Fact-Check: Video of Telangana CM Revanth Reddy Guiding Sonia Gandhi Is Old

The video dates back to September 2023 and was taken before Reddy became Telangana's chief minister.

An old video of Telangana CM Revanth Reddy guiding Sonia Gandhi has gone viral on social media as one of a recent event.

(Source: X/Altered by The Quint)

A video showing Telangana's Chief Minister Revanth Reddy guiding Congress Chairperson Sonia Gandhi at a public event has gone viral on social media, where users are taking a dig at Reddy.

What are they saying?: The clip is being shared with text which reads, "CM of State or Security Guard of Sonia Gandhi?"

An archived version of this post is being shared here.

(Source: X/Screenshot)

(Archived versions of more posts sharing this claim can be seen here, here, here, and here.)

But...?: The video dates back to September 2023 and was taken months before Reddy was sworn in as the Chief Minister of Telangana.

How did we find out the truth?: A reverse image search on the video using Google Lens led us to a YouTube video shared on The Times of India's verified channel on 6 December 2023.

• Even then, the video's title and caption mentioned that it was an "intriguing vintage video," denoting that it was older than when it was published.

It is pertinent to note that Reddy was sworn in as the Chief Minister of Telangana on 7 December 2023.

• Taking a cue from this, we used to search term 'Revanth Reddy Sonia Gandhi' on Google, filtering for results before December 2023.

• This led us to a YouTube video, streamed live on 17 September 2023, showing Gandhi in the same outfit and the same visuals.

• Streamed by BIG TV Digital Telugu, the video's title mentioned that it showed the Congress' Public Meeting in Telangana, where several notable Congress members were present.

• At the 43:27-minute mark into this video, one can see Reddy welcoming and guiding both Rahul and Sonia Gandhi.

The Congress had announced a meeting of its Working Committee in Hyderabad on 16 September, followed by a massive public event the following day, on 17 September, as per a release on their website.

(Source: INC/Screenshot)

Conclusion: A video of Reddy guiding Sonia Gandhi, predating his time as chief minister of Telangana is being shared to take a dig at him.

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