Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian participated in the BRICS Summit held in New Delhi, the capital of India. Pezeshkian also held a bilateral meeting with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi. During his visit, the Iranian President attended several events. Meanwhile, a video of Masoud Pezeshkian has gone viral on social media, accompanied by the claim that the Iranian President touched the feet of a Hindu religious leader and sought his blessings.
Sharing the viral video, Dr. Suresh Chavhanke of “Sudarshan News” wrote, “The mullahs have started asking Iran to return the donations! The Iranian Prime Minister touched the feet of a Sanatani saint, paid his respects and sought his blessings. Crores of rupees were collected from India and sent to Iran during the war against Israel. Now the extremists are angry.”
Amrendra Bahubali,another user shared the viral video with the caption, “Iran’s President listened to the message of Sanatan spirituality from a Hindu religious leader… touched his feet and sought his blessings. The women and mullahs of India will mourn tonight. Jai Satya Sanatan.”
Ach. Ankur Arya official named user also shared the viral video with the caption, “Iranian President listened to the message of Sanatan spirituality from a Hindu religious leader… and, moreover, ‘touched his feet and sought his blessings.’ Please don’t show this video to Arfa Khanum Sherwani.”
Fact Check:
DFRAC’s investigation found that Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian did not touch the feet of the Hindu religious leader. Instead, he bent down to pick up a letter or pen. A truncated version of the incident has been shared on social media with a misleading claim. Journalist Sahil Naqvi, who was present at the event, also spoke to DFRAC and refuted the viral claim. He clarified that Pezeshkian bent down not to touch anyone’s feet, but to pick up a letter or pen.
To investigate the viral claim, we first conducted a Google search using relevant keywords. We found reports published by News18 Hindi and Moneycontrol, which, citing sources from the Iranian Embassy, reported that Masoud Pezeshkian had bent down to pick up a piece of paper.According to the News18 Hindi report, a special reception and interaction programme was organised at The Oberoi Hotel in New Delhi by the Iranian Ambassador and diplomats. Jagadguru Satishacharya Maharaj, along with several prominent Indian interfaith leaders, intellectuals and businesspeople, attended the event. During the programme, Iranian President Pezeshkian bent down not to touch anyone’s feet, but to pick up a letter that had fallen on the floor.
Meanwhile, a Moneycontrol report stated, “According to sources at the Iranian Embassy, during the interaction, a letter was handed to Pezeshkian by another leader. The letter accidentally fell from his hand, following which the Iranian President had to bend down to pick it up.”
During further investigation, we found that INN journalist Sahil Naqvi was also visible in the viral video. We subsequently contacted Naqvi. He told DFRAC that after delivering his speech, President Pezeshkian came down from the stage. Several people then approached him to meet him, and many of them were handing letters to Pezeshkian. During this interaction, a pen or letter fell to the ground, prompting the Iranian President to bend down to pick it up. The Hindu religious leader also bent down after Pezeshkian. However, a truncated version of the video was later shared on social media with a misleading claim.
We also found a video posted by Sahil Naqvi on INN’s Facebook page, in which he explained the complete context of the viral video.
Sahil Naqvi also shared the video of the event with us, which can be viewed here.
Video shared by Journalist Sahil Naqvi
Conclusion:
DFRAC’s fact-check establishes that the claim circulating on social media is misleading. Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian did not touch the feet of Hindu religious leader Satishacharya Maharaj. He bent down to pick up a letter or pen that had fallen from his hand, while a truncated version of the incident was shared with a misleading claim.
| Claim Review | Iranian President Pezeshkian touched the feet of a Hindu religious leader. |
| Claim By | Social Media Users |
| Fact check | Misleading |
Sources:
- News report of News18 Hindi, Published on September 13, 2026
- News report of Money Control, Published on September 13, 2026
- Facebook Post of INN
- Video Shared by Sahil Naqvi to DFRAC
- Journalist Sahil Naqvi statement to DFRAC
