A video showing Prime Minister Narendra Modi interacting with children in a classroom has gone viral on social media. In the video, PM Modi can be seen walking among the children as they recite a poem with actions.
The lyrics of the poem include “Namaste ji, Namaste ji. If someone comes to our house, make him sit with respect…” The video has been widely shared with comments suggesting that the children belong to Delhi schools, implying their intelligence, while others claim the experience would have been different had Modi visited a school in Uttar Pradesh.
The video is shared on Facebook with a caption: केजरीवाल के बनाये गए स्कूलों मे रील बनाने गया है चौथी फ़ैल कभी up के स्कूलों मे भी रील बना लो हकीकत पता चल जायेगा वैसे ये बच्चे खुद इस चौथी फैल से तो ज्यादा होशियार है। बच्चों कों समझाने की जरुरत नहीं है। (English version: The fourth fail has gone to make reel-in schools built by Kejriwal… Sometimes make reel-in UP schools too, you will know the reality… Well these kids themselves are smarter than this fourth fail. Kids don’t need to explain.)
Here’s the link to the above post. (Archive)
FACT CHECK
NewsMobile fact-checked the above claim, and found it to be MISLEADING.
Performing a Reverse Image Search of the viral video keyframes, NewsMobile found a longer version clip uploaded on PM Modi’s official Twitter account, dated December 18, 2023. Here, PM Modi has shared his experience, saying, “Interacting with schoolchildren in Varanasi filled me with new energy. These lovely children told me how they are now enjoying their studies due to increased facilities in the school.”
वाराणसी में स्कूली बच्चों के साथ संवाद ने नई ऊर्जा से भर दिया। इन प्यारे-प्यारे बच्चों ने बताया कि स्कूल में सुविधाएं बढ़ने से कैसे अब पढ़ाई में भी उनका मन खूब लग रहा है। pic.twitter.com/H7cGgIxU10
— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) December 18, 2023
The same video is also available on the Prime Minister’s official YouTube channel.
Further research revealed media reports, such as one by NDTV, which confirmed that the viral video was recorded at a school in Varanasi. During his visit, the prime minister interacted with children who asked him questions, learned about him, and recited poems.
The visit took place during PM Modi’s two-day tour of Kashi on December 17 and 18, 2023. This was his first visit to his parliamentary constituency after the BJP’s assembly election victories in Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, and Chhattisgarh. During the visit, PM Modi also attended the inauguration ceremony of the Kashi-Tamil Sangamam at Namo Ghat, accompanied by Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath.
Thus, it is clear that the viral video of PM Modi interacting with schoolchildren is not from Delhi but Varanasi.