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PeakMetrics / Fact Checks

Politics & government fact checks

Explore claims publishers have checked about politics & government. Read their original ratings and follow the evidence.

12,749 published reviews in this topic

FACTLYPolitics & government

‘The German Times’ article reported the news of Punjab CM Bhagwat Mann’s deplaning from Lufthansa’s Frankfort-Delhi flight for being drunk

Publisher’s rating: MISLEADING

The claim concerns a screenshot presented as a German Times report that Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann was removed from Lufthansa’s Frankfurt-to-Delhi flight because he was drunk. FACTLY’s investigation distinguishes that purported article from the underlying, still-disputed episode: it says Mann rescheduled his return journey at Frankfurt airport on 18 September 2022, but the clipping itself was satirical and was not published by The German Times. The review reports finding no matching article on the publication’s official website. It also notes that the clipping carried the description “This article for satire @BeingBHK” and that the matching social-media account described itself as a meme, cartoon, and satire creator. [S1] The review says the clipping was made by the creator @BeingBHK, drawing word for word on an Indian Narrative article. That article reported an allegation that Mann had been deplaned; it attributed to an unnamed co-passenger the claim that a person identified as Mann had consumed excessive alcohol. The review also recounts that an AAP media representative said Mann was unwell, while an eyewitness quoted by The Hindu described a person resembling Mann entering the aircraft and later leaving with others. These accounts concern the alleged incident, but do not establish the truth of the alcohol allegation. [S1] Lufthansa’s cited statement attributed the flight’s later departure to a delayed inbound flight and an aircraft change; the review says Lufthansa did not confirm that Mann was intoxicated. FACTLY therefore concludes that the reasons for Mann’s rescheduling could not be established from its investigation, while identifying the specific German Times clipping as satire rather than a genuine report. The distinction matters: evidence of a disputed travel incident does not authenticate the screenshot or its claim about why it happened. [S1]

FACTLYPolitics & government

Interior view of the Caravan used for accommodation of Rahul Gandhi and other leaders during Bharat Jodo Yatra

Publisher’s rating: FALSE

The claim concerns a picture of a luxury bedroom presented as the interior of a caravan used to accommodate Rahul Gandhi and other Congress leaders during Bharat Jodo Yatra, which began on 7 September 2022. The review investigated the image’s provenance and compared it with images and descriptions of containers used during the journey. The review reports that a reverse-image search found the same bedroom image, at higher resolution, on Flickr, uploaded by New Zealand prefabricated-house maker One cool habitat in September 2009. It says the images matched when compared and that the image metadata showed the same information. This places the bedroom image years before the yatra and undermines its attribution to the journey. For comparison, the review cites Congress leader Jairam Ramesh’s description of the accommodation as bare-minimum containers, with different units holding one, two, four or twelve people. It also points to video and media reports showing container interiors, including a view of a multi-bed container and views of Ramesh’s and Rahul Gandhi’s containers. The review concludes that those interiors do not match the viral bedroom image.

FACTLYPolitics & government

Recent picture of Rahul Gandhi having a close conversation with a young girl during the ‘Bharat Jodo Yatra’

Publisher’s rating: MISLEADING

The claim concerns a photo presented as a recent image of Rahul Gandhi speaking closely with a young girl during the Bharat Jodo Yatra. FACTLY reports that the image instead shows Gandhi with his niece, Miraya Vadra, at a remembrance ceremony for Rajiv Gandhi on 20 August 2015. The review says this event was unrelated to the yatra, which began in Kanyakumari on 7 September 2022. The difference in both date and setting is why the image does not support the post’s claim about the march. FACTLY describes its check as a reverse image search. It found the same photograph on Getty Images, where the accompanying caption identified the girl as Miraya Vadra and described the occasion and location as the remembrance ceremony at Veer Bhumi in New Delhi. The review also notes that the photo was credited to Hindustan Times reporter Sonu Mehta. The review adds that other pictures of Gandhi and Miraya at the ceremony appeared in news-site articles in 2015. Taken together, the cited image provenance and the ceremony context identify the photo as an older family image, not a picture from the Bharat Jodo Yatra.