Several social media handles belonging to the Indian National Congress party have misleadingly claimed Bollywood actor Sonu Sood has joined the party.
BOOM reached out to Sood who denied having joined the party.
A graphic showing the Bollywood actor-cum-philanthropist and with text claiming 'Sonu Sood joins Congress', is being shared on Facebook and Twitter.
Official handle of Punjab Pradesh Mahila Congress posted the graphic with a caption saying, "Sonu Sood with Congress! Helped thousands during COVID and will continue to serve in future."
Click here to view an archive of the post.
Youth Congress national secretary Shesh Narayan Ojha, West Bengal Pradesh Mahila Congress also posted the same graphic from their official social media handles.
Maharashtra Pradesh Mahila Congress also captioned a photo of Sonu Sood along with a child saying, "Finally Sonu Sood joined congress for his political career, i hope he will succeed here too."
Click here to view an archive of the post.
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Fact Check
BOOM did a keyword search to know more about the viral claim and found several news reports about her sister Malvika Sood joining Congress in presence of Sonu Sood along with other Congress leaders.
According to a The Indian Express report published on January 10, 2022, Malvika Sood joined Congress on the same date in presence of the state party chief Navjot Singh Sidhu. Malvika Sood also took Facebook to confirm the news posting a picture with her brother and several Congress leaders.
The article, however, doesn't report any news mentioning Sonu Sood is joining the Congress party. Instead, the report states, "the actor was not present at the press conference when his sister joined the Congress".
BOOM also reached out to Sood who denied joining the party. The actor also sent us his tweet which announced his sister joining the Congress party.
Sood's tweet said, "As my sister Malvika Sood embarks on her political journey, I wish her the best and can't wait to see her flourish in this new chapter of her life. Good luck Malvika! My own work as an actor & humanitarian continues, without any political affiliations or distractions."
In a recent interview with The Times of India published on January 13, 2022, Sonu Sood also asserted he will stay away from anything related to politics, and will not be campaigning for his sister as well. The actor said, "It is her journey, and I have nothing to do with politics. I will keep doing the work that I have been doing. I won't be campaigning for her in the elections because I want her to work hard and do her bit. As far as I am concerned, I will always stay away from politics or any political affiliations."
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