Claim: Priyanka Gandhi was smiling while standing at the house of Radha, a tribal woman in Wayanad who was killed in a tiger attack.
Fact: False. The Asianet News card has been digitally altered by superimposing an old image onto the original news card.
On January 24, 2025, a 45-year-old tribal woman named Radha was mauled to death by a tiger in a private coffee plantation near the forest in Pancharakolly, close to Mananthavady town in Wayanad. The incident sparked major protests by locals.
Amid this, a purported Asianet News card titled “Priyanka Gandhi at the House of Radha, Woman Killed in a Tiger Attack” has been widely shared on social media. The card features an image of Priyanka Gandhi standing with her daughter, Miraya Vadra, with a caption alleging that Priyanka was smiling during her visit to Radha’s house.
A Facebook user shared the card with the caption, “Someone who cannot tell the difference between a house of mourning and a wedding celebration. The villagers say even the tiger has more sense than this!” (Translated from Malayalam) (Archive)
Fact Check
NewsMeter found the claim to be false, as the circulated news card was digitally altered.
Priyanka Gandhi visited Wayanad on January 28, 2025. However, the presence of her daughter, Miraya Vadra, in the viral image raised doubts about its authenticity, as Miraya did not accompany her mother during the visit.
The original news card regarding Priyanka’s visit, shared by the official Facebook page of Asianet News, features Priyanka Gandhi alongside K. C. Venugopal, AICC General Secretary and MP for Alappuzha. The image in this news card shows both Congress leaders visiting Radha’s house and meeting her family.
A similar image was also found in an Asianet News report published on January 28, covering Priyanka’s visit and the protests over her late arrival. This further confirms that the viral news card was altered by superimposing an unrelated image over the original card.
Various news channels broadcast live footage of Priyanka Gandhi visiting Radha’s house. A Manorama News video on YouTube shows a similar scene to the one in the original Asianet News card.
The dress worn by Priyanka Gandhi in all these visuals is the same and differs from the one in the viral news card. This indicates that the viral card has been altered and the image is not from Wayanad.
Additionally, the outfit worn by Priyanka Gandhi in these visuals is different from the one in the viral news card, indicating that the viral image was not taken during her visit to Wayanad.
A reverse image search led us to the viral image shared on The Hindu’s X (formerly Twitter) handle on May 25, 2024. The post states that it shows Priyanka Gandhi outside a polling booth in New Delhi with her daughter after casting her vote in the sixth phase of the Lok Sabha elections.
The news card circulating with the claim that Priyanka Gandhi was smiling while standing at Radha’s house in Wayanad has been digitally altered. An old image was superimposed onto the original Asianet News card, making the claim false.
(This article was first posted by NewsMeter and re-shared by Deccan Chronicle as part of the Shakti Collective Fact Check initiative).