FAKE ALERT --- No, this man in RSS uniform is not the Mangaluru airport bomb suspect

[Assam_Bhayya]

CLAIM
Photo of two men posing together wearing the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) uniform is doing the rounds on social media platforms and WhatsApp with a claim that one of them is Adithya Rao, who surrendered before the police for planting a bomb at Mangaluru’s Kempegowda International Airport (KIA) over frustration of not getting a job as a security manager there.

A Twitter user by the name of Syed Abdahu Kashaf posted the photo mocking RSS, alleging that the organisation is involved in terrorism.

 

 

 

“Terrorist Adithya Rao from Manipal who placed the explosives at Mangaluru airport on Monday is seen in RSS Chaddi with his wing commander in Syria (sic),” Syed wrote.

Another Twitter user Aziz Bikaner posted one more photo of the same man (in RSS uniform), this time posing with Bengaluru MP Tejasvi Surya.
 

aziZ bikaner@aziz_bikaner

 

 

#Mangaluru airport me bomb Rakhne wala dehshat gard aditya RSS ke National leader prabhakar bhat Aur MP Tejasvi surya ke saat @RubikaLiyaquat @anjanaomkashyap @RvishNDTV @BBCWorld @BBCHindi @BBCBreaking @ArvindKejriwal

 

1

10:23 PM - Jan 22, 2020

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Aziz claimed that the man posing with Surya is an RSS member who planted the bomb at KIA.

Times Fact Check also received the photo above from a reader on our WhatsApp number 8527001433. The reader wanted to know if the man in the photo was indeed the suspect.

TRUTH
The man posing in RSS uniform is not the man who planted the bomb at KIA. The man in these photos is Sandeep Lobo. From his Facebook photos, he appears to be a BJP activist. He is in no way linked to 38-year-old Adithya Rao, the man arrested for planting the bomb.

VERIFICATION AND METHODOLOGY
Using ‘Mangaluru airport bomb suspect’ as keywords, we found several news reports which confirmed the name of the accused as Aditya Rao.

These reports carried photos of Rao. Rao does not resemble the man in the RSS uniform at all.

Here’s a picture of Rao, apparently retrieved from a CCTV footage:
 

We also found a tweet dated January 22, 2020 from news agency ANI, which carried another picture of Rao. Again, no resemblance with the man posing with Surya.
 

ANI

 

✔@ANI

 

IED recovered from a bag at Mangaluru airport on 20th January: Suspect Aditya Rao has surrendered before Bangaluru police. Mangaluru police's investigation team is flying to Bengaluru to question him. #Karnataka

 

1,584

9:38 AM - Jan 22, 2020

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We then used keywords ‘Aditya Rao RSS’ on Twitter and found a tweet from an alert user, who posted a screenshot of the Facebook profile of the man posing in RSS uniform. His name is Sandeep Lobo.
 

Doraemon (दोराएमोन)@DoraemonHKT

 

The man who caught in Mangalore Bomb case is Adithya Rao
and the man with @Tejasvi_Surya is Sandeep Lobo, RSS worker.#FakeNews

 

3:59 AM - Jan 23, 2020

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We looked up Lobo's profile on Facebook and found several posts where he rejects the claim of him being the Mangaluru airport bomb suspect.

Lobo even posted about the police complaints he filed against those maligning him by circulating his photos and spreading fake news.

VERDICT

Times Fact Check has found that several social media users are circulating photos of BJP activist Sandeep Lobo to claim that he was arrested for planting a bomb at KIA.

 

[karna11]

Matter in 2 lines plz

[pottipotato]

Just now, karna11 said:

Matter in 2 lines plz

matter leni danni, veelley ethhesi, aa terrorist muslim kaadu Hindu ani telisaaka, raka rakalu ga trying to do cover drive.

not even worthy to know about this. I also don't know. time waste news.

[Assam_Bhayya]

1 minute ago, pottipotato said:

matter leni danni, veelley ethhesi, aa terrorist muslim kaadu Hindu ani telisaaka, raka rakalu ga trying to do cover drive.

not even worthy to know about this. I also don't know. time waste news.

[jefferson1]

16 minutes ago, pottipotato said:

matter leni danni, veelley ethhesi, aa terrorist muslim kaadu Hindu ani telisaaka, raka rakalu ga trying to do cover drive.

not even worthy to know about this. I also don't know. time waste news.

Iddaru dorikaru kada ?

[pottipotato]

1 minute ago, jefferson1 said:

Iddaru dorikaru kada ?

no idea. I just read headlines. 

[padmasri]

inthaku pettina vaadu kaaranam enti...

vaadi intiki neellu raledu ana? current ledu ana? 

[Chinna84]

1 hour ago, pottipotato said:

matter leni danni, veelley ethhesi, aa terrorist muslim kaadu Hindu ani telisaaka, raka rakalu ga trying to do cover drive.

not even worthy to know about this. I also don't know. time waste news.

53 minutes ago, pottipotato said:

okati matter motham telusukoni thread eyyandi, lekuntey moosukk koorchondi.

prathi sari 10ginchu kokandi. lol