A graphic claiming to show an opinion poll conducted by Republic TV and polling agency Matrize, in which the Congress party is predicted to win 35-40 seats in the upcoming Haryana assembly election, is fake.
BOOM found that the graphic is fabricated and no such poll has been published by Republic TV along with Matrize.
Harayana is set to go to the polls on October 5, 2024, for 90 seats, with the results due on October 8. Forty six seats are needed for a majority.
The ruling Bharatiya Janata Party is facing off against Congress and Aam Aadmi Party. The Congress party on September 3, announced that it is talking to the AAP for a possible alliance to ensure that anti-BJP votes do not get split. AAP sources claimed that they have demanded 10 assembly seats while the Congress has offered seven seats so far. But the Congress leaders were guarded about the progress of talks according to The Hindu.
Claim: Fake Opinion Poll Graphic Circulates on Social Media
The viral graphic attributes the opinion poll to Republic TV - Matrize, and claims that the ruling BJP is likely to get 26 - 36 seats, Congress (INC) - 35 - 40, and the AAP 15 - 20 seats.
The graphic was posted by AAP spokesperson Nyvaan Sharma (@nyvaanofficial) on X.
Click here to view, and here for an archive.
The same graphic is being widely shared on Facebook.
Fact-Check: No Poll Showing Congress Lead Released by Republic TV-Matrize
BOOM found that Republic TV - Matrize did not release any opinion poll showing the Congress party leading with 40 seats in the upcoming Haryana assembly election.
Polling agency Matrize along with Times Now had released an opinion poll in August 2024, which predicted the BJP would get between 37-42, Congress 33-38, and JJP: 03-08, Others: 07-12.
Times Now had tagged Matrize on X on August 18, 2024, releasing their opinion poll numbers showing the BJP ahead with up to 42 seats.
These numbers do not match the viral graphic which shows the Congress getting up to 40 seats and AAP getting up to 20 seats.
While the viral graphic attributed the graphic to Republic - Matrize, whereas the recent poll was conducted by Matrize for Times Now.
BOOM has reached out to Matrize, the article will be updated on receiving a response
Analysis: ETV Bharat Graphic Manipulated with Fake Numbers
We ran a reverse image search on the viral graphic using Google Lens, and the search results showed that the original graphic is from June 2024. The original graphic is on the 10 Haryana Lok Sabha seats, which has been edited with the fake numbers to make the false claim. Find the original graphic here.
A comparison can be seen below: