Did CPM's Subhashini Ali Criticise Rahul Gandhi On Camera? A Fact-Check

A video of a woman criticizing Congress leader Rahul Gandhi has been shared online with the false claim that it is Subhashini Ali, a leader of the CPM, which is in alliance with the grand old party.

What is the claim?

A video circulating on social media platforms amid the 2024 Indian Lok Sabha elections depicts an older woman criticizing Rahul Gandhi and referring to Prime Minister Narendra Modi as a "beacon of peace". Multiple users have claimed that the woman in the video is Subhashini Ali, a leader of the Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M).

In the video, the woman, speaking in Hindi, says, "If you want the nation to progress, please don't mention Rahul Gandhi. He lacks knowledge about politics and the country." She further praises PM Modi, stating, "If you want to save the country, we should vote for Modi. He has handled the whole country, and we should be grateful to him. He is saving us from the wars that are happening around the world, and I think he is a beacon of peace." (Translated to English)

One post on X (formerly Twitter), which shared the video, wrote, "Please listen to @SubhashiniAli Ji on Polling preference (assume she said so). She has this advice for the public! All are requested to Vote AND Please Vote Wisely In the Interest Of Bharat."

The post (archived here) has garnered around 26,000 views on the platform at the time of writing this story. Other archived versions of such posts on X can be found here and here. Multiple Facebook users have also shared the clip with similar claims; those archives can be viewed here and here.

However, our investigation revealed that the woman in the viral clip had been misidentified. She is not CPI-M leader Subhashini Ali.

What did we find?

Upon careful observation of the viral video, we noticed the logo "99 Khabar" on a microphone. A Google search led us to the YouTube channel under the same name. We found a longer version of the viral clip on the channel, uploaded on January 29, 2024. The title, written in Hindi, roughly translates to, "Why are beautiful girls angry with Rahul Gandhi? Modi vs Rahul Gandhi Public Opinion. Lok Sabha Election 2024." The same woman can be seen expressing her opinion in the video from the 6:55 to 8:00-minute timestamp.

We also identified the same woman in another public opinion video uploaded by the same organization, 99 Khabar, on its Instagram (archived here) account on March 12, 2024. Here, too, she can be heard praising PM Modi.

However, the woman's name or identity has not been reported in either of the videos. If it were the opinion of CPI-M leader Subhashini Ali, as claimed, it would likely be stated in the YouTube video report, which terms the video as 'public opinion'. Other media organizations would also have covered it, but we found no such media report about Ms Ali praising PM Narendra Modi.

While it is true that the woman in the viral image does bear some resemblance to Subhashini Ali at first glance, a closer look revealed multiple facial dissimilarities.

We also compared the woman's voice in the viral clip to Subhashini Ali's previous interviews and found distinct differences in pitch, tone, and voice modulation.

Furthermore, Subhashini Ali (archived here) has also posted a clarification on her official X account, stating, "This is a fake video attributed to me. Not me. Not my voice. Not my views. I have reported it to ECI and police. Let's see what they do."

Speaking to Logically Facts, she once again reiterated that the viral video does not feature her. Logically Facts has also contacted 99 Khabar and will update the story as and when we receive a response.

The verdict

A viral video of an older woman expressing her views on PM Modi and criticizing Rahul Gandhi has been falsely attributed to CPI-M leader Subhashini Ali and misrepresented as her political opinion amid the 2024 Lok Sabha elections. Therefore, we have marked the claim as false.

(This story was originally published by Logically Facts, and republished by NDTV as part of the Shakti Collective.)