The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has accused the Congress of offering Rs 25,000 to social media influencers to attend Rahul Gandhi’s ‘Chhatron Ki Gunj’ programme in Pune, scheduled for August 22.
On Friday, the BJP shared a video purportedly showing a phone conversation between an unidentified social media influencer and a person claiming to be associated with the Congress. In the conversation, the caller allegedly asks the influencer to attend the event and promote it through her social media account. The caller, who identifies himself as ‘Shantanu’, is heard offering Rs 25,000, including travel expenses, for attending the event in Pune.
However, the caller does not explicitly mention Rahul Gandhi, the ‘Chhatron Ki Gunj’ programme or any other specific identifier of the event. He is heard saying that the event would take place on “22nd” and that the influencer could post related content later that day or the following day.
“Even public support has to be bought for Rahul Gandhi,” the BJP wrote in a post on X as it shared the purported video clip.
“Look at this video. Influencers are being offered Rs 25,000 just to attend his Pune event. Rahul Gandhi’s leadership is so weak that even event attendance needs to be paid for. Yet, he questions EVMs whenever he loses,” it said.
Rahul Gandhi’s ‘Chhatron Ki Gunj’ in Pune
Congress MP Rahul Gandhi’s nationwide student outreach initiative, “Chhatron Ki Gunj”, is scheduled to be held on August 22 at the SSPMS College Ground in Pune. The event, which will specifically focus on providing a platform for young women, is expected to attract around 8,000 to 10,000 people between 4:30 pm and 9:30 pm, news agency ANI reported.
Pune Police has granted permission for the event subject to a set of conditions aimed at maintaining public order and ensuring security.
Among the directives, the police have prohibited the display of provocative images, banners or portraits. The authorities also stated that the event organisers will bear full legal responsibility for any untoward incident that may lead to a law-and-order situation.
“Objectionable images, portraits, or banners must not be displayed during the program; additionally, if any untoward incident takes place leading to a law and order issue, the entire responsibility will lie on the organisers,” the police directive said.
Attendance at the event must remain within the venue’s permitted capacity. Organisers have been directed to arrange at least four separate entry and exit gates and provide designated seating areas for male and female attendees.
The entry points must also have enclosed spaces for frisking women, with the process carried out exclusively by female security personnel. Male volunteers will not be permitted to conduct frisking, while organisers must deploy an adequate number of female volunteers to assist the private security staff.
