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The woman in the photograph, identified as Larissa, has reacted with disbelief after discovering her image being circulated in Indian political debates.
A video is circulating online with a woman claiming to be the model shown in Rahul Gandhi’s press conference. (Image: X)
A bizarre twist emerged in the Haryana “vote chori” (vote theft) controversy after a Brazilian model’s old photograph surfaced in political discourse during Congress leader Rahul Gandhi’s press conference. The image, reportedly taken years ago, was used as part of visuals claiming voter ID irregularities — allegedly showing the same woman’s photo appearing on multiple voter cards.
The woman in the photograph, identified as Larissa, a Brazilian model and influencer, has since reacted with disbelief after discovering her image being circulated in Indian political debates. In a video posted online — translated from Portuguese — Larissa expressed shock, saying, “Guys, I can’t believe these people are gossiping. They’re using an old photo of mine; I was 18 or 20 in that photo. They’re portraying me as Indian to scam people. What madness! What craziness is this, what world do we live in?”
Her reaction followed the viral spread of the image after fact-checker Mohammed Zubair shared the video on social media, pointing out that the photograph shown in Rahul Gandhi’s press conference did not belong to an Indian voter. The revelation triggered widespread discussion online, with many users mocking the mix-up while others questioned how the image came to be linked to Indian voter IDs.
Meanwhile, CNN-News18 spoke to one of the women whose voter IDs had featured the Brazilian model’s photo. The woman, identified as Pinky Juginder Kaushik, clarified that the image mismatch was a clerical error. “Yes, I went to cast my vote myself at the village school. The names are the same, but there was a mistake with the photo — they used someone else’s picture. Nevertheless, I did vote. No one pressured me to vote. I showed my slip and then cast my vote,” she told CNN-News18.
What Rahul Gandhi Said
The issue arose after Rahul Gandhi, during his press conference, accused the BJP of large-scale voter fraud in Haryana, displaying several alleged examples of mismatched photos and identities on voter cards.
The event began with the woman’s photograph displayed on screen, captioned, “Yeh kaun hai?”
Rahul Gandhi alleged large-scale electoral malpractice in the 2024 Haryana Assembly elections, claiming that the image of a Brazilian model had been used multiple times in the state’s voter list.
According to Gandhi, the same photograph appeared 22 times across at least 10 different polling booths.
The Congress leader accused the BJP of “ensuring victory through fake votes and massive manipulation of postal ballots.” He said, “Congress lost the election by 22,000 votes, but who is this lady? She votes 22 times in Haryana, in 10 different booths in Haryana. She has multiple names.”
The election commission, however, refuted the claims and said that the party’s own polling agents failed to raise objections during the voting process.
Meanwhile, The Indian Express conducted an investigation into the claims made by Rahul Gandhi and found that many of his flagship examples did not substantiate his “vote chori” allegations.
For instance, Gandhi highlighted an address in Hodal (House No. 150, Gudhrana village) with “66 voters” and another with “501 voters” as signs of manipulation. Upon visiting, The Indian Express found that the plot is a large family land where four generations of a single extended family live, each in separate dwellings but registered under the same house number – thus explaining the large number of voters legitimately holding that address.
The News Desk is a team of passionate editors and writers who break and analyse the most important events unfolding in India and abroad. From live updates to exclusive reports to in-depth explainers, the Desk d…Read More
The News Desk is a team of passionate editors and writers who break and analyse the most important events unfolding in India and abroad. From live updates to exclusive reports to in-depth explainers, the Desk d… Read More
November 06, 2025, 09:55 IST
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