Fact Check: Image of TN BJP leader Annamalai holding 'Grok Back, Grok' placard is edited
A viral image claiming that BJP leader Annamalai held a placard reading 'Go Back Grok' is misleading. Investigation revealed the image was digitally altered
Claim :
TN BJP leader Annamalai held a placard that read 'Go Back Grok'Fact :
The viral image is edited. The original image had 'Shame On You Stalin' text
Elon Musk’s AI chatbot, Grok, on his social media platform X, has caused a sensation in India with its anti-woke, snarky and rebellious responses. Unlike other chatbots like OpenAI's ChatGPT, DeepSeek, etc. Grok is known for using unconventional language and unfiltered responses.
Responding to a user query ‘list all the lies peddled by annamalai of bjp, Grok said Tamil Nadu BJP leader K Annamalai has made several comments which have been widely challenged or debunked as inaccurate and listed out five such instances.
Amidst Grok’s opinionated replies gaining attention, several users are posting an image of Annamalai holding a placard which reads, ‘Go Back Grok’ suggesting that the BJP leader has had enough of the AI chatbot’s criticism.
A viral post on X read, “BJP folks mukha Chithram. They need to understand everyone will have a dad. And Grok is your dad in X.”
Here’s the screenshot of the viral post.
Fact Check:
During the investigation, the Telugupost fact check team found the claim that the BJP leader Annamalai held a “Go Back Grok” placard to be misleading. We found that the viral image has been edited before circulating with misleading claims on social media.
Even though Grok’s AI chatbot was launched in India in December 2023, however, it’s unfiltered responses especially about the BJP leader Annamalai are recent.
To verify the claim, we ran the viral image through Google Reverse Image Search tool and found several results which indicate that the image is edited and the original image existed since December 26, 2024.
We also found a couple of English news articles around the same time. According to the New Indian Express, “BJP Tamil Nadu state president K Annamalai on Thursday accused police of trying to shame the Anna University student, who was sexually assaulted, by revealing her identity in the FIR and leaking it in public domain.” He also promised to flog himself six times with a whip on December 27 at 10 am outside his residence to protest the tragic sexual assault of the Anna University student and the next he lashed himself.
The article also carried an image of Annamalai which is similar to the viral pic except for the text on it which reads, “#ShameOnYouStalin.”
While News 18 reported that Tamil Nadu BJP leader Annamalai “accused the state police of leaking the identity details of the Anna University sexual assault victim by making public the details in the FIR registered in the case.”
We can also see the similar image accompanying the article here and it is sourced from the BJP leader’s X account. So, we searched for the reported image on his X handle and found the post in which he has not only used #ShameOnYouStalin hashtag but also added a photo of himself carrying a placard with the same text. In his tweet, the BJP leader alleged that the Tamil Nadu chief minister MK Stalin is suppressing the voices of people and using media to divert public anger.
For your convenience, we have added a comparison of edited and original photos below.
In the light of the above investigation and media reports, it is clear that an edited pic of Annamalai's placard is being circulated to suggest that he was protesting the Grok feature on X in India. The placard is edited and hence, the claim is misleading.
