New Delhi: New videos of Brazilian 'model' Larissa whose photograph was shown by Congress leader Rahul Gandhi during his “vote chori” press conference in New Delhi, have surfaced on social media.
In the clips, Larissa reiterates her disbelief that her old image was used in the context of Indian elections, saying, “It’s not me; I’ve never even been to India.” She also shares that she is a Brazilian digital influencer and hairdresser and not a model.
In the latest clip, Larissa appears amused yet perplexed by the ongoing controversy. “Guys, I'm gonna tell you a joke. It's too horrible! Are we using an old picture of me? My photo is older; I was young. They're using my picture for voting in India, portraying me as Indian to fight each other. What madness!” she says in one clip in Portuguese.
Have a look at it here:
She goes on to add, “I need to learn some Indian words. I only know ‘Namaste’. I don't know any other words yet, but I'll have to learn a few. I'll use them in my next video; soon, I'll be famous in India.”
Larissa also clarifies her identity, describing herself as “a Brazilian digital influencer and a hairdresser” and expressing her affection for Indian people. She mentions that a journalist contacted her workplace and reached out via Instagram seeking comment about her supposed participation in Indian elections, calling the situation “unbelievable.”
Gandhi’s Press Meet Alleged Rs 25 Lakh Fake Votes in Haryana
During his press conference in New Delhi on November 5, Gandhi alleged large-scale voter fraud in the 2024 Haryana assembly elections, accusing the Bharatiya Janata Party and the Election Commission of “systemic manipulation.” Gandhi claimed that 25 lakh fake votes, which is around 12 percent of the total, were cast.
As part of his presentation, Gandhi displayed a photograph of a woman he claimed appeared multiple times in the voter list under different names such as Seema, Sweety and Saraswati.
The image was later identified as a 2017 stock photograph of Larissa, originally uploaded to Unsplash.com by photographer Matheus Ferrero under an open-use licence.
