Overview
- The woman in the widely circulated image identified herself as Brazilian hairdresser Larissa Nery and said the 2017 photo, posted on stock platforms, was used without her involvement and that she has never been to India.
- On-the-ground reporting in Haryana’s Rai constituency documented photo misprints, a duplicate entry and a deceased voter named Guniya still on the rolls, with those interviewed saying their voting was not obstructed in the cases checked.
- The Election Commission publicly challenged Rahul Gandhi’s allegations, questioning why Congress agents did not flag issues during polling or revision and pressing procedural points in its rebuttal.
- Photographer Matheus Ferrero said he faced hacking and harassment after the image went viral and confirmed he deleted or deactivated his Instagram; the picture has been downloaded more than 400,000 times from stock sites.
- Social media users mistakenly targeted Brazilian actor-model Larissa Bonesi after confusing her with Nery, flooding her Instagram with comments linked to the controversy.