Fact Check: Image of ganja packets with connection to AP are MISLEADING
This image was published in articles relating to ganja (also called marujiana) seized by Hyderabad NCB in February 2022.
An image is widely being shared on the internet with the caption "గంజాయిలో ఆంధ్ర టాప్!!#End of ycp" which when translated means "AP tops in Ganja Supply!! #End of YCP". The image is in circulation on various social media platforms.
Fact Check:
The image shared along with the text is MISLEADING. The image is an old one.
When we performed Google reverse image search, we found it dating back to February 2022.
This image was published in articles relating to ganja (also called marujiana) seized by Hyderabad NCB in February 2022. According to etvbharat.com, the Hyderabad NCB sleuths found 1.42 kg of high-grade marijuana in a parcel exported from the United States of America. The NCB officials also nabbed two Indians in connection with the crime. Authorities found the contraband packed in a bed exported to a courier company in Hyderabad.
The same image was also shared by the Telugu edition of eenadu.net and also by the ETV Bharat Hindi edition in February 2022.
When searched using the keywords 'NCB seizes ganja from the USA', we found other articles from India Today, published on February 22, 2022, which stated that the NCB officials had intercepted an inbound suspicious parcel at a courier company in Lakdikapul on February 19. Upon investigation, ganja weighing 1.42 kg was found concealed in a bloom mattress, in an airtight packet. In an attempt to nab the culprits, the NCB officials expedited the delivery of the parcel under surveillance and the accused were caught red-handed while receiving it.
The AP fact check team also debunked the claim stating that the image used in the posts was an old one and that it was connected to Telangana.
Though there had been several reports which said that the NCB 2021 annual report mentioned Andhra Pradesh was in the first position in the supply of ganja, we could not find the original report by NCB.
Therefore, the image shared on social media relating the seizure of ganja to Andhra Pradesh is MISLEADING.