Fact Check: Kejriwal called 'Messiah of Muslims' ahead of 2025 Delhi polls? Here's the truth behind viral pamphlet
A pamphlet calling Kejriwal the ‘Messiah of Muslims’ has been circulating ahead of the 2025 Delhi Assembly polls.
By Md Mahfooz Alam Published on 28 Jan 2025 6:03 PM IST
Claim: Muslim clerics have issued fatwas calling Muslims to vote for Arvind Kejriwal’s AAP in the 2025 Delhi elections. A viral pamphlet with Kejriwal’s image is proof of it.
Fact: The claim is misleading. The viral pamphlet calling Kejriwal the ‘Messiah of Muslims’ is from 2020.
Hyderabad: Delhi will vote for all 70 constituencies on February 5 and the election results will be announced on February 8. On January 28, the city will witness high-profile rallies and public meetings led by Union home minister Amit Shah, Congress MP Rahul Gandhi, Uttar Pradesh chief minister Yogi Adityanath and former Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal.
In this context, a pamphlet in Hindi with a yellow background calling Kejriwal the messiah of Muslims is circulating on social media, with a claim that it is being distributed ahead of the upcoming polls, as Muslim clerics issued fatwas to vote for Kejriwal.
The English translation of the Hindi text on the pamphlet reads, “An Appeal to the Muslim Community of Delhi: For the betterment of the community, vote for Kejriwal. Kejriwal is the true messiah of the community. Voting for Modi is akin to digging the graves of your community. Vote for the sake of the community. In the Interest of the People, A True Muslim.” The text suggests that the person who issued the pamphlet calls themselves a true Muslim.
An X user shared the pamphlet and wrote, “To the Hindus of Delhi and those who desire development: Wake up. Fatwas are being issued by clerics from Delhi’s madrasas to ensure Kejriwal’s victory. The entire Muslim community is rallying behind Kejriwal. Remember all Hindus, Yogiji’s slogan–If divided, we will suffer.” (Archive)
Fact Check
NewsMeter found the claim is misleading. The viral pamphlet was circulated in 2020.
A keyword search for reports on Muslim clerics issuing fatwas to vote for Kejriwal in the 2025 Delhi Assembly polls yielded no results from credible media outlets.
A reverse image search revealed that the same pamphlet was shared on X on February 6, 2020.
The caption claimed it was received from a newspaper vendor delivering Hindustan Times. The user also criticised Kejriwal’s AAP party, stating: “They came to change politics—what are they doing? They claim they don’t differentiate between Hindus and Muslims, so what is this? The newspaper vendor left it along with the Hindustan Times.” (Archive)
We ran a search using the phrase ‘Kejriwal Messiah of Muslims’ and found a report by Aaj Tak dated February 6, 2020. According to the report, a day after campaigning for the 2020 Delhi Assembly elections ended, Delhi residents received pamphlets along with newspapers. The pamphlets portrayed the then Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal as the ‘Messiah of Muslims’ and depicted him wearing a skullcap.
The report included an uncropped version of the viral pamphlet allegedly placed in the newspaper. While the viral version does not display the newspaper’s date, the uncropped version clearly shows the date as February 6, 2020.
The Aaj Tak report also mentioned that there is no information on which party or individual had had the pamphlet printed.
Therefore, we conclude that the viral pamphlet is from 2020. The claim is misleading.
