A cropped video of Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi is being shared online with a false claim that it shows the Congress leader claiming he has a direct connection to God.
BOOM found that the original video shows Gandhi taking a dig at Prime Minister Narendra Modi about his earlier remarks on his biological origin and linking it to the Yamuna river row.
In the 15-second video clip, Gandhi can be heard saying, “I don’t get sick. I have a direct connection with the one above. I talk directly to God.”
The Claim
Verified X handle Megh Updates shared the video with the caption, "I don't get any disease, I have a direct connection from above...!!".
Click here to view the post and here for an archive.
BOOM has previously debunked several false claims made by Megh Updates. Read more here.
What We Found: Viral Footage Is Cropped
1. The Original Video: We ran a reverse image search on the keyframes using Google Lens. This led us to a post on ANI’s official X handle featuring a longer version of Rahul Gandhi’s speech from Bihar’s Darbhanga district on October 29, 2025.
In the longer video, it was clear that Gandhi was referring to Prime Minister Modi’s earlier comments about his biological origin and being 'sent by God for a purpose.' Gandhi was making a sarcastic remark and not claiming the same about himself.
2. The Statement by Rahul Gandhi: Gandhi’s speech was streamed live on his official YouTube channel the same day from Darbhanga, Bihar. From the 35:07 mark, Gandhi can be heard saying, “Modiji did some drama, made a small pond over there. You’ve seen it, right? This is India. He’ll make you see anything during elections… see brother, I have a 56-inch chest, I’m going to bathe in the Yamuna, I don’t get sick. I have a direct connection with the one above. I talk directly to God, I won’t get any disease from the Yamuna.”
Recently, a political controversy broke out over pollution in Delhi’s Yamuna River after the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) shared visuals alleging that a “fake ghat” with filtered water was created for Prime Minister Modi’s Chhath Puja celebrations. AAP’s Delhi unit president, Saurabh Bharadwaj, claimed that the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) had inspected the site and that cameras were to be placed at specific spots to create an image of a clean river, with only pre-approved media allowed at the venue. Bharadwaj also said that the Prime Minister dropped the plan after it was exposed on social media.
A ground report by The Indian Express can be seen below.