Fake Govt Notification Announcing Panchayat Polls In J&K Shared As Real

Amid the sixth anniversary of the abrogation of Article 370 in Jammu and Kashmir, several social media users are circulating a purported government notification, allegedly announcing panchayat elections to be held across the union territory after November 2025, a first after eight years.

“Preparations to begin immediately; all DCs, BDOs and Panchayat Secretaries directed to ensure readiness. Model code of conduct to apply once SEC announces schedule,” reads the post, sharing the circular, dated August 5, 20205, and purportedly issued by the Jammu and Kashmir government’s department of rural development and panchayat raj.

Fact Check

Newschecker noticed an obvious typographical error in the third point of the viral “notification” stating “pacilitate” instead of “facilitate,” raising our doubts on the authenticity of the letter.  

Other prominent errors include the spellings of “Election” in the second line and “announcement” in the second-last paragraph.

We then ran a keyword search for “panchayat polls Jammu and Kashmir” which, again, did not yield any credible news reports nor was there any official government announcement as we looked up the website of the chief electoral officer (CEO) of J&K.

We learnt that the local body elections in J&K, last held in 2018, are long overdue after the five-year term of the panchayat ended in January 2024, even as the State Election Commission published the final panchayat electoral rolls in 2025, indicating the Centre’s inclination to hold the elections soon.

Newschecker then compared the official notification (left) of the announcement of the 2018 panchayat elections in J&K, dated October 23, 2018, with the viral circular (right), which further indicated that it was fake. We can see that the original notification was issued by the CEO, and not the secretary to the government, department of rural development and panchayat raj, as seen in the viral letter. Also, the department of rural development and panchayat raj’s official website did not have any such press release, announcing the schedule of the panchayat elections.

 We also came across this August 5, 2025 post by the official X account of the chief minister, J&K, debunking the viral notification, calling it “fake news”.

The department of rural development and panchayat raj also confirmed on X that no such order has been issued by them and that the document in circulation was fabricated. The State Election Commission is the only competent authority to notify the schedule for panchayat elections, and no such timeline has been officially announced as of now, according to the August 5, 2025 X post and media reports, quoting government officials.

Also Read: Uttarkashi Cloudburst: Old Video of Men Being Rescued From Flooded River In Himachal Falsely Shared as Dharali

Conclusion

Viral “government notification” announcing panchayat elections in Jammu and Kashmir after November this year was found to be fake.

Sources
Official website, chief electoral officer, UT of Jammu and Kashmir
X post, Chief Minster, J&K, August 5, 2025
X post, department of rural development and panchayat raj, August 5, 2025