A photograph showing a massive crowd at the INDIA bloc rally in Delhi’s Ramlila Maidan has triggered a political dispute over the use of artificial intelligence (AI). The rally was held on November 1 to protest alleged irregularities in voter lists and demand the resignation of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar.
Congress MP Vamsi Gaddam was among the first to share the disputed photograph on social media. Several other Congress leaders and supporters also circulated it. Union Minister Kiren Rijiju later called it a fake AI-generated image, accusing the Congress of using artificial visuals to make the gathering appear larger.
A fact-check of the image reported that OpenAI’s SynthID Detector identified a marker indicating that the picture had been created or edited using OpenAI tools. The detector also warned that the image might have undergone further editing. The result raises serious questions about the photograph’s authenticity, but it does not establish who created it or whether those who shared it knew about its origin.
The BJP also questioned the size of the gathering. Party leaders shared photographs and videos showing empty chairs and claimed that around 40 per cent of the ground was vacant. Rahul Gandhi, meanwhile, shared drone footage to support the Opposition’s account of a large turnout. That footage also needs independent verification before it can settle the dispute.
Before the rally, the INDIA bloc had projected an attendance of up to 10 lakh people, while Delhi Police had expected around 50,000. Neither figure should be treated as a final, independently verified attendance count.
The controversy highlights why viral photographs and crowd estimates need careful checking before being accepted as fact.
