A viral video claiming to show former Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal snubbed Congress leader Rahul Gandhi by refusing to shake hands with the latter at an oath taking ceremony in Jharkhand, is cropped and misleading.
BOOM found that Kejriwal and Gandhi had shook hands moments before the portion seen in the viral video.
Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM) executive president Hemant Soren took oath as the 14th chief minister at Morhabadi ground in Ranchi on November 28, 2024. The ceremony was attended by several leaders of the opposition from the I.N.D.I.A block including West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin, AAP chief Arvind Kejriwal, and Congress leader Rahul Gandhi.
Video of Kejriwal and Gandhi shared with false claim
The 24 seconds long video appears to show Gandhi tentatively extending his right hand forward as a hand shake but Kejriwal greeting Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister DK Shivakumar standing beside Gandhi.
The clip was posted on X with a Hindi caption claiming "Kejriwal did not shake hands with Rahul Gandhi. Meaning clearly AAP is not in the mood to give importance to Congress in Delhi elections"
Click here to view, and here for an archive.
The viral video was first posted by wire agency ANI (Asian News International) on November 28, 2024, while reporting that Kejriwal had arrived at Jharkhand CM elect Soren's ceremony. Several X users have called out ANI for posting the now viral clip.
Click here to view, and here for an archive.
BOOM has previously fact-checked misinformation by ANI.
FACT-CHECK: Livestream from oath taking ceremony shows Gandhi and Kejriwal shaking hands
BOOM found that the claim that Kejriwal refused to shake hands with Rahul Gandhi at Hemant Soren's oath taking ceremony, is false.
The live-stream from the event shows that the AAP chief shook hands with Gandhi just moments before the sequence seen in the viral video.
Taking a hint from replies calling out ANI, we checked the live-stream of the ceremony uploaded on YouTube by JharGov TV.
This is the official channel of the Government of Jharkhand. At the 2.56.06 minutes we can see both of them shaking hands.
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The viral video starts a few moments after they both shake hands. This has been left out of the viral clip to make the false claim.
Delhi Assembly Elections 2025
The upcoming assembly elections in Delhi next year is set to be between the ruling AAP, and the opposition including BJP, and the Congress party. Both the AAP and Congress, who are a part of the I.N.D.I.A bloc, have not announced a tie-up for the Delhi assembly polls, so far.