Edited image passed off as Chandrababu Naidu watching YSRCP's manifesto launch

What's the claim?

An image circulating on social media purportedly depicts Chandrababu Naidu, the Telugu Desam Party (TDP) leader, observing YS Jagan Mohan Reddy, the current Chief Minister (CM) of Andhra Pradesh, holding what appears to be a booklet, on a large display. The TDP is a regional political party active in southern Indian states such as Andhra Pradesh and Telangana.

This image was accompanied by captions like "Chandrababu Watching #YSRCPManifesto" on the X platform, with one post attracting approximately 34,000 views. The archived versions of these posts can be found here and here.

On April 27, 2024, CM Reddy, who also leads the Yuvajana Sramika Rythu Congress Party (YSRCP) of Andhra Pradesh, unveiled the YSRCP 2024 Assembly Election manifesto at his camp office in Tadepalli, a suburb near Vijayawada city in Andhra Pradesh. Elections for the Andhra Pradesh Legislative Assembly and the 25 Lok Sabha seats will be held on May 13, with vote counting scheduled for June 4, 2024.

Screenshot of the viral posts. (Source: X/SCreenshot/Modified by Logically Facts)

This narrative was also shared on Facebook, with archived posts available here and here.

However, the viral image is a fabrication; the photo of Naidu is from 2017 and has been digitally manipulated to include the image of Andhra Pradesh CM Reddy.

Chandrababu Naidu's image from 2017

Upon conducting a reverse image search, we found a report by the New Indian Express dated November 27, 2017, titled "Asia's biggest real-time control room begins operation in Andhra Pradesh." This report featured a similar photograph of Naidu in the same attire seated in front of display screens. However, the screens did not display any images of CM Reddy.

Screenshot of the Indian Express report from November 27, 2017 showing the then Cheif Minister Naidu at the inauguration of the real-time governance center. Source: (The Indian Express/Screenshot/Modified by Logically Facts)

The report detailed the inauguration of ‘Asia's number one’ command control room of real-time governance by then Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Naidu at the interim Secretariat in Velagapudi village, located in the Guntur district of the state. The primary mission of the Real-Time Governance (RTG) center was reportedly to handle all significant events and natural calamities in real time, leveraging e-governance technology and electronic communication.

Additionally, we found a Facebook post (archived here) by Naidu, dated November 26, 2017, announcing the inauguration of the RTG center in the first block of the Secretariat. Naidu highlighted its key functions, including hosting a surveillance wing, handling grievance redressal, managing major events, and operating an alert system for natural calamities.

(Source: Facebook)

This Facebook post included an image (archived here) that was exactly similar to the viral image, with just one key difference. In place of Reddy's image on the screen, Naidu was seen looking at what appeared to be a flow chart. 

A visual comparison between the viral image and the Facebook photograph by Naidu clearly shows that the former was altered to falsely depict Naidu observing Reddy's presentation of the YSRCP manifesto.

Comparison between the screenshots of N Chandrababu Naidu's photo on Facebook and the viral image. (Source: Facebook/X/Screenshots/Modified by Logically Facts)

CM Reddy's image from 2024 

In the viral image, we noticed the Sakshi TV logo, and upon searching, we found the exact image in the Telugu news outlet Sakshi's report dated April 27, 2024, covering the launch of the YSRCP's manifesto for the upcoming elections. ‘A hike in welfare pensions, making Vishakhapatnam Andhra Pradesh's executive capital, and allocating financial outlays for welfare schemes’ were some of the points in the YSRCP manifesto released by CM Reddy, as reported by India Today.

Comparison between the image from the Sakshi news report from April 2024 and the viral image. (Source: X/Screenshots/SakshiTV/Modified by Logically Facts)

The verdict

A 2017 photograph of N. Chandrababu Naidu was digitally altered to depict Naidu observing Andhra Pradesh CM Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy presenting the YSR Congress party manifesto. Naidu's image from 2017 actually shows him looking at unrelated data. CM Reddy's image was digitally added later to create the fake image seen in the viral posts.