BJP Claims Influencers Offered Rs 25,000 to Attend Rahul Gandhi Event in Pune
NEW DELHI — The Bharatiya Janata Party on Thursday alleged that social media influencers were being offered Rs 25,000 each to attend an upcoming public event of Congress leader Rahul Gandhi in Pune and post promotional content across online platforms.
Releasing a video on the social media platform X, the BJP claimed that the outreach efforts of the Congress leader relied on paid attendance and sponsored influencer promotions rather than genuine public participation.
In its post on X, the party stated that public support for Rahul Gandhi had to be bought, pointing to the footage as evidence of the alleged arrangement. The party claimed that influencers were being offered Rs 25,000 specifically to mark their presence at the Pune event.
According to the BJP, attendees were instructed to create and publish content from the event on their personal social media profiles. The party further stated in its social media post that Rahul Gandhi's leadership required paid attendance for his events, while pointing out his past criticisms of electronic voting machines following election defeats.
In the video shared by the BJP, an individual identifying himself as "Shantanu" can be heard outlining the details of the engagement to a prospective attendee. According to the recorded conversation, the participant would receive the promised monetary payment after attending the event and uploading videos from their personal social media handles.
The BJP shared the footage to allege that promotional and public relations tactics were being deployed to artificially project crowds and support for the Congress leader's upcoming gathering in Pune.
