● MEDIUM▲ ALLEGED

Purported Deepfake Video Reportedly Portrayed Nirmala Sitharaman Endorsing Investment Scheme

Name: Purported Deepfake Video Reportedly Portrayed Nirmala Sitharaman Endorsing Investment Scheme — incident record
Creator: AI Incident Tracker, LLC
Published: 2026-04-16
License: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/

Reported allegations — unverified

The events described below are based on reporting from the cited sources. No court ruling or regulator finding has been issued. Companies named are presumed not to have admitted liability unless explicitly stated.

Date of incident: April 16, 2026
Jurisdiction: IN
Sources: 2 cited
Last verified: May 21, 2026

Summary

A purported deepfake video reportedly portrayed Indian Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman as endorsing an investment scheme claiming Rs 22,000 (about $236 USD) could yield Rs 5.5 lakh (about $5,900 USD) in a week. PIB Fact Check publicly debunked the video on April 16, 2026, stating it was fake and AI-generated and warning that neither the Government of India nor the minister endorsed the scheme.

What is reported

Editorial note

Single secondary source; subject (Indian finance minister) public interest.

Sources

This record summarizes the cited reports. See the sources panel for the underlying URLs and archive copies.

Sources

01
latestly.com — Is Nirmala Sitharaman Promoting a INR 22,000 Investment for INR 5.5 Lakh Returns? PIB Fact Check Reveals Truth Behind Viral Video
secondary4/16/2026
02
AI Incident Database — AIID incident #1454
secondary4/16/2026

Source data: AI Incident Database (AIID) by Responsible AI Collaborative, CC-BY-SA 4.0. incidentdatabase.ai ↗ · Editorial analysis, classification, and cross-links © AI Incident Tracker, LLC.