Video doesn't show Congress candidate's election rally in Maharashtra's Akola

What is the claim?

A one-minute-long video of a rally shows a large group of individuals on various vehicles, mostly two-wheelers, carrying multiple flags. The video is accompanied by a claim that it depicts an election rally for Congress party candidate Sajid Khan Pathan in Akola West, Maharashtra, with allegations that flags of Palestine, Iran, Iraq, Islamic State (ISIS), and Hezbollah are visible at the event.

An X user shared the video with the caption (translated), "Look at their flags—Palestine, Iran, Iraq, ISIS, Hezbollah. No Indian flag. Guess which country this election rally is from. This is the election rally of Sajid Khan Mastan Khan, a candidate from Akola West in Maharashtra, India’s secular state."

The post has garnered over 125,000 views and more than 2,000 likes and shares. Archived versions of this and similar posts are available here, here, here, here, and here.

Screenshots of similar claims posted on social media. (Source: X/Modified by Logically Facts)

The viral video surfaced in the lead-up to the Maharashtra Assembly elections, with voting scheduled for November 20 and counting set for November 23.

However, our investigation revealed that the video actually captures a bike rally held in Latur, Maharashtra, during the Milad-un-Nabi celebrations in September 2024.

What are the facts?

A reverse image search of keyframes from the viral video led to several similar user-generated videos on social media platforms, confirming that the rally occurred in Latur, Maharashtra, during the Muslim celebration of Eid-e-Milad in September 2024.

One video (archived here), uploaded by the account “SN_GM STAR 🌟” on September 23, 2024, titled, "The lovers of Rasool have left Latur for Mumbai, Subhan Allah | Maharashtra rally (translated from Urdu/Hindi)," features the viral clip between the 0:20 to 1:20 mark. This video does not reference Congress or any election rally.

Another video, shared by the YouTube channel “AAJ KA MAHANAGAR live” on October 1, 2024 (archived here), is titled, "Latur Maharashtra Eid Miladun Nabi Procession." This further corroborates the context of the rally as part of the Eid-e-Milad festivities.

A keyword search also led to a video uploaded by the local news outlet Latur News Official on September 19, 2024 (archived here), titled, "Eid Milad-un-Nabi bike rally in Latur | Eid Milad Rally Latur | Latur News Official (translated from Hindi)." This video shares visual similarities with the viral clip, such as a person in white waving an Indian flag from a black vehicle’s sunroof, alongside other familiar flags.

Additional videos from vloggers (archived here and here) further indicate that they were part of the bike rally for Eid-e-Milad. These videos exhibit several recognizable elements that match the viral footage.

Comparison of viral video and the YouTube videos posted by users during the Eid-e-Milad rally in Latur. (Source: X/YouTube/Modified by Logically Facts)

Another video of the rally was shared by a local channel called 'BharatSatta' (archived here).

In all the videos, several Islamic flags, commonly seen in Eid-Milad-un-Nabi and Muharram processions, are visible, along with the Indian flag. While the flag of Palestine is indeed present, there are no flags of ISIS, Hezbollah, Iraq, or Iran, contrary to the claims made by social media users.

Where exactly was the video shot?

Through visual analysis, we were able to geolocate the footage to “MSH 3 Latur, Maharashtra.” This was further confirmed by elements visible in the viral video, including a distant tower, a tree on the left side of the road, and nearby buildings, such as a hospital, which match Google Street View images.

Hamid Sheikh, the editor of Bharat Satta’s YouTube channel, confirmed to Logically Facts that the video was shot during a bike rally in Latur for Eid Milad-un-Nabi in September 2024. He explained that the rally began near Gandhi Chowk in Latur and passed through several parts of the city. Sheikh clarified that the rally displayed Islamic flags but no ISIS or Hezbollah flags.

Further confirmation came from Vinod Chavan, district correspondent for Lokmat English, and Nitin Gaikwad, a journalist at Town Connect, who both affirmed to Logically Facts that the video was from Latur and depicted the Eid Milad-un-Nabi procession.

The Congress party has declared Pathan as its candidate for the Akola West Assembly Constituency in Maharashtra. However, the viral post incorrectly refers to him as ‘Sajid Khan Mastan Khan.’

The verdict

The viral video shows an Eid-e-Milad rally in Latur, Maharashtra, held in September 2024. It features several generic Islamic flags, but no ISIS or Hezbollah flags. The rally is unrelated to the upcoming Maharashtra elections.