankaracharya Avimuktheswaranand spoke to the media (archived here) and stated, “Modi came to me; he greeted us. It’s our custom. If someone comes to us, we give them blessings. Narendra Modi is not our enemy.”

The verdict

Prime Minister Narendra Modi did not ignore the Hindu monk who had spoken against the Ram temple’s consecration in Ayodhya in January 2024. He met with both Shankaracharyas at the Ambani wedding, and videos confirm that he greeted and received blessings from both of them.