Since Saturday, a debate has been raging on Twitter after in a major embarrassment to India, the Tricolour was seen hoisted upside down during Prime Minister Narendra Modi's photo-op with his Japanese counterpart Shinzo Abe before bilateral talks on the sidelines of the ASEAN Summit in Kuala Lumpur.
However, a new debate is now taking place on the popular micro-blogging site, after a social media user posted two images which he claims are from the ASEAN summit.
The user has posted one image from ANI that shows the Indian flag hoisted upside down, while another images put out by the Central governemnt's Press Information Bureau (PIB) shows the flag hoisted in the right manner.
Questions now are being raised as to which of the two agencies photoshopped the Indian flag. Did the PIB, which is controlled by the Indian government, edit the picture to save bureaucrats from more embarrassment. Or was it ANI?
Twitterati, however, seem to have found the answer to this conundrum. Apparently, ANI took the pictures before the flag was hoisted correctly by the officials. A video, which is being circulated on the web, also shows the Indian flag upside down.
According to The Hindu, the flag is seen with the green on top and saffron below during Modi and Abe's customary handshake at the summit. "It was an inadvertent mistake in the rush of things. It was unfortunate," official sources requesting anonymity told PTI.
The issue has caused embarrassment to not only the Indian government but also to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, especially as even Japanese PM Shinzo Abe noticed there was something amiss, according to ABP Live.
Twitter reactions
@DerSchuler well I doubt any Govt dept will release photoshop pics of a PM @Amit_Ind @PIB_India @ANI_news @MEAIndia
— Arindam RoyChowdhury (@This_is_ARC) November 21, 2015
So what is the source of @ANI_news if not @PIB_India https://t.co/E1Z1hLlFyW — radha raju (@radharaju18) November 21, 2015
Did ANI Put A Photoshop Image of Inverted Flag, Have Media Fallen Trap? Left: PIB Govt Image Right: ANI @bjpsamvad pic.twitter.com/rV59pR2qRC
— Sriram (@ChicGuy9) November 21, 2015
@BabaGlocal they corrected the flag later, before PIB clicked pics, ANI clicked immediately. — TIMES WOW (@timesn0w) November 21, 2015
. @tanwer_m @sumitkashyapjha @BabaGlocal @PIB_India @JPN_PMO video via @ANI_news pic.twitter.com/OQ3dG9jbMo
— Shahnawaz Khan (@shahnawazk) November 21, 2015