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| - Fact Check: No, this poem isn't Unacademy educator Karan Sangwan's response to his firing
India Today's investigation found that the clip was from a YouTube video uploaded by Sangwan on July 28, two weeks before the Unacademy controversy.
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India Today Fact Check
This clip has been taken out of context from a video originally uploaded to Sangwan's YouTube channel on July 28, weeks before the Unacademy controversy.
Edtech company Unacademy is at the centre of a social media storm after dismissing educator Karan Sangwan for urging students to vote for educated candidates during elections. Following this, a video of Sangwan reciting a poetic verse was widely shared as his response to his dismissal.
In the video, Sangwan recited: "Life, I have seen your stature, now you witness my courage. I stand in front of you even after falling a hundred times, now you witness my passion." The archived version of one such post can be seen here.
India Today found that the viral clip was shared out of context from a video originally uploaded to Sangwan's YouTube channel on July 28. It is not related to his firing.
OUR PROBE
Delving into Sangwan's YouTube channel, we found a longer version of the viral video, uploaded on July 28. In the extended video, after reciting the verse, Sangwan urged his audience to display "junoon" or passion on July 30. According to the YouTube video’s description, it was intended for the candidates of the Haryana Assistant District Attorney examinations.
Sangwan also uploaded another video on the same date, announcing his plans for a live discussion on the Haryana ADA exams the following day. The Haryana ADA exams took place on July 30.
CONTROVERSY TIMELINE
Per reports, Sangwan recently held a coaching session on the bills introduced in the Lok Sabha by the Centre aimed at replacing British-era criminal laws.
On August 11, Union Home Minister Amit Shah introduced three Bills in Lok Sabha to replace the Indian Penal Code, 1860; the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973; and the Indian Evidence Act, 1872. The Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023, to replace the IPC; Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023, for CrPC; and Bharatiya Sakshya Bill, 2023, for the Indian Evidence Act, were referred to a standing committee.
During his session, Sangwan lamented that this would render his meticulously prepared notes on criminal law useless. Sangwan said, “Remember one thing, the next time you vote, choose an educated candidate so that you do not have to suffer all this again in life. Do not vote for someone who only knows how to change names.”
The resulting discourse on social media led to accusations of Unacademy promoting an "anti-Modi” agenda on August 13 and 14. Subsequently, Unacademy terminated Sangwan's contract, with co-founder Roman Saini stating on August 17 that the educator's comments violated the company’s code of conduct.
Sangwan uploaded a video discussing the new criminal code on August 12. We noticed, however, that the contentious statement was absent from this video.
On August 17, Sangwan posted a video on his YouTube channel stating, “There is a video of mine that has been circulating around for a few days and has landed me in a controversy. Judicial aspirants and students who follow me have had to face consequences and so have I. To discuss how the controversy started, I will bring a detailed video for you on August 19 at 8 pm, live on this channel.”
So, it’s clear that the video going viral as Sangwan’s response to his firing predates the entire controversy, and is thus unrelated.
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