BJP Highlights Pakistan Deputy PM Ishaq Dar’s Misleading ‘King of the Skies’ Claim, Labels It Propaganda

Senior leaders of India’s Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) have strongly criticized Pakistan’s Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar for quoting a fabricated headline from the UK-based newspaper, The Telegraph, during an address in Pakistan’s Senate. Dar inaccurately claimed the publication hailed the Pakistan Air Force as the “Undisputed King of the Skies,” prompting BJP leaders to label the incident as blatant propaganda.

Amit Malviya, head of BJP’s IT cell, accused Pakistan of spreading misinformation and asserted that the claim had already been disproven by Dawn, a prominent Pakistani newspaper. Malviya highlighted the incident on the social media platform X, sharing a video of Dar’s speech and emphasizing that Pakistan’s narrative was “falling apart, exposing a web of lies and desperation.” Malviya pointed out that even Dawn found it necessary to fact-check the claim, confirming its falsity.

BJP leader Rajeev Chandrasekhar also responded sharply to the issue, taking the opportunity to criticize India’s Congress party. On X, Chandrasekhar mocked the Pakistani generals for their misleading statements, remarking that aside from the Pakistan Army, only Rahul Gandhi’s Congress seemed to operate under the assumption that “people are fools, so let’s just lie.”

The controversy erupted after India’s Press Information Bureau (PIB) Fact Check unit clarified that a widely shared social media image purportedly showing The Telegraph declaring the Pakistan Air Force as superior was fabricated using artificial intelligence. The PIB confirmed that no such headline had ever been published by the UK newspaper.

During a recent Senate session, Dar praised the Pakistan Air Force based on the fake headline, claiming, “Telegraph writes Pakistan Air Force is the undisputed king of the skies.” However, investigative efforts by Dawn’s iVerify Pakistan team exposed several inaccuracies and spelling errors, revealing the image to be clearly manipulated. Errors such as “Fyaw” instead of “Force,” and “preformance” instead of “performance,” among others, were inconsistent with the editorial standards of The Telegraph.

The manipulated image has been circulated extensively since May 10, particularly amidst increased tensions between India and Pakistan. The British publication has explicitly confirmed that no such article ever existed.