Fact Check: Rahul Gandhi did not wear a saffron cap with lotus symbol

As the result date for the Lok Sabha and Assembly polls draws near, the political atmosphere is heating up. All the candidates are now anxiously awaiting the outcome. In this backdrop, a photograph of Rahul Gandhi wearing a saffron cap has surfaced, creating quite a stir. The cap, notably, is printed with the BJP logo.

According to most exit polls, the BJP-led NDA is predicted to secure over 350 seats. This time, the BJP has set an ambitious target of 370 seats and, with the support of its allies, aims to surpass the 400-seat mark. The Lower House of Parliament comprises 543 seats, with the majority threshold set at 272.

Social media users have been sharing the viral photograph of Rahul Gandhi in the saffron cap bearing the lotus symbol, captioned, "Rahul wearing saffron cap after the exit poll results."

Fact Check: 

We found the claim is false, the photograph was edited to add the BJP logo to Rahul Gandhi's cap. In the original picture, he is wearing a saffron cap without any logo printed on it.

During the Google reverse image search, we found Himesh Paresh Joshi, who is the Maharashtra State social media coordinator of Congress, share the same photographs of Rahul Gandhi which were clicked from different angles. However, we didn’t find any logo printed on Rahul saffron cap.

We also found on Dec. 15, 2022, similar photographs shared by INC Uttar Pradeh with a caption “रंग केसरी वीरों का...देश जोड़ने निकले रणधीरों का। with the hashtag #BharatJodoYatra

Thus, it has been proven that these photographs were taken during the Bharat Jodo Yatra held in Maharashtra in 2022.

Further, we found the same photograph of Rahul Gandhi shared by INC officials, including INC State officials & a few Congress leaders also.

When we searched the keyword “Rahul Gandhi in Saffron Cap“, we found Jansatta news also published an article related to it. In the article, they mentioned “Rahul Gandhi seen wearing a saffron cap”. 

However, in any post or published article, we did not find a lotus symbol on Rahul Gandhi's saffron cap.

Based on our investigation and several media reports, we found that the viral image was edited.

Rahul Gandhi was wearing a saffron cap during the Bharat Jodo Yatra in 2022, but there was no party logo printed on the cap. Additionally, there is no connection with the exit poll or the general election 2024.