Fact Check: Video showing party activists climbing onto a truck with EVMs makes a false claim
The first four phases of the 2024 Lok Sabha elections have completed in various states till date. The fifth phase of elections is also underway on May 20, 2024. Under this phase, polling will be conducted in six states and two union territories.
Claim :
Video shows BJP workers climbing onto a truck transporting EVM machinesFact :
The video is from the year 2022, the EVMs seen in the video are used for training purposes
The first four phases of the 2024 Lok Sabha elections have completed in various states till date. The fifth phase of elections is also underway on May 20, 2024. Under this phase, polling will be conducted in six states and two union territories.
A video of a mob climbing on a truck, holding the EVM machines in their hands, is in circulation with the claim that the people seen are BJP workers who took away the EVM machines after the elections. Some users shared the video with the caption “BJP wale EVM lut liya”, the narrator in the video claims that the EVMs are being taken away by the BJP and shows workers in broad daylight. He also abuses the party that this is the way it wants to win the seats and form the government.
The video is in circulation on YouTube, Twitter, etc.
X users are sharing the same video with captions like “I guess @ECISVEEP @
Some users shared the video with the caption “F̶r̶e̶e̶ ̶&̶ ̶F̶a̶i̶r̶ ̶ Elections In Largest D̶e̶m̶o̶c̶r̶a̶c̶y̶ Rajeev Kumar is the Murderer of Largest Democracy. In any other Civilized Democratic country #RajivKumar would have been removed from office. And Elections were conducted under the supervision of the #SupremeCourt. #
Fact Check:
The claim is False. The video is an old one from the year 2022, and the EVMs seen in the video are only training EVMs.
When we searched the keyframes extracted from the viral video using Google reverse image search, we found a video published by Mojo story in March 2022. The title of the video is “UP election I Akhilesh Yadav alleges EVM theft, party workers protest after spotting trucks with EVMs”
After the video went viral in 2022, the Chief Electoral Commissioner of Uttar Pradesh released a press statement that the EVMs seen in the viral video were used for training purposes only. They are not real EVMs, and they were being taken to a college where training of the counting officers was being held. During the transportation, some people from political parties stopped the vehicle and spread the rumors that the EVMs were being used falsely.
The statement also states that the actual EVMs are sealed inside a strong room and kept safe under the supervision of military forces.
Hence, the viral video does not show BJP workers invading the truck with EVMs. The EVMs in the truck were used for training purposes, and are not real EVMs. The claim is False.
