Sanjeeb Phuyal is the Nepali Editor of Newschecker based in Kathmandu, Nepal. He brings over a decade of experience writing and editing news. In his previous stint, he worked as online editor for The Kathmandu Post. With the growth of social media platforms—and the ever-growing competition amongst media outlets to churn out breaking news, he feels that fact-checking every piece of information has become more essential today than ever before.
Claim
Prime Minister KP Oli calls Nepali Congress President Sher Bahadur Deuba and says that they should loot the country in turn.
Fact
Old clip of KP Oli calling Deuba from the latter’s home district Dadeldhura was shared with a false audio.
A 40-second video allegedly showing CPN-UML Chairman KP Sharma Oli talking to Nepali Congress President Sher Bahadur Deuba on the phone and saying that they would take turns to loot the nation after the deal to form the new government is going viral on TikTok.
The video is viral in the wake of the formation of a new government led by CPN-UML Chairman KP Sharma Oli with the backing of Nepali Congress party. Last week the CPN-UML pulled out of the coalition government led by CPN (Maoist Centre) Chairman Pushpa Kamal Dahal ‘Prachanda’ to join hands with Nepali Congress.
Against this backdrop, TikTok user @tiktokcrew7381 posted a video showing KP Sharma Oli calling Nepali Congress President Sher Bahadur Deuba and telling him that they should loot the country by taking turns. Text superimposed on the video reads, “Planning to loot the country after becoming the prime minister.” In the purported audio, Oli can be heard saying, “Sher Bahadur Ji Jaya Nepal [signature greeting of Nepali Congress party members]. Now, I will take the prime minister’s post for one-and-a-half years and you will become the next. Now we should loot the country by taking turns. We should settle the Giri Bandhu Tea Estate land scam and Fake Bhutanese refugee scam, among other scandals, we should free our leaders jailed by Prachanda [CPN (Maoist Centre) Chairman Pushpa Kamal Dahal] and Rabi [Rastriya Swatantra Party Chair Rabi Lamichhane].”
The video posted on July 14 has garnered 5566 likes, 914 users have shared it and 381 people have commented on it until the last count. The archived version of the TikTok video can be seen here.
Newschecker found the claim to be misleading.
Fact Check /Verification
To check the veracity of the claim, Newschecker first ran a search on Google by using Nepali key phrase ‘Oli called Deuba’ which threw up several articles published in major online media. On checking an article, dated December 1, 2023, published on Nepal Live online, we found that Oli’s photo carried in the article matched the frame from the viral video. The article noted that Oli called Deuba when he reached the latter’s home district of Dadeldhura in December 2023 during the party’s ‘Sankalpa Yatra’ campaign along the mid-hill districts.
We also found another article about Oli’s phone call to Deuba from Dadeldhura published on Nagarik online. Both the news have attributed the report to Oli’s social media post.
Further, taking clues from the articles, we ran a search on Facebook and found a video, dated December 1, 2024, posted on the verified Facebook page of KP Sharma Oli. The video frames exactly matched the viral video. In his Facebook, KP Oli wrote, “Beautiful Dadeldhura! My friend Sher Bahadur Deuba’s home district. I feel like calling him when I am here. He welcomed me to Dadeldhura even though he is in Kathmandu. Thank you Sher Bahadur Ji. My secretariat made this video as a good will call. I have posted the video.”
In the original audio, Oli says, “Jaya Nepal. I am calling you from Dadeldhura, nearby Kanayamdhura. We are staying a little down at Dadeldhura market. This place is good. I felt like calling you when I arrived in your home district. Thank you. Is everything okay on your side?”
Thus, our findings clearly show that the viral video is an old clip of Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli calling NC President Sher Bahadur Deuba when he had reached Dadeldhura in December 2023.
Conclusion
No, Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli didn’t suggest taking turns to loot the country to Nepali Congress President Sher Bahadur Deuba. An old clip of CPN-UML Chair Oli calling NC President Deuba when he reached the latter’s home district Dadeldhura is being shared with a false audio laid on top.
Result: False
Sources
Nepal Live, Dec 1, 2023
Nagarik Online, Dec 1, 2023
KP Sharma Oli /Facebook, Dec 1, 2023
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Sanjeeb Phuyal is the Nepali Editor of Newschecker based in Kathmandu, Nepal. He brings over a decade of experience writing and editing news. In his previous stint, he worked as online editor for The Kathmandu Post. With the growth of social media platforms—and the ever-growing competition amongst media outlets to churn out breaking news, he feels that fact-checking every piece of information has become more essential today than ever before.
