Ratan Tata has not donated 2500 bulletproof Scorpiot to the Indian Army

Ratan Tata has not donated 2500 bulletproof Scorpio to the Indian Army

Posted by NILESH WAGHELA 

Claim: Ratan Tata donated funds to the Indian Army to purchase 2500 bulletproof Scorpios vehicles.

Fact: There are no credible reports confirming that the Indian Army has recently bought or ordered 2500 bulletproof Scorpios, or that they were donated by Ratan Tata did. Hence the claim made in the post is FALSE.

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Mumbai: A post claiming that the Indian Army has received 2500 bulletproof Scorpios in Jammu and Kashmir from donations made by prominent industrialist Ratan Tata is being widely shared on social media platforms (here, here, here, here, here, & here). The viral post contains a collage of four images showing Mahindra Scorpios in camouflage paint. In this article, let’s fact-check the claim made in the post.

To verify the accuracy of the viral claim, we conducted a relevant keyword search. However, our search yielded no credible reports supporting the claim. If such a donation had been made by Ratan Tata or the Tata Group, it would have certainly garnered significant media attention. Additionally, we checked the official social media handles of Ratan Tata and the Tata Group (here, here, here, here, here, & here), but found no posts supporting the viral claim.

During our search, we discovered that the pictures in the viral post have been circulating with a similar claim since 2016.

To learn more about the pictures featured in the viral post, we conducted a Google reverse image search. This search led us to an article published on 01 April 2012 on a website named ‘Indian Autos Blog,’ featuring a couple of pictures from the viral post. According to the article, the viral pictures show a Mahindra Rakshak Plus, a modified Scorpio offering Level-3 protection, which was showcased at DEFEXPO in 2012. The Mahindra Rakshak Plus is available exclusively to defence forces.