Lighthouse Journalism found a selfie of Rahul Gandhi being widely shared on social media platforms. It was being claimed, along with the image, that before delivering a verdict, the judge couldn’t resist taking a selfie with the Congress leader.
During the investigation, we found that the person seen in the picture was not a judge but a lawyer.
Claim:
X user CA Vritika Yadav shared the image with a misleading claim.
Other users are also sharing the image with a similar claim.
Investigation:
During the investigation, we found a few comments on several posts that clarified that the man taking a selfie is a lawyer and not a judge.
One X user, Prashant Srivastav,a mentioned that the person seen in the picture is not a judge but a Lucknow-based lawyer, Sayyed Mahmood Hasan.
Another X user also clarified that he was Adv. Syed Mahmood Hasan in the Lucknow Bar Association. Through this, we also found the profile of the advocate.
Talking to a news organisation, the lawyer said: Mahmood Hasan himself clarified the matter, stating that the photo being circulated is indeed his. He explained, “I went to meet Rahul Gandhi, but I am not a judge. I am just a lawyer.”
Conclusion: The viral picture claimed to show a judge taking a selfie with Rahul Gandhi before the verdict, actually shows a lawyer taking a selfie with the Congress leader. The viral claim is misleading.
