A video circulating on social media claiming to show Justice and National Integration Minister Harshana Nanayakkara livestreaming while driving on August 13, 2026, is actually footage recorded three years ago, a fact-check has found.
According to Fact Crescendo Sri Lanka, the video dates back to August 13, 2023, when Nanayakkara was serving as the National People’s Power’s Moratuwa electorate organizer, before he became a Cabinet minister.
The video resurfaced on social media after Nanayakkara is heard saying “today is August 13,” leading some users to believe it had been recorded on August 13 this year.
However, a reverse image search found that the footage had been circulating online since August 13, 2023.
The full video shows Nanayakkara inviting supporters to an NPP electorate meeting in Moratuwa attended by then-NPP leader Anura Kumara Dissanayake and MP Harini Amarasuriya.
The fact-check also rejected claims that Nanayakkara was using his own mobile phone to record the video while driving. The full footage shows another person seated in the front passenger seat recording Nanayakkara as he drives and speaks to the camera.
The Justice Ministry’s Media Division also confirmed that the footage was recorded in 2023, before Nanayakkara became a minister.
Fact Crescendo classified the social media claims presenting the footage as a recent video as “Misleading.” (Newswire)