Fact Check: Viral Video of YS Jagan Mohan Reddy on Hindi as 'National Language' is Real, Not Deepfake
The debate over Hindi being India’s "National Language" has been ongoing since the Constitution was drafted. This
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The debate over Hindi being India’s “National Language” has been ongoing since the time the Constitution was being written. It was recently resurrected by the Draft National Education Policy, which seems to be giving Hindi more importance than other Indian languages. In fact, the number of native Hindi speakers in India is only around 44%, which includes speakers of languages such as Bhojpuri.
The National Education Policy (NEP) 2020 was introduced by Prime Minister Narendra Modi's government five years back and is being implemented in stages. The three-language formula under the National Education Policy has faced opposition in states like Tamil Nadu, Maharashtra, and Karnataka. Several leaders from the southern states have also alleged 'Hindi imposition' by the Centre.
Amid the ongoing language debate, Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu on Tuesday said former prime minister PV Narasimha Rao knew 17 languages, including Hindi. After this, another video showing Andhra Pradesh’s Ex-Chief Minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy saying “What is there to pitch? Hindi is the National Language” began circulating on social media with the claim that it is not a real video but an AI-generated video.
Some users shared this video with the caption: “NDA Govt Using AI on YSJagan, This is the Second time they are using ... If you are not going to take actions then you will face severe issues going forward .. Kindly Check these once @JaganannaCNCTS @YSRCParty @YSRCPEurope @DrPradeepChinta”
Here is the archive link of the claim.
Fact Check:
The claim that the viral video is a Deepfake video is False. It is a real video.
When we extracted keyframes from the video and performed a Google reverse image search, we found a video shared by an X user with the caption: ""Hindi is obviously National Language." - Jagan Mohan Reddy."
Upon careful observation, we saw an RTV logo on the viral video. When we searched further, we found a longer video published on the Facebook page of RTV, which was published on July 16, 2025, with the caption “హిందీ నేర్చుకోవడం తప్పు కాదు కానీ.. పిల్లలకు ఇంగ్లీష్ నేర్పించడం మరింత ముఖ్యం” (Learning Hindi is not wrong, but teaching English to children is more important). The 4.28-minute video shows YS Jagan Mohan Reddy talking about the importance of English as the medium of instruction. He also states that based on the interest of the student, there are many languages to be learned in the curriculum.
We also found a YouTube video published on July 17, 2025, by India Today with the title “Jagan Mohan Reddy On Hindi: 'What Is There To Pitch? It Is A National Language' | India Today News”. The description of the video states: “A consensus is emerging among political leaders in Andhra Pradesh regarding the Hindi language. Following backing for Hindi as a link language from Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu and Deputy Chief Minister Pawan Kalyan, YSRCP chief and former Chief Minister Jagan Mohan Reddy has also weighed in. When asked if he would pitch for Hindi as the national language, he stated, "What is there to pitch? Obviously, it is a national language." This comes amid a long-standing debate on the language issue between southern states and the north. Reddy further clarified his stance, emphasizing that while the mother tongue should be the first language and English prioritized as the medium of education for global competitiveness, Hindi can be learned as a third language.”
NDTV also published a video of a debate conducted on July 17, 2025, based on the comments of YS Jagan Mohan Reddy on Hindi being the national language. The video is titled “Jagan Reddy News | Hindi Vs English: Jagan Reddy Sparks Political Fight”. In the video, we can see that YS Jagan Mohan Reddy declared Hindi as a national language.
According to an article published on India Today, former Andhra Pradesh chief minister and YSRCP chief Jagan Mohan Reddy has entered the ongoing debate on language, asserting that Hindi is indeed a national language, but maintaining that English must remain the medium of instruction if India is to progress. “Hindi is a national language. What is there to pitch? Obviously it is a national language,” he said, responding to a question on whether Hindi holds that status.
Hence, the viral video of YS Jagan Mohan Reddy commenting on Hindi as a national language is not a deepfake video. It is a real video of him answering the questions of the reporters and stating “Hindi is a National Language”. The claim that it is a deepfake video is False.