'Black tea, not alcohol': Congress clarifies viral photo of KC Venugopal, FIR lodged for spreading fake news

The Congress on Friday released a statement addressing a viral photo featuring party general secretary KC Venugopal, adding that an FIR has been registered in Hyderabad against fake news.

Sunita Iyer

First Published Jun 14, 2024, 6:37 PM IST

The Congress on Friday released a statement addressing a viral photo featuring party general secretary KC Venugopal. The party clarified that misinformation had spread suggesting he was drinking alcohol in a restaurant, whereas he was actually consuming black tea. The Congress further stated that it has filed a complaint in Hyderabad against the false allegations circulating on social media.

Sharing a copy of the FIR, the party posted on X: "We have taken congnisance of this mischief and Congress MLC Dr. Venkat Narsing Rao Balmoor has lodged a complaint with the Cyber Crimes Police Station in Hyderabad. Here is a copy of the FIR. Fake news won’t be tolerated and the guilty will be made to bear the consequences."

In its complaint, the Congress identified Shashank Singh as the person responsible for spreading the fake news.

"This individual Shashank Singh had not only posted a false caption with the picture but he had also tagged the Kerala Police and asked them to take actions against Shri KC Venugopal Ji." it said.

"This is a grave charge, especially since Shri KC Venugopal ji is not only a highly reputed leader of the Indian National Congress but he represents lakhs of Indian citizens in Parliament," the complaint said.

The original post on X alleged that despite lacking a license to sell alcohol, the restaurant was serving it to Congress leaders.

KC Venugopal accompanied Rahul Gandhi on his journey to Wayanad and they stopped for lunch at Thamarassery's White House restaurant. The viral photo in question was taken during this visit, where Rahul Gandhi and other Congress leaders interacted with the chefs and staff.

Last Updated Jun 14, 2024, 6:37 PM IST