DigitEye India Fact Checkers
Amidst the Telangana legislative assembly elections that has brought the state to a standstill, multiple fake news is going viral. One such news is this exit poll graphic alleging that NDTV, in its exit poll, has claimed that Congress can win 75 seats. The graphic is going viral on social media. Many people are also circulating it and sharing it widely.
The claim states, “Most Opinion Polls are predicting that in Telangana, BRS is staring at their biggest defeat due to huge anti-incumbency against KCR govt. Today, the NDTV Poll of Polls Tracker predicted a historic win for the Congress Party with a possibility of getting 75 seats.”
BREAKING NOW – NDTV Poll of Polls gives Majority to Congress in TELANGANA
Most Opinion Polls are predicting that in Telangana, BRS is staring at their biggest defeat due to huge anti-incumbency against KCR govt.
Today, the NDTV Poll of Polls Tracker predicted a historic win for… pic.twitter.com/pEydgP2ZS0
— 𝐒𝐚𝐧𝐝𝐞𝐞𝐩 𝐆𝐮𝐩𝐭𝐚 (@SandeepGuptaINC) November 27, 2023
The claim has also been shared here, here, and here.
FACT CHECK
The Digiteye India team received a request to fact check this claim on WhatsApp. The team conducted a keyword search to look for further clues on this graphic. However, the results did not show us any exit poll conducted by NDTV. We looked for the graphic on NDTV’s social media channels and found that they have stated that the viral graphic is fake.
In a tweet dating back to November 28, 2023, NDTV said, “NDTV has not carried any poll of polls for #Telangana2023. Please don’t spread fake news.”
#FakeNewsAlert | NDTV has not carried any poll of polls for #Telangana2023. Please don’t spread fake news.
For fastest and most accurate election results, do log on to https://t.co/Fbzw6n9j4d on Sunday pic.twitter.com/7ehK3ysdeQ
— NDTV (@ndtv) November 28, 2023
The Digiteye India team looked for the exit polls conducted by The South First. We found that in a news article dating back to November 30, 2023, they said, “While the pre-poll survey gave it an edge, the South First-Peoples Pulse Exit Poll predicts 62 to 72 seats to the Congress in Telangana.”
Lok Poll, on the other hand, shared their exit poll figures on November 28, 2023. In their graphic, they predicted that Congress could win 72-74 seats.
Presenting you our final numbers for the upcoming #Telangana elections:
▪️BRS 33 – 35
▪️INC 72 – 74
▪️AIMIM 5 – 7
▪️BJP 2 – 4
▪️OTH 0 – 1Sample size: Its a top up survey between 22nd November to 27th November with sample… pic.twitter.com/yVihaBD51z
— Lok Poll (@LokPoll) November 28, 2023
ABP C-Voter shared their results on November 30, 2023. In an article published by ABP, they said, “Congress is poised for a significant surge, with a remarkable increase from 19 to 57 seats and a commendable swing of +12.4% in votes. Conversely, the ruling party, BRS, faces a setback with a swing of -8.1%, resulting in a decline from 88 to 46 seats in the ABP C-Voter Survey.”
The Digiteye India team could only find the exit poll conducted by these three organizations. The graphic shows the numbers with slight variation and it does not show the actual figures that have been predicted in exit polls. The viral image is fake.
CLAIM: NDTV’s exit poll graphic claims that Congress is set to win the State Legislative Elections in Telangana by a huge margin.
CONCLUSION: NDTV has come forward and has claimed that the graphic is fake and they have not conducted any poll of polls. Digiteye India could find the exit polls conducted by The South First, ABP C-Voter, and Lok Poll. Their predictions were shown on the graphic with data fluctuating by a small margin.
RATING: Misinterpretation — 
