Bhai Vs Bhai: ISRO 'fake news' fallout; 'family not first'

BJP spokesperson Shehzad Poonawalla pointed out “fake news” spread by his estranged brother and said for him “nation is first.”

Poonawalla’s brother Tehseen, who is known to be a Congress supporter, claimed ISRO scientists have not been paid salaries for three months. A PIB fact-check said he was wrong.

Shehzad Poonawalla also said his brother should apologize to ISRO and Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

However, Tehseen responded with a clarification and said engineers working on the Chandrayaan-3 launch pad were not paid for several months. He also shared screenshots of media reports with similar claims.

“The context of my talk was non-payment of salaries for professionals,” he wrote in a social media post. “It was not scientists but engineers ... does that change the context?” he asked.