On January 9, President Droupadi Murmu honoured several accomplished sports personalities with Arjuna Awards at Rashtrapati Bhavan. This second-highest honour is conferred upon players annually for exhibiting outstanding performance in Sports and Games. Against this backdrop, an image of Indian cricketer Smriti Mandhana is circulating on social media, claiming that she received this esteemed award in 2024.
The image is shared on Facebook with a caption: “बधाई तो बनती है .. मोहम्मद शमी के साथ ही महिला क्रिकेट टीम की सलामी बल्लेबाज़ स्मृति मंधाना को भी अर्जुन अवार्ड मिला है” (English version: Congratulations is deserved… Along with Mohammad Shami, the salute of the women’s cricket team — batsman Smriti Mandhana — also got Arjuna Award.
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Here’s the link to the above post.
FACT CHECK
NewsMobile fact-checked the above claim, and found it to be MISLEADING.
With a simple Google Search, the NM team identified several news websites with similar images stating that Smriti Mandhana was conferred with the Arjuna Award in 2019.
We traced a Press Information Bureau (PIB) press release, dated July 16, 2019, carrying similar images with the text: “Shri Kiren Rijiju, Minister of State (Independent Charge) for Youth Affairs & Sports, today gave Arjuna Awards to Ms. Smriti Mandhana (Cricket) and Shri Rohan Bopanna (Tennis) in a ceremony held in New Delhi.”
Smriti Mandhana had also posted pictures of her receiving the award on her official Instagram handle on July 16, 2019, with a caption: “It was such an honour to receive the Arjuna Award from the sports minister @kiren.rijiju here at Delhi. Grateful to all those who supported me throughout my journey. And no better time to receive it just 2 days before my birthday! #blessed.”
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We could not find Smriti Mandhana’s name in the list of 2024 Arjuna Awards winners.
Thus, we can conclusively say that the viral claim is MISLEADING.
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