Old video of Jharkhand chief minister promising 'free shrouds' shared as recent

What is the claim?

A 17-second video of Hemant Soren, chief minister of the Indian state of Jharkhand, is circulating on social media with the claim that Soren has announced a provision for "free shrouds" for the deceased in the state.

In the viral clip, Soren is heard stating in Hindi, which roughly translates to, “Nobody will have to purchase shrouds in this state, it has been decided that they will be given free to everyone.”

An X (formerly Twitter) shared this video with the caption in Hindi, “There will be no need to buy shrouds in the state, all shrouds will be given free: Hemant Soren. When you cannot provide employment to any youth, cannot protect your people from intruders, all promises remain unfulfilled, then you will have to make this announcement, right?” Archived versions of this and similar posts can be found here, here, here, here, and, here.

Screenshot of similar claims posted on social media. (Source: X/Modified by Logically Facts)

The claim surfaced ahead of the upcoming Jharkhand Legislative Assembly elections, set to occur in two phases on November 13 and November 20, followed by counting votes on November 23. 

However, we found that Soren announced "free shrouds" in 2021 during the COVID-19 pandemic, indicating that the viral claim is misleading. 

What are the facts?

Upon conducting a search using relevant keywords, we found a longer version of the viral video uploaded by News18 Bihar Jharkhand (archived here) on May 25, 2021. The video features Soren as part of a video news report with the title, “Jharkhand CM Hemant Soren said- Government will provide shroud for free | Johar Jharkhand”(Translated from Hindi). The viral clip can be viewed between the 0:27 and 0:39 timestamps of this YouTube video, where Soren can be heard making the announcement related to the "free shrouds" to be given in the state of Jharkhand for the people who die due to coronavirus. 

Screenshot of the original video from May 2021. (Source: News18 Bihar Jharkhand/Modified by Logically Facts)

Several other media outlets, such as Navbharat Times, Zee News, and Live7 Bharat (archived here, here, and here), also published longer versions of the viral video featuring Soren in May 2021. These reports noted that the chief minister was speaking at a state cabinet meeting, where he addressed concerns raised by ministers regarding the COVID-19 pandemic. 

According to a Dainik Jagran news report, Soren announced the provision for "free shrouds" for deceased individuals because many families were unable to purchase shrouds due to shop closures during the strict lockdown in the state. 

However, the move was criticized by opposition political parties like the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). BJP leader Deepak Prakash, in an X post (archived here), wrote in Hindi, "It is a strange irony that on one hand the Central Government is working on a war footing to save the lives of the countrymen. On the other hand, the thug government of Jharkhand is trying to distribute shrouds to the people for free."

In retaliation, the Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM) posted (archived here) on its X account, "Sir, Hemant government is also providing free vaccine. But you and your cheap politics - you only see the shroud." (Translated from Hindi).

The verdict

The viral video is misleading and not recent. It actually shows Jharkhand Chief Minister Hemant Soren announcing a provision for "free shrouds" for individuals who died of coronavirus in 2021.