Fake Whatsapp Message On Army Fund Raising

Amidst the heightened tensions between India and neighbouring Pakistan following the Pahalgam terror attack, the Ministry of Defence cautioned the public about a ‘misleading’ message on WhatsApp which claims that the Centre has opened a bank account for collecting donations to modernise the Indian Army and also help the families of soldiers injured or killed in action.

The message on social media states that a ‘Cabinet decision’ has been taken to this effect and also takes the name of actor Akshay Kumar as the prime mover of the proposal, the ministry mentioned in the official statement.

The Defence Ministry issued a statement debunking the message and urged the people not to fall prey to such fake messages.

“The account details in the said message are wrong, leading to online donations getting dishonoured.” Further, the ministry also said that the Centre has launched several welfare programmes for soldiers killed or disabled during the combat operations.

The ministry also listed out the initiatives taken by officials for the welfare of the Armed Forces. In 2020, the government instituted ‘Armed Forces Battle Casualty Welfare Fund’ which is utilised for grant of immediate financial aid to the families of soldiers, sailors and airmen who lay down their lives or get seriously injured in military operations.

In the statement issued, the Defence ministry said that the Indian Army maintains the accounts for the fund on behalf of the Department of Ex-Servicemen Welfare. Contribution can be made directly in the account of Armed Forces Battle Casualties Welfare Fund.

Even the PIB Fact Check also alerted the people about this ‘misleading’ message with a post on X. The PIB post on X reads: “The bank account mentioned in the message is NOT meant for modernisation of Indian Army or for purchase of weapons.” The PIB also shared a screenshot of the message with “MISLEADING” stamped on it.