Congress leader Rahul Gandhi’s latest allegation of “vote chori” (vote theft) in Haryana has gone viral, not just in India but also in Brazil. What began as a political press conference in Delhi quickly turned into a global internet mystery when Gandhi showed a photo of a woman he said appeared “22 times” in Haryana’s voter list.
The woman, according to Gandhi, was shown under different names such as Seema, Sweety, and Saraswati. The image, he claimed, was proof of widespread voter fraud in the state.
Gandhi Alleges Large-Scale Electoral Fraud
During a press conference titled “H Files” on Thursday, Rahul Gandhi said the photo was part of a larger “centralised operation” to manipulate election results in Haryana. He claimed that the same image appeared multiple times in the voter rolls of the Rai assembly constituency.
“Who is this lady? What is her name? Where does she come from? But she votes 22 times in Haryana, at 10 different booths, and has multiple names,” Gandhi asked at the event.
The Congress leader also mentioned that the same image could be traced online to a profile linked to Matheus Ferrero, a Brazilian photographer known for his portraits and fashion work on Unsplash, a popular free photo-sharing website.
Photo Linked to Brazilian Photographer
After Rahul Gandhi’s remarks, several online users began searching for the mysterious woman in the photo. Independent Google and reverse image searches revealed that the image was taken by Brazilian photographer Matheus Ferrero. His work, including portraits and fashion photography, is easily accessible on multiple platforms.
The woman in the viral photo was later identified as Larissa Nery, a Brazilian model whose image appears on Unsplash and other photography websites.
The Brazilian Model Reacts
Hours after Gandhi’s press conference, a woman claiming to be the one in the photo appeared online in a video. She said the image shown by Gandhi was hers, taken when she was “about 20 years old.”
A reverse image search confirmed that the woman in the clip was indeed Larissa Nery. She later reposted screenshots showing her video circulating widely on X (formerly Twitter) to her Instagram story.
Here’s the reaction of the Brazilian Model Larissa seen in the viral image shared by @RahulGandhi during his Vote Chori Press Conference. https://t.co/qyF9dCXF5x pic.twitter.com/Ea2SPgll7z
— Mohammed Zubair (@zoo_bear) November 5, 2025
Though she spoke in Portuguese, an AI-generated translation of her remarks suggested that she was shocked to see her photo being used in Indian voter lists.
She said in the video, “Folks, let me tell you the gossip. You’re laughing too much, aren’t you? I’m going to tell the gossip. Folks, they are using an old photo of mine. My photo is old, okay? Look, I was very young in the photo. [I must have been] about 20 years old, 18 years old.”
“They are using a photo of mine to run, I don’t know if it’s an election, something where you have to vote. And in India, they are portraying me as an Indian woman to scam others, folks.”
‘What Madness Is This?’ Says Larissa
Larissa said she was stunned by the sudden global attention and media calls. “Oh my god, how crazy. What madness is this? What world are we living in?” she said.
She revealed that reporters had even called the salon where she works. “Then a reporter called me wanting to know about this thing. [He] called the salon where I work, wanting to talk to me for an interview. So I didn’t answer… The guy found my Instagram, called me on Instagram,” she added.
According to her, she was flooded with messages and even received the viral photo from a friend living in another city.
Online searches confirm that the photo used in Haryana’s voter list is among many portraits clicked by Matheus Ferrero. Screenshots of Larissa’s reaction video have now gone viral across social media platforms.
The controversy has added a bizarre global angle to Rahul Gandhi’s claims of voter fraud, making this incident one of the most talked-about moments in India’s ongoing political discourse.
