A photo of Congress’ former president and chief of party’s Parliamentary Panel Sonia Gandhi is being shared on social media. In this viral picture, a turban-clad Sikh leader can be seen touching Sonia’s feet. Rahul Gandhi is seen standing behind Sonia Gandhi. Social media users are claiming that feet-touching Sikh leader is then Prime Minister Manmohan Singh.
The text along with this photograph says: “Sonia Gandhi is 71 years old. Manmohan Singh is 85. This was our former Prime Minister. At least his old age must have been given some consideration.” This graphic photograph was shared by a user named Manoj Srivastava.
Fact Check:
When the DFRAC team did reverse search on the picture, it came to know that the same picture had earlier been shared on social media. Some of the posts based on this picture can be seen here.
Besides, a website has shared the same picture with the same claim.
The DFRAC team noticed that the viral image had watermark of Getty Images. Then, the team searched it on the Getty Images website and found that it was uploaded on November 29, 2011. The description of the picture says that a delegate touched feet of Sonia Gandhi during a convention of elected representatives of the Youth Congress.
The team also found another picture of the same event on the Getty Images website. This pictures shows then Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, Sonia Gandhi, Rahul Gandhi and other Congress leaders sitting on the dais. Manmohan Singh can be seen wearing blue turban in this picture. The delegate who had touched Sonia’s feet was wearing saffron turban.
Conclusion:
The DFRAC fact-check makes it clear that it was a young delegate of Congress who had touched Sonia Gandhi’s feet and the claim that then PM Manmohan Singh did so is utterly wrong.
