Did DK Shivakumar say INDIA bloc 'will not form govt'? No, video is edited!

What is the claim?

A seven-second video is circulating on social media platforms, featuring Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister DK Shivakumar. In the clip, he appears to say that the INDIA bloc "will not form the government." The video shows Shivakumar stating, "I don't believe... we will have, INDIA will form the government."

One such post (archived here) was shared on X (formerly Twitter) by an account named 'Mr. Sinha,' known for spreading false and misleading narratives online. The caption read, "I don't believe I.N.D.I.A will form the govt - DK Shivkumar," and the post had garnered 544,000 views on the platform at the time of writing this fact-check.

Multiple other posts on X and Facebook have also shared the video with similar claims, and archived versions of such posts can be accessed here, here, here, and here.

Screenshot of the viral post circulating on social media.(Source: X/Facebook/Screenshot/Modified by Logically Facts)

However, our investigation revealed that Shivakumar's video was edited and shared with a misleading narrative. The original video shows Shivakumar stating that he does not believe in exit poll projections and that INDIA would form the government.

Most of the exit poll surveys conducted after the Lok Sabha elections predicted a loss for the Congress-led INDIA bloc and a victory for the BJP (Bharatiya Janata Party)-led NDA (National Democratic Alliance).

What did we find?

A reverse image search of the viral clip led us to a video shared by ANI (archived here) on June 3, 2024. The video is an extended version of the viral clip. In this video, Shivakumar responds to a reporter's question about his winning predictions for the Congress in the current Lok Sabha elections, stating, "All seven seats we will win." However, it is unclear which state the reporter and Shivakumar were referring to.

The reporter then asks a follow-up question: "What is the prediction on these exit polls, sir?" Shivakumar replies, "I don’t believe… We will have… I.N.D.I.A will form the government."

This establishes that the reporter’s question has been edited out in the viral clip, and Shivakumar’s response has been shared out of context to incorrectly claim that he said, "I don't believe I.N.D.I.A will form the government."

The Indian Express also shared the video (archived here) on its official YouTube channel, where the reporter’s question to Shivakumar about exit polls can be heard clearly. The video's title reads, "Karnataka Dy CM DK Shivakumar claims that INDIA alliance will form the government."

Moreover, it is unlikely that Shivakumar would say the INDIA bloc will not form the government, given his previous statements to the media in which he expressed disbelief in exit poll surveys. An NDTV report published on June 2 also noted Shivakumar dismissing exit poll predictions for the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, stating, "Exit poll numbers will go wrong as they did during the Karnataka assembly elections."

The verdict

In response to a reporter’s question about the exit poll numbers, Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister DK Shivakumar stated that he does not believe in the projections and that the INDIA bloc would form the government after the 2024 Indian Lok Sabha elections. However, the reporter’s question has been omitted, and Shivakumar’s response has been taken out of context in the viral clip to circulate a misleading narrative.