Fact-check: Is Rahul Gandhi planning a vacation to Thailand after 4 June results?

The great Indian election is over. Now results are a day away. If exit polls are to be believed, the Narendra Modi-led National Democratic Alliance is returning to power for the third time with a majority. It is not good news for the Congress, which is part of the Opposition bloc INDIA (Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance). The INDI Alliance is predicted to get less than 200 seats, according to most exit polls.

If Congress fails to make an impact, questions will once again be raised about the party’s future and its leadership. Amid all this, rumours started gathering steam that Rahul Gandhi will leave the country on 5 June, a day after Lok Sabha election results are announced.

We take a look at how the buzz all started and the truth behind it.

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A viral boarding pass

An image of a boarding pass started doing the rounds on social media over the weekend. The Vistara boarding pass has Rahul Gandhi’s name on it. It showed the Congress leader travelling on 5 June to Thailand in business class.

The caption on the picture shared by X user “M S Manral ( Modi ka pariwar )” said, “Rahul Gandhi's flight ✈️ ticket for June 5 - 2024 Business class Vistara Airlines 😲🤔”.

Another user shared the photo on X and commented, “Rahul Gandhi running away to Bangkok on June 5.”

The results will be announced on 4 June and exit poll predictions are not very promising for the Congress party.

It's fake

There are no prizes for guessing that the boarding pass is doctored.

Fact-checking website BOOM pointed to several discrepancies on the boarding pass. There are two different flight numbers mentioned on the pass: “UK121” and “UK115”.

Another website NewsChecker ran a reverse image search of the photo. It led them to a similar image posted on LiveFromALounge.com, an online portal about aviation and travel trends.

The Vistara boarding pass that has been morphed. Image courtesy: livefromalounge.com

The image was part of a column published on 7 August 2019 by Ajay Awtaney, the founder and editor of LiveFromALounge. Awtaney wrote about Vistara’s first international flight from Delhi to Singapore five years ago. “Having flown the first flight of Vistara domestically back in 2015, it was a done deal that I was going to fly them internationally as well on the first flight. Finally, the airline announced international operations in July 2019, and the first international flight was operated between Delhi and Singapore yesterday [6 August 2019], on which I flew,” he wrote.

After a comparison of the two images, both fact-checking websites concluded that it was Awtaney’s boarding pass which was morphed. He told BOOM, “Yes, this was Vistara’s first international flight, and I was on board. It appears that whoever edited the photo forgot to change the flight number in one of the two places where it was listed on the boarding pass.”

Amit Shah and PM Modi’s claims

Last week, Union home minister Amit Shah claimed that after the announcement of the Lok Sabha results on 4 June, Gandhi would blame EVMs for his party’s loss and then would book tickets to Bangkok for a holiday.

At a rally in Uttar Pradesh’s Deoria, Shah said, “On 4 June, the counting of votes will start at 7 am. The picture will become clear by 1 pm… At 3 pm, Rahul Gandhi will hold a press conference blaming EVMs for their loss…”

“His tickets for 6 June are booked and he will leave for Bangkok, Thailand for a holiday,” he added.

Union Home Minister Amit Shah claimed at a recent rally that Rahul Gandhi would leave for a holiday to Thailand after the election results. File photo/PTI

A few weeks before, Narendra Modi also hit out at Rahul Gandhi and Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav, saying they would leave the country for a vacation after the results. “Whether the ‘shehzada’ is from Lucknow (Yadva) or Delhi (Gandhi), he will leave abroad for summer vacation khatakhat khatakhat,” the PM said, as he hinted at a win for the NDA at a rally in Uttar Pradesh’s Pratapgarh.

Union minister and BJP leader Giriraj Singh also claimed last week that Gandhi would likely go on vacation abroad after the results. “In the sixth phase, we are about to touch the 400 mark and in the seventh phase, we will be crossing the 400 mark and that day, Akhilesh Yadav will be singing songs and Rahul Gandhi will go for his foreign trips as no option will be left for them. This country wants a strong government, not a compelled government,” he was quoted as saying by ANI.

Gandhi’s travels have often grabbed headlines with the BJP leaders targeting him over them time and again.

With inputs from agencies