Fact Check: This DOES NOT show massive crowd at Rahul Gandhi's 'Chhatron Ki Goonj' in Pune

Rahul Gandhi’s spoke to students in Pune at an outreach programme called “Chhatron Ki Goonj” on August 22. A video of a massive crowd has now gone viral. Allegedly, it showed the massive crowd gathered for the Rahul Gandhi event in Pune.India Today Fact Check found that the video is from Mexico and therefore unrelated to the “Chhatron Ki Goonj” campaign.OUR PROBEReverse-searching key frames from the video led us to the Instagram account of Spanish journalist and sports anchor Carlota Vizmanos. She posted the video on July 1. The post was geotagged Zocalo, Mexico. According to the post, the video showed the crowd’s reaction after Mexico’s second goal.We also found two more videos shared by Vizmanos on July 1 showing crowds gathered in the Zocalo. One video showed fans braving the rain, while the other showed celebrations after Mexico’s first goal. Zocalo is the main square in central Mexico City. Matches are broadcast live here for fans to celebrate football together. FIFA designated the square as its central fan hub for the 2026 World Cup in Mexico City.In all three videos, a flagpole is visible. Using Google Street View, we found the same flagpole with Mexico’s national flag in the central square of the Zocalo.Mexico defeated Ecuador 2–0 in the 2026 FIFA World Cup Round of 32 on June 30, and reportedly, thunderstorms over Mexico City delayed the start of the match by one hour.CROWD AT ‘CHHATRON KI GOONJ’ IN PUNEWe watched the Pune “Chhatron Ki Goonj” video on Rahul Gandhi’s YouTube channel and found the venue was full. Unlike the viral video, this video shows students gathered in large numbers in a big tent. During the event, Rahul Gandhi urged women to “smash” the patriarchy. He appealed to women to be “loud, be proud, fight for your space in society.”Thus, we concluded that the viral video is not from Pune.- EndsPublished By: Ritaban MisraPublished On: Aug 24, 2026 10:12 IST