2014 news graphic shared as schedule for upcoming Maharashtra Assembly polls

What is the claim? 

In the run-up to the Maharashtra Assembly elections slated to be held later this year, an image with a graphic from Indian news outlet Aaj Tak has been circulating online. This graphic claims to announce the polling dates for the 2024 Maharashtra state elections.

In Hindi, the graphic displays the headline: “Announcement of Election Dates,” followed by: “Maharashtra-Haryana single phase elections. Notification: September 20; Enrollment: September 27; Voting: October 15; Counting of Votes: October 19.”

Social media users have shared this image with the caption: “Maharashtra state election program announced. Code of Conduct announced the election program on September 20, 2024; voting on October 15, 2024; results on October 19, 2024 (translated from Marathi).” Archived versions of these claims can be viewed here, here, and here. 

Screenshots of posts claiming the dates for the 2024 State Assembly elections in Maharashtra have been declared. (Source: Facebook/Modified by Logically Facts)

However, we found that a graphic from the 2014 state Assembly elections is being used to make this misleading claim. The Election Commission of India (ECI) has not yet released the dates for the 2024 state elections in Maharashtra.

What we found 

The graphic features the Aaj Tak logo in the top right corner. A Google search led us to a Hindi article (archived here) published by Aaj Tak on September 12, 2014, titled “Assembly Elections in Haryana and Maharashtra on October 15, Counting Votes on October 19.” The article includes the same graphic seen in the social media posts, with the dates and sequence of events matching the claim.

The article reports on the dates announced for the 2014 state elections in Maharashtra and Haryana.

Additionally, we located a video (archived here) uploaded by Aaj Tak on September 12, 2014, titled “Maharashtra, Haryana Elections on October 15; Results on October 19.” This video features the ECI’s press conference announcing the 2014 election dates. The same frame from the video, showing the claimed dates, appears at the 17:04 mark.

A comparison of the same frame from the 2014 coverage on Aaj Tak’s YouTube channel ( R) with the image in the claim (L). (Source: Aaj Tak YouTube/ Facebook/Modified by Logically Facts) 

The ECI has responded on X (formerly Twitter), refuting the claim. The post (archived here) describes the circulating dates as false and confirms that no dates have yet been declared for the Maharashtra and Haryana elections. The poll body stated that the dates will be announced via a press conference.

The post by the Election Commission of India. (Source: X/ECISVEEP)

Legislative Assembly elections in Maharashtra, Jammu and Kashmir, Haryana, and Jharkhand are scheduled for the second half of 2024. The Maharashtra election is tentatively expected in October 2024 to elect 288 members to the state’s Legislative Assembly. However, official dates have not been announced.

The verdict 

The graphic showing the 2014 state Assembly election dates has been incorrectly shared as the schedule for the upcoming Maharashtra legislative elections. The Election Commission of India has not announced the dates yet.