New Delhi:

A video has been widely shared on social media platforms showing a woman, seemingly a polling agent, allegedly influencing two women while voting. The viral video has been linked to the ongoing Lok Sabha elections.

The users shared the video with captions insinuating that the voters were made to vote in favour of the BJP.

In its investigation, the PTI Fact Check found that an old video dating back to 2019 was shared as recent on social media with misleading claims.

Claim

A Facebook user on April 23 shared a video of a voting agent allegedly influencing two women while voting and further claimed that this was linked to the ongoing Lok Sabha elections.

The caption of the post read,”ऐसे होगा 400 पार”. An English translation of the caption read, “400 will be crossed like this”

Below is a screenshot of the same:

Investigation

Starting the investigation, the Desk ran the video through InVid Tool Search and found several keyframes. On running one of the keyframes through Google Lens, the Desk found several posts carrying the same video with similar claims. 

Three such Facebook posts can be viewed here, here and here and the archive links for the same can be viewed here, here and here respectively.

Two such X posts can be viewed here and here and archive links can be viewed here and here respectively.

On further scanning the search results, the Desk came across another X post by Vinod Sharma, Political Editor at Hindustan Times, dated May 15, 2019.

The caption of the post read: “Another achievement #ElectionCommission. Shocking to say the least.”

Here is the link and archive link to the post, and below is a screenshot of the same:

On further scanning the search results, the Desk conducted a customised keyword search on Google and came across a YouTube video uploaded by the official channel of Siasat Daily.

The description of the video shared on May 18, 2019 read: “A video filmed inside a polling booth showed a woman polling agent trying to influence voting in West Bengal”

Here is the link to the video and below is a screenshot of the same:

The Desk noticed that this was the same video as the one shared in social media posts recently. Below is a combination image comparing the visuals of the two videos:

The Desk further tried to trace the origin of the video, but could not find any report on the incident. However, it was established that the video dated back to at least 2019 and was shared as recent with misleading claims. 

CLAIM

A video of a woman polling agent influencing voters in the ongoing Lok Sabha polls.

FACT

The video dates back to at least 2019 and is reportedly from West Bengal.

CONCLUSION

Several social media users shared a video of a woman polling agent allegedly influencing two women voters and used captions to suggest that this was how the BJP was planning to cross the 400-seat mark in the ongoing Lok Sabha polls. In its investigation, the Desk found the video dated back to at least 2019 and was reportedly from West Bengal. The video was shared on social media with misleading claims.

(This story was originally published by PTI Fact Check, and republished by NDTV as part of the Shakti Collective.)

Chennai:

Promises to scrap ‘One Nation, One Election’, repeal the Citizenship Amendment Act, or CAA, and simultaneously award Indian citizenship to returning Sri Lankan Tamils are among the promises made by Tamil Nadu’s ruling Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam ahead of the 2024 Lok Sabha election.

The DMK is part of the Congress-led INDIA bloc formed in June last year to stop Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his Bharatiya Janata Party from claiming a third consecutive term.

The DMK has also vowed to scrap the NEET, or National Entrance Eligibility Test, which is administered for admission to medical courses pan-India. Tamil Nadu is a fierce critic of the NEET.

READ | Tamil Nadu Moves Supreme Court, Challenges Validity Of NEET

In February last year the state moved the Supreme Court claiming the single-window common exam is violates federal principles, since it takes away states’ decision-making ability regarding education.

Released by Chief Minister MK Stalin and senior leaders, including Thoothukudi MP Kanimozhi, the DMK has laid out a strong agenda of reviewing the BJP’s “anti-people laws”, including the National Education Policy, which it has heavily criticised for imposing Hindi on the southern states.

“People’s Manifesto”, Says Chief Minister

“The DMK continues to do what we say… this is what our leaders taught us. We went all over the state and listened to the people. This is not just a DMK manifesto… it is the people’s manifesto,” Mr Stalin said, accusing the BJP of having “destroyed India” and failing to fulfil their promises.

The Chief Minister also took a jab at the Prime Minister, who has made six visits to Tamil Nadu this year. Mr Stalin remarked he would have happier had the PM “come during the time of floods”.

READ | PM Holds Massive Rally In Tamil Nadu, Targets AIADMK Stronghold

Mr Modi has been actively touring the southern states to boost the BJP’s profile. The party has a negligible presence in Tamil Nadu; in the last election it got less than three per cent of the votes.

Kanimozhi To NDTV

DMK MP Kanimozhi, who has been nominated to defend her Thoothukudi seat, told NDTV the manifesto focused on protecting the federal nature of the country – a concern frequently also raised by Bengal’s Trinamool, another INDIA bloc member, and the rights of state governments.

“Our promises are implementable if the INDIA bloc forms the (central) government,” she said, expressing thanks to the DMK for re-fielding her from the Thoothukudi seat.

READ | Congress-DMK Seal Tamil Nadu Deal, Guest Showing By Kamal Haasan

The DMK today also released a first list of candidates for the 21 seats it will contest; Tamil Nadu has 39 Lok Sabha seats. The rest will go to the Congress and smaller parties, in allotments identical to the 2019 arrangement. Five years ago the DMK-Congress combine swept the state, winning 38 seats.

“We have seen how much the Dravidian model of government has done for the people of this state, and this manifesto will help us take our Dravidian model all over India. I am sure of securing not only all seats in Tamil Nadu, but a good number across the country too…” Kanimozhi said.

DMK Lok Sabha Manifesto Details

Among other big-ticket promises made by the DMK are drastic cuts to the prices of petrol, diesel, and LPG (cooking gas) to Rs 75 and Rs 65 per litre and Rs 500 per cylinder, free Wi-Fi services across the state, statehood for Puducherry, scrapping of the Uniform Civil Code, and the immediate implementation of 33 per cent reservation for women in Parliament and state legislatures.

There is also a focus on students and women empowerment in the manifesto, which promises interest-free loans of up to Rs 4 lakh for students and Rs 10 lakh for women self-help groups.

READ | No UCC; Chief Minister To Approve Governor: DMK Manifesto

A raft of central government-backed research and higher education institutions, including IIMs and IITs, will be set up in the state, and college students will get 1GB of mobile data free, the DMK said.

A significant point is a two-year “cooling period” for judges looking to join private companies or political parties after their retirement. This point has been seen against the backdrop of former Bengal High Court judge Abhijit Gangopadhyay stepping down and joining the BJP days later.

READ | Court Raps Tamil Nadu Governor For Referring Bills To President

Also significant is a promise to review the process by which Governors are appointed and to remove any immunity afforded to these posts. This is key because the Tamil Nadu government has been engaged in a running battle with Governors over the past few years, accusing the centre’s representative of interfering in state governance and deliberately denying assent to key bills.

When Does Tamil Nadu Vote?

Tamil Nadu votes in a single phase on April 19, the first day of polling for the 2024 Lok Sabha election. Results will be declared on June 4.

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Lucknow:

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh on Saturday exuded confidence that Prime Minister Narendra Modi is all set to return for a third term with a clear majority in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections.

“The faith of the people of the entire country is with Prime Minister Narendra Modi and it is not just me but several political observers have also accepted this fact that he is coming back with a clear majority in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections,” Rajasthan Singh, on a two-day visit to his parliamentary constituency Lucknow, told reporters.

He was reacting to a question on the challenge posed by the opposition bloc INDIA in the coming elections.

Paying his respects to Maharishi Valmiki on the occasion of Valmiki Jayanti here, Rjnath Singh said, “The entire world knows, and I believe, that the Ram of Maharishi Valmiki was not just a king but a lok nayak…yug purush and an incarnation.” “All Bharatvasis, be it in any part of the world, view Ram as Maryada Purushottam as has been carved by Maharishi Valmiki in the Ramayana,” he said.

He also extended greetings to the people on the occasion of Valmiki Jayanti. 

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)