This photo actually shows a former Indian ruler in the princely state of Bundi in northeast India
- This article is more than one year old.
- Published on October 13, 2020 at 05:00
- 2 min read
- By AFP Myanmar
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The photo was published here on Facebook on August 6, 2020. It has been shared more than 1,750 times.
The Burmese-language post translates to English in part as: “The very first Islam King of Rakhine State. Detailed information described in Myanmar's Wikipedia No.1". The text on the picture reads: “The first King of the Arakaneses, Minhti (Min Htee)”.
King Minhti was the ruler of the Arakan region, which is now part of Myanmar. He is reputed to have reigned for 95 years, the longest reign in history ever recorded, according to the Guinness World Records’ website. He reigned between AD 1279 and AD 1374, the website notes.
The photo was also published alongside a similar claim on Facebook here and here.
The claim, however, is false.
A reverse Google image search led to this photo of Raghubir Singhji, published by AKG Images, an online picture library which specialises in art, history photography.
The photo’s caption reads: “Maharaja of Bundi / Maharao Raja Shri Sir Raghubir Singh Sahib Bahadur, 1869 - 1927 (1889 -1927)”.
Below is a screenshot comparison of the photo in the misleading post (L) and the screenshot in the AKG Image’s photo (R):
Bundi district is located in the Hadoti region of Rajasthan state in northwest part of India.
“Maharao Raja Shri Sir Raghubir Singh Sahib Bahadur” was listed here as a ruler of Bundi on the Rajasthan state government website. The government’s site states that Raghubir Singh was born in 1869 and died in 1927.
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