Claim: An image shared on social media on 14 July 2022 shows a huge crowd at a rally held by the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) in Multan, Punjab, where party chief and former Prime Minister Imran Khan addressed his supporters. A poster with an image of Khan, former Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi, and Shah Mehmood Qureshi’s son Zain Qureshi, who, on 17 July 2022 won the by-election in Multan’s PP-217 constituency, can be seen in the bottom-left corner of the image.
Fact: The picture is, in fact, from a PTI event held in Multan. However, the rally was held in May 2022 and is unrelated to the Punjab by-election held on 17 July 2022.
On 14 July 2022, Facebook user ‘Kashif Hussain’ shared a photo of a political rally in what appears to be a stadium with floodlights. A poster featuring an image of Khan, former Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi, and Zain Qureshi, Qureshi’s son who won the recent by-election in Multan’s PP-217 constituency, appears in the bottom-left corner of the image.
The image was accompanied by the following caption:
“میں اس قدر ہار جاؤنگا کہ تم اپنے جیت پر پچھتاوگے
(جون ایلیاء)
۔
یہاں ملتان میں مینار پاکستان کے ریکارڈ توڑ دیے گیے
[I will lose so much that you will regret your victory
(Jaun Elia)
Here, in Multan, the records [of attendance] at Minar Pakistan were broken.]”
Fact or Fiction?
Soch Fact Check used reverse image search tools to ascertain the source of the picture.
The search turned up a tweet by Khan, the former prime minister, who on 21 May 2022 posted a video from his Multan ‘jalsa’, or rally, thanking his supporters for joining him and terming the crowd “mammoth”.
Thank you Multan. This was our last jalsa & MashaAllah was again mammoth. As happened elsewhere, ppl could'nt get into jampacked stadium. Country ready for Islamabad Haqiqi Azadi March. On Sunday, after our CC mtg will announce a date between 25th-29th. #MultanJalsa pic.twitter.com/ZatT2cm21s
— Imran Khan (@ImranKhanPTI) May 20, 2022
The viral image in question appears to have been taken from the 50-second mark in the video. The picture was also shared by Twitter account @PTIPoliticsss on 20 May 2022.
The image in question went viral on 14 July 2022, as Punjab geared up for a crucial by-election following the ouster of former Prime Minister Imran Khan in April 2022. Posts sharing this image around the time of the by-election are misleading as they suggest the image is recent and/or in some way connected to the by-election. This is particularly significant as the image features a poster with Zain Qureshi, who campaigned for and won the by-election in Multan’s PP-217 constituency.
Moreover, it is possible that the old image was shared in the context of the PTI’s popularity, which some claim has dwindled following Khan’s ouster through a vote of no confidence in April 2022, especially as rival parties, such as the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N), also held rallies across Punjab.
As has been noted above, the image is not recent and, in fact, dates back to a PTI rally held in May 2022.
Virality
Soch Fact Check used organic search options on Facebook and Twitter to ascertain how viral the image had become.
On Facebook, it appeared here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, and here, while on Twitter, we found it here, here, here, here, here, here, here, and here.
Conclusion: The viral picture in question is not from a PTI rally held in Multan in July 2022. It is, in fact, from a PTI rally held in Multan in May 2022 and is unrelated to the recent Punjab by-election.