Rahul Gandhi’s “X-Ray Means Caste Census” Clip Edited and Misleading

He used “X-ray” as an analogy to explain that a caste census reveals the social and economic status of backward, Dalit, and tribal communities.

A short clip of Rahul Gandhi’s speech is going viral on social media. In the clip, Rahul Gandhi says, “X-ray means caste census.”

It is being shared to mock him in a way that makes it look as if Rahul Gandhi said something strange about doing a caste survey with an X-ray. 

Fact Crescendo received several requests from readers on our WhatsApp Helpline (9049053770) to verify the claim.

We found that the video has been edited and shared out of context, which completely changes the meaning of Rahul Gandhi’s original statement.

WHAT’S THE CLAIM?

In the viral video, we can see a policeman’s leg getting hurt by a vehicle, accompanied by Rahul Gandhi’s speech saying, “Today, our security guard got stuck under the car, his leg was hurt. The first thing we did was ask him to get an X-ray done. X-ray means caste census.”

After this, the user adds a comment mocking Rahul Gandhi, saying, “Rahul Gandhi himself doesn’t know what he is talking about. It seems like he gives speeches under the influence. One day, he talks about extracting gold from potatoes, and now he wants caste surveys done through X-rays.”

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FACT-CHECK

An online search revealed that on 19 August, a policeman was injured by Rahul Gandhi’s vehicle during the Voter Adhikar Yatra in Nawada, Bihar. The front wheel of Rahul Gandhi’s car accidentally ran over the policeman’s foot.

However, a reverse image search of the video frames showed that the clip of Rahul Gandhi’s speech used in the viral post is not from this incident. 

In fact, it is from a speech he gave almost a year and a half earlier on 19 February 2024 in Amethi, Uttar Pradesh, during the Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra.

In that speech, Rahul Gandhi was explaining the need for a caste census. The full video and transcript of the speech are available on the official Congress website.

In the full speech, Rahul Gandhi spoke about the low representation of backward classes, Dalits, and tribal communities in both private and government jobs. He stressed the importance of conducting a caste census to ensure their fair representation.

He said, “We need to take a revolutionary step and conduct a caste census. We must know how many poor people there are in the general category, how much wealth they hold, how many backward communities and castes there are, and how much wealth Adivasis and Dalits possess. This is what caste census means.”

To simplify his point, he gave an example: “When someone gets injured, the first thing we do is get an X-ray. Today, our security guard’s foot got hurt under the car. The first thing we told him was to go get an X-ray done. In the same way, caste census is like an X-ray.”

So, Rahul Gandhi was explaining why a proper caste census matters. He emphasized the importance of knowing how many people belong to each caste, how much wealth they own, and what their living conditions are.

In this context, he gave the example of getting an X-ray done for his security guard’s injury. 

His point was that just as a doctor needs an X-ray to understand the exact condition of an injury, the government and the public need a caste census to understand the true picture of society. Without this data, the government would have no clear understanding of the economic and social status of different communities, making it difficult to create fair and effective policies. 

That is why Rahul Gandhi compared the caste census to an X-ray, saying it helps reveal what is not visible on the surface.

Here, the term “X-ray” was used as an analogy. An analogy is when something complicated is explained by comparing it to something simple and familiar so that people can understand it easily.

Rahul Gandhi has repeated this idea several times, describing the caste census as the “social X-ray” of the country. 

He has also called it a powerful tool for the youth, saying, “A caste census is like an X-ray. It shows the real picture and brings out the truth.”

NDTV

Indian Express

We also found another report published by India Today on 10 October 2023. In a campaign rally in Shahdol, Madhya Pradesh, Rahul Gandhi again referred to the caste census as an “X-ray” to understand the real situation of minorities. He said that the caste census works like an X-ray to identify the problems faced by backward classes, Dalits, and tribal communities.

CONCLUSION

Rahul Gandhi did not say that caste surveys should be conducted through X-rays. In reality, he used “X-ray” as an analogy to explain that a caste census reveals the social and economic status of backward, Dalit, and tribal communities.

The clip was edited in a way that makes his statement look absurd and comical. When you cut that explanation out and play only the line “X-ray means caste census” over unrelated footage, the meaning gets lost. But when you listen to the full speech, it becomes clear that he was simply using an example to explain his point.