A six-second clip of Rahul Gandhi has gone viral on social media. In the video, Gandhi said in Hindi, “Hindustan’s youth can not only change Hindustan but also the nation. [Translated from: हिंदुस्तान का युवा, हिंदुस्तान को ही नहीं देश को भी बादल सकता है].”
On January 28, Political Keda, a political propaganda Facebook page posted this video. This video has been viewed more than 2,96,000 times.
“हिंदुस्तान का युवा, हिंदुस्तान को ही नही, पूरे देश को बदल सकता है”~ @rahulgandhi 😂😂😂😂
Posted by Political Kida on Tuesday, January 28, 2020
On the same day, Twitter user @Soumyadipta posted the viral video and said, “Yeh Hindustan Ka Yuva, Sirf Hindustan Ko Nahi, Desh Ko Badal Sakta Hai” Thank heavens, Rahul Gandhi is back at work.” The video has been viewed over 1,45,000 times.
“Yeh Hindustan Ka Yuva, Sirf Hindustan Ko Nahi, Desh Ko Badal Sakta Hai”
Thank heavens, Rahul Gandhi is back at work.pic.twitter.com/e6FCV2Jx8Y— Soumyadipta (@Soumyadipta) January 28, 2020
Similarly, several social media users have shared this video on Facebook and Twitter taking a dig at Gandhi.
CLIPPED VIDEO, NOT FULL STORY
Analysing the video, one can notice that the phrase ‘Yuva Aakrosh Rally 28 January [Translated from युवा आक्रोश रैली 28 जैन्यूएरी ]’ is written on the podium. Using this as clue, Alt News did a keyword search on YouTube and found the full speech posted by Indian National Congress on January 28. According to the description on YouTube, Rahul Gandhi made the speech at Yuva Aakrosh Rally in Jaipur, Rajasthan.
The viral video has been clipped from 2:41 to 2:47. Gandhi’s statement began from 2:35, where he said in Hindi, “The whole nation and the world agree that Hindustan’s youth can not only change Hindustan but also the nation. Can change the world, sorry, not just the nation but change the entire world. [Translated from पूरा देश और दुनिया इस बात को मान के चलती है की हिंदुस्तान का युवा, हिंदुस्तान को ही नहीं देश को भी बादल सकता है। दुनिया को बादल सकता है, सॉरी, देश को नहीं दुनिया को बादल सकता है।]”
On January 29, Gaurav Pandhi, national coordinator, digital communications and social media at INC, juxtaposed the viral video and a 20-second bit from the complete speech to address the viral claim on Twitter.
Sanghis can continue to edit as many clips as they want to defame Rahul Gandhi but no amount of their thuggery will hide the truth.
The truth be told, louder!
— Gaurav Pandhi (@GauravPandhi) January 29, 2020
Therefore, Gandhi did make and error when he said ‘country’ instead of ‘world’ however, this was a slip of the tongue and was immediately corrected by the Congress leader. The part where Gandhi apologises and corrects himself was clipped out. Rahul Gandhi is a constant target of misinformation on social media. Last year, Alt News compiled a list of misleading videos shared with the hashtag #RahulGandhiPagalHai.
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