Clipped Video of Ashok Gehlot Wearing Mask While Drinking Holy Water Goes Viral

The longer version of the video shows Gehlot removing his mask as he realises his gaffe.

Fact-check: The claim states that Ashok Gehlot was drinking holy water with his mask on.

(Photo: The Quint)

A video showing Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot drinking holy water inside a temple while wearing a mask is going viral on social media.

The claim along with the video takes a dig at Gehlot's action and goes on to compare it with the recent clipped video of Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, in which he made a faux pas and referred to the measuring unit of flour as 'litres'.

However, this is a clipped video. The longer version of the video shows Gehlot removing his mask after the cut-off mark. He then proceeds to leave the praying area at Jaislamer's Ramdevra temple.

CLAIM

Many users on social media including Payal Mehta, a senior editor at news agency Asian News International (ANI) and BJP leader Laxmikant Bhardwaj shared this five-second video with a claim that Gehlot is drinking the holy water with his mask on.

(Note: Swipe to see screenshots)

An archived version of the post can be seen here.

An archived version of the post can be seen here.

Similar claims can be seen here and here.

WHAT WE FOUND OUT

By conducting a keyword search on Google using 'Gehlot temple visit mask on' in Hindi, we came across a tweet by Avadhesh Akodia, a special correspondent with the Hindi newspaper Dainik Bhaskar.

This tweet from 6 September carried a longer version of the same video which shows Gehlot taking off his mask to drink the holy water as he proceeds to leave.

The tweet also says that Gehlot is at Ramdevra temple in Jaisalmer and can be seen removing his mask after five seconds in the video.

We looked through Gehlot's Twitter account and found a video from 2 September, where he can be seen performing rituals inside the Ramdevra temple during his visit in Jaisalmer.

However, speaking to the media about the incident, Gehlot said, "I don't know from where people bring such videos. The one who doesn't work, conspires. I don't know where that video is from. How can someone drink water with a mask on?"

Clearly, a clipped version of Ashok Gehlot's video of him drinking the holy water with his mask on is being falsely shared on social media.

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