After the Assembly Election dates in Delhi are announced (here and here), a video (here and here) of Prime Minister Modi is going viral on social media. In the video, PM Modi is seen interacting with school children, who warmly greet him, and some perform a poem with actions. The video is being shared with the claim that it depicts PM Modi making a reel in a school built by Arvind Kejriwal in Delhi. The accompanying post mocks schools in Uttar Pradesh, describing them as being in poor condition. Let’s uncover the truth behind this video.
Claim: The viral video shows Prime Minister Modi visiting a school built by Arvind Kejriwal in Delhi.
Fact: This video of PM Modi interacting with school children was filmed during his visit to a school in Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh, on 18 December 2023, as part of the “Viksit Bharat Sankalp Yatra.” It has no connection with Delhi or Arvind Kejriwal. Hence, the claim is FALSE.
To uncover the truth, we performed a reverse image search on Google and found the full video of the viral clip uploaded on Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s X account on 18 December 2023. The caption in Hindi, when translated, reads: “Interacting with school children in Varanasi filled me with new energy. These lovely children told me that they are now able to concentrate on their studies as facilities have increased in the school.”
We also found the same video uploaded on Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s YouTube account on 18 December 2023. The video was shared with the caption, “PM Modi interacts with tiny tots during a school visit in Varanasi,” indicating that the video is from Varanasi, not Delhi.
Further research revealed several reports (here, here, here and here) highlighting Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s participation in the “Viksit Bharat Sankalp Yatra” during his visit to Varanasi, where he emphasised the importance of evaluating whether the promises made to the public had been fulfilled. As part of this initiative, on 18 December 2023, PM Modi visited a school in Varanasi, where he interacted with the children, engaging them in conversation, asking questions, and learning about their experiences.
The Election Commission of India has announced the dates for the Delhi Assembly elections which will take place on 05 February 2025. However, the video showing Prime Minister Modi interacting with children, which has been circulating widely on social media, is not from Delhi.
To sum up, a 2023 video of Modi interacting with school students in Varanasi was falsely shared as being from Delhi.
