Larissa’s amused reaction—calling the controversy “madness”—has since gone viral, drawing global attention to the bizarre intersection of politics, misinformation, and digital ethics.
New Delhi, November 6, 2025: A Brazilian model has found herself at the center of India’s newest political controversy after Congress leader Rahul Gandhi used her decade-old stock photograph in his “Vote Chori” (vote theft) exposé alleging massive electoral fraud in the 2024 Haryana Assembly polls.
Larissa Rocha, a 30-something Brazilian model and influencer, broke her silence just hours after Gandhi’s press conference. In a light-hearted yet bewildered 58-second Instagram video filmed from her holiday-decorated home, she joked in Portuguese:
“They’re using an old picture of mine… It’s a really old photo — I was so young in it, like 18 or 20 years old. They’re using it for some kind of election in India. Look how crazy this is!”
Gesturing animatedly, she called the incident “loucura total” (complete madness), adding that reporters were suddenly calling her workplace and Instagram for interviews. She ended by flashing a screenshot of the viral voter list and laughing: “What a mess I’m in!”
The video, captioned “Que loucura! #India #ElectionDrama”, has already surpassed 500,000 views and been translated into Hindi and English by Indian users. In a follow-up Story, Larissa clarified she has “no connection with India or politics” and urged fans not to drag her into “the political mess,” quipping, “I just want to model and live my life — not vote in Haryana!”
Rahul Gandhi’s ‘Vote Chori’ Charge
At his November 5 press conference at the AICC headquarters, Gandhi alleged that the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the Election Commission of India (ECI) had rigged the Haryana Assembly elections through what he termed “Operation Sarkar Chori”.
Projecting Larissa’s image on a screen, Gandhi asked, “Yeh kaun hai?” (“Who is this?”), claiming her photo appeared 22 times across 10 polling booths under names like Seema, Sweety, Saraswati, and Rashmi. He accused the BJP and ECI of planting 25 lakh fake votes, converting a predicted Congress win into defeat.
The conference, livestreamed on X (formerly Twitter), was part of a wider campaign targeting alleged vote manipulation in several states.
READ: Opinion | Manipur Encounter’s Chilling Message: Tribal life Comes Cheap
From Stock Photo to Political Symbol
Reverse-image searches traced the viral picture to a 2017 upload by Brazilian photographer Matheus Ferrero on stock platforms like Unsplash and Shutterstock. Ferrero later posted that the image “was intended for free public use” and that the model “has no connection to Indian voter lists.”
After the press conference, Ferrero’s Instagram post was flooded with comments such as “You’re viral in India, bro!” while his original image accumulated millions of new views.
Interestingly, the same photo has been spotted in fake LinkedIn profiles and digital ads — a reminder of how freely shared stock images can be repurposed without consent.
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
Political Firestorm
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BJP Reaction: Union Minister Kiren Rijiju dismissed Gandhi’s claims as “recycled lies,” accusing Congress of an “anti-democracy stunt.” BJP IT cell head Amit Malviya reposted Larissa’s video with the caption: “Rahul Gandhi’s foreign ‘voter’ speaks — and it’s all a joke on him!”
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Congress Response: Party spokesperson Supriya Shrinate doubled down, saying Larissa’s video “shows how carelessly voter rolls were manipulated,” and demanded the resignation of ECI Chief Gyanesh Kumar.
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ECI Statement: The Commission said, “No irregularities reported; claims unsubstantiated.” It noted that no formal complaints against the voter rolls had been filed prior to polling.
Online Frenzy
The story exploded on Indian social media.
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#VoteChori, #BrazilianModel, and #RahulGandhi trended with over 1.5 million mentions in 24 hours.
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Memes proliferated: “Modi hai to mumkin hai — even Brazilian models vote in Haryana!”
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Meanwhile, others debated the integrity of India’s electoral database and the ethics of using stock imagery in political contexts.
International outlets, including BBC Brasil, have since covered Larissa’s unexpected fame as a “Brazilian caught in India’s election storm.”
The Larger Questions
Larissa’s amused reaction has inadvertently humanized the controversy, shifting public focus from data-driven fraud allegations to the broader misuse of images online. Yet it also highlights real concerns about the integrity of voter rolls, the accountability of the ECI, and the ease with which misinformation can go viral in India’s hyper-polarized political space.
As Bihar’s election campaign gathers pace, Gandhi has promised more “H-Files” exposés. Whether they prove systemic malpractice or political theatre remains to be seen.
For Larissa, however, one truth stands firm — fame was never on the ballot.
“I took a photo years ago,” she laughed in her video. “Now I’m part of Indian politics. That’s insane!”
