FACT CHECK: Did Boris Johnson Tweet, ‘I Am Sorry For What Britain Did To India 74 years Ago’?

Trevor Schakohl | Legal Reporter

An image shared on Facebook purportedly shows a tweet by British Prime Minister Boris Johnson that reads: “I am sorry for what Britain did to India 74 years ago, so I want to apologize to Indians. Happy Independence Day to Incredible India.”

Verdict: False

There’s no evidence Johnson sent such a tweet. The tweet came from an unverified Twitter account that does not appear to be affiliated with Johnson.

Fact Check:

India celebrates its independence from Britain annually on Aug. 15, according to the Indian government’s website. The country marked its 74th independence day this year, the Times of India reported.

The Facebook post features what appears to be a screen grab of an Aug. 15 tweet, allegedly from Johnson, wishing India a happy Independence Day and apologizing for “what Britain did to India 74 years ago.”

“Now even white people apologize,” reads an English translation of the post’s Hindi caption, which includes a link to the tweet. “The British Prime Minister apologized to the Indians.” (RELATED: Has India’s Government Banned People From Posting About COVID-19 On Social Media?)
There is, however, no record of Johnson tweeting the statement. Searching Johnson’s Twitter account, as well as his other social media pages, didn’t turn up any matches. Check Your Fact also found no instances of the comment coming from the Prime Minister’s Office, and credible media outlets do not appear to have attributed it to him.
In reality, the tweet didn’t come from Johnson. The Twitter account @BorisUKJohnson sent the tweet, whereas the prime minister’s actual Twitter handle is @BorisJohnson. The account that sent the tweet describes itself as “Unofficial” in its bio and doesn’t seem to be affiliated with him in any way.

Trevor Schakohl

Legal Reporter
Follow Trevor on Twitterhttps://twitter.com/tschakohl

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