A video of a minister from Andhra Pradesh is being shared to falsely claim that it shows a SDM of Chhattisgarh

The woman in the viral video is Vidadala Rajini, Minister for Health, Family Welfare & Medical Education in the Government of Andhra Pradesh^.

A video of a woman politician visiting a mosque and addressing the crowd has gone viral on social media, with the claim that she is SDM Nikita Singh from Chhattisgarh, who not only donated land to build a masjid but also visited the masjid during namaz. 

The caption states, “A message of love in this hate-filled environment: Chhattisgarh’s dear SDM Nikita Singh gave land for a mosque and also offered namaz at that place. The beauty of our country is right here. Thank you SDM Nikita ji”.

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Fact Check

We began our investigation using keyword and reverse image search on Google and the results led us to the same video shared by Vidadala Rajini, the Minister of Health, Family Welfare, and Medical Education of Andhra Pradesh, on 06 April 2024.

According on the hashtags in the video, it appears she attended Muslim prayers in the Guntur West constituency as part of her election campaign. According to the reports, she is a candidate for the Guntur West constituency in the 2024 assembly elections, representing the YSRCP.

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Meanwhile, we searched for Nikita Singh, Chhattisgarh SDM, but could not find any news reports regarding a person with that name in Chhattisgarh. We found a few profiles of Nikita Singh who are not government officials and not related to Chhattisgarh. The Chhattisgarh government website also did not mention any SDM called Nikita Singh. 

The woman seen in the video is Vidadala Rajini, a YSRC MLA and also a minister in Andhra Pradesh. No official records or reports about supposed Chhattisgarh’s Sub-divisional magistrate Nikita Singh were found online.

A video of a minister from Andhra Pradesh is being shared to falsely claim that it shows a SDM of Chhattisgarh.

Conclusion

Fact Crescendo found the claim made along with the viral video to be False. The woman in the viral video is Vidadala Rajini, Minister for Health, Family Welfare & Medical Education in the Government of Andhra Pradesh.