A purported 'exit poll', which shows a landslide win for the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) in Gujarat in the upcoming elections, is being shared on social media to claim that the party will comfortably form the government in the state.
But it defies logic because: The elections in Gujarat will be held in two phases on 1 December and 5 December, the results of which will be announced on 8 December.
Exit polls are conducted after the voters have cast their votes.
So, what's the truth?: This image has been edited. The original bulletin, by Hindi news channel ABP News, shows the ABP- C-Voter survey which was held during the five states elections in Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Manipur, Punjab, and Goa in the beginning of 2022.
An archive of the post can be seen here.
(Source: Facebook/Screenshot)
How did we find this out?: We noticed that the graphic showed the channel's anchor Rubika Liyaquat and also carried ABP News' logo.
ABP's logo in the viral image and the anchor can be seen.
(Source: The Quint)
Using this as a clue, we looked for the news bulletin and found that the video was live streamed on 8 October 2021.
The video's title in Hindi read, 'What is the public's mood in the five states? ABP-C Voter Survey.'
The video focuses on an opinion poll conducted in the five states - Uttar Pradesh, Punjab, Manipur, Goa, and Uttarakhand.
Several similarities can be noticed between the viral graphic and the original bulletin.
Comparison between the viral image and the original bulletin.
(Source: Altered by The Quint)
Further, there is a clear distinction between the fonts used by the news channel and the ones used in the viral image.
Conclusion: Clearly, an edited image is being shared as a real 'exit poll' prediction a massive victory for AAP. We have debunked several such claims about the upcoming election in Gujarat, you can read them here, here, here, and here.
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