Edited video shared to claim Andhra Deputy CM Pawan Kalyan left press conference midway

What is the claim?

Social media users have shared an eight-second video purportedly showing Andhra Pradesh Deputy Chief Minister Pawan Kalyan testing a microphone, placing it down, and getting up, suggesting he left a press conference due to a malfunctioning microphone. In the video, Kalyan is seen tapping the microphone and saying, “Dear Member Secretary,” before placing it back on the table and standing up.

The video was shared with the caption: “‘I have lost interest.’ As the mic is not working, Deputy Chief Minister Pawan Kalyan left (translated from Telugu)." Archives of such posts can be found here and here.

Screenshot of the posts online (Source: X/Modified by Logically Facts)

However, this claim is misleading. The full video reveals that Kalyan did not leave the press conference but instead moved to the podium to continue his speech.

What are the facts?

The now-viral video shows Pawan Kalyan at a recent interaction with the Panchayat Raj (PR) and Rural Development (RD) Ministry in Tadepalli, Andhra Pradesh's Guntur District, on July 12, 2024. A banner in the background reads “O/o Commissioner, PR & RD Dept., Tadepalli Dt: 12-07-2024,” confirming the location and date.

A livestream from the event (archived here) was uploaded by the official YouTube channel of the Information and Public Relations (I & PR) Department of Andhra Pradesh, titled “Press Conference by Hon'ble Deputy Chief Minister, Sri. Konidala Pawan Kalyan”. 

The video, shot from a different angle, shows Kalyan initially speaking with a handheld microphone at a table starting at 20:33. Around 20:43, he taps the microphone intermittently to check its functionality. At 21:00, someone hands him another microphone, presumably due to issues with the first one.

The viral clip begins here, showing Kalyan attempting to speak into the microphone and then moving to the podium at 21:13 to continue addressing the audience. He begins discussing sanitation activities and solid-liquid resource management practices with a smile.

The event was also streamed by the Jana Sena Party, founded by Kalyan, on its YouTube channel (archived here), capturing the same incident from a different perspective between 31:05 and 31:13.

The verdict

The video circulating of Andhra Pradesh Deputy Chief Minister Pawan Kalyan standing up after a microphone malfunction and moving to the podium to continue his address has been edited and shared with a misleading narrative suggesting he ‘lost interest’ and left the meeting.