Fact Check: Viral Portrait Behind Rahul, Sonia Gandhi’s Selfie Is Not Of Christ

Claim: In the 6th phase of the Lok Sabha elections on May 25, Congress Leader Rahul Gandhi with mother Sonia Gandhi cast their votes in Delhi. Following this, a selfie of the mother-son duo showing their inked fingers has gone viral on social media, with users claiming that the poster behind them depicts Jesus Christ.

The image is shared with a caption: “Janeudhari Brahmin” Rahul Gandhi has Jesus’s picture in his room…No picture of Hindu gods in the same room…Nice!’.  

Fact Check: NewsMobile fact-checked the claim, and found it to be false.

Upon closer examination of the viral image, the NM team noticed three distinct red dots in the poster behind them. Such a detail is uncommon in pictures of Jesus Christ. Upon cropping the image in question and conducting a Reverse Image Search, we traced the image to a website MeisterDrucke, where it was identified as “Madonna Oriflamma, 1932”, an artwork by Nicholas Roerich.

WikiArt describes Nicholas Roerich as a multifaceted Russian figure, renowned as a painter, writer, archaeologist, theosophist, and public figure. He is regarded by some in Russia as an enlightener, philosopher, and spiritual influencer, particularly influenced by a spiritual movement in Russian society during his youth. One of Roerich’s remarkable artworks is Madonna Oriflamma, which exemplifies his mastery of the symbolism style. Here is an image for a more in-depth analysis and comparison.

Hence, it’s evident that the viral portrait behind Rahul Gandhi’s selfie doesn’t depict Jesus Christ, but an artwork.

Disclaimer: This story was published first on NewsMobile, republished by Deccan Chronicle as part of Shakti collective.