New evidence emerging on social media suggests that a Telugu man named Krishna Gudipati was the one who waved the tricolour during an attempted coup by Trump supporters at Capitol Hill in the US earlier this week.
In the past few days, several reports suggested that Vincent or Vinson Xavier Palathingal, an NRI man originally from Kerala, was the one who waved the flag. He even went on CNN News18 to strengthen these reports and proclaim his support for Trump.
But new evidence as shared by Twitter handle @DrunkJournalist suggests that although Vincent was seen waving the flag at one point, it was Krishna Gudipati who carried the flag to Capitol Hill. He can be seen in several pictures wearing a red jacket and waving the tricolour.
Further proof shows that both these men go way back and have organized an Indian-American meet & greet for a congressional candidate Aliscia Andrews. Andrews has now deleted a tweet of a poster related to this event dated October 2, 2020.
Some of the links shared on Twitter also suggest that Krishna has ties with right-wing Hindutva organizations like Vishwa Hindu Sanghatan (VHS). In pictures shared by the Twitter handle @JagdishShetty, Krishna can be seen with BJP leader Subramanian Swamy and is referred to as one of the leaders of VHS. Swamy later shared it on his Facebook page.
Krishna’s name can be seen on the American website of Vishwa Hindu Parishad of America (VHPA). He was listed as one of the points of contact for a virtual celebration of Ayodhya Ram Mandir Poojan. He can also be spotted in pictures of a VHPA rally on Amarnath Yatra from July 2017.
A video of Krishna speaking to ANI’s Smita Prakash in Sanskrit at the Howdy Modi event held in September 2019 is also doing rounds on social media.
Vinson is a member of the Republican Party of Virginia whereas no evidence has emerged so far to suggest Krishna’s ties to the party. However, his picture with the Democratic Party member and one of the 2020 Democratic Presidential Candidates in the primaries, Tulsi gabbard, is also being shared widely. Tulsi Gabbard herself has close ties with Vishwa Hindu Parishad America (VHPA) and is an open supporter of BJP and Prime Minister Narendra Modi.