Amid the ongoing 2024 general elections, a video is being widely shared that shows Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury, the president of the West Bengal Congress, purportedly urging people to vote for the BJP instead of the TMC in the Lok Sabha elections (here & here). The video is being shared alleging that being a Congress leader, he is rooting for the BJP. This article will examine the veracity of the claim.
The archived version of this post can be found here
Claim: Video depicting West Bengal Congress president Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury asking people to vote for the BJP and not the TMC in the Lok Sabha elections.
Fact: Speaking at an election rally in support of the Congress candidate, Adhir Rajan Chowdhury made these remarks solely to underscore the deficiencies of the TMC in comparison to the BJP. However, his entire speech was about seeking support for the Congress. Hence, the claim made in the post is MISLEADING.
The viral clip originated from Adhir Chowdhury’s campaign speech in Murshidabad. While he did state that the BJP is better than the TMC, his comments were intended to highlight the shortcomings of the TMC compared to the BJP. Throughout his speech, he urged voters to support the Congress candidate endorsed by the Left Front.
A search using relevant keywords led us to the full speech, which was live-streamed on the official Facebook page of the Indian National Congress – West Bengal. According to this, Adhir Chowdhury was campaigning for Murtaza Hossain, who is contesting in the Jangipur Lok Sabha constituency.
At 25:08 mark of his speech, Chowdhury remarks, “Modi has turned pale with each passing day. Modi does not have the charisma he once had. Initially, Modi claimed they would secure more than 400 seats. He is not crossing 400 now. Modi no longer has that market appeal. According to current surveys, Modi has already lost 100 seats, and more are likely to be lost in the coming days. So, do not make that mistake. It is crucial for the Congress and Left Front to win. If the Congress and Left Front do not succeed, it will be a setback for India’s secularism.”
He continues, “Voting for Trinamool means… it’s better if you vote for BJP instead. … you might as well vote for BJP. Voting for BJP is much preferable to voting for Trinamool. But don’t vote for either Trinamool or BJP… always, in every way, throughout the year… your true hope for happiness, sorry, Bakul (Mortaza Hossain) will be there for you. So please support Bakul.”
News reports covering this clip are available here. According to these reports, it is clear that Adhir Chowdhury was advocating for votes for Congress. His claim that the BJP is better than the TMC was made to highlight the deficiencies of the TMC in comparison to the BJP.
Additionally, as this brief clip of Chowdhury’s speech gained traction, the Congress party issued a press statement clarifying that Chowdhury’s remarks had been misinterpreted. They also lodged a complaint with the Election Commission regarding this matter.
To sum up, Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury’s speech has been edited selectively to claim he made a statement that it is better to vote for the BJP than the TMC.
