Video claims Indian opposition leader Rahul Gandhi fell asleep in Parliament during Waqf bill discussion

A video is doing the rounds on social media claiming that Indian opposition leader Rahul Gandhi fell asleep in Parliament on Thursday (Aug 8) while a discussion was underway on the Waqf Amendment Bill in the Lok Sabha

The viral video showed Minority Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju discussing the legislation as Gandhi allegedly fell asleep on his seat.

Here's a look at the viral video:

Videos and photographs also showed Minority Affairs Minister Rijiju and Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) Lok Sabha MP Giriraj Singh allegedly mocking Gandhi for falling asleep.

Was Gandhi sleeping in Lok Sabha?

Though an opposition Lok Sabha leader certainly fell asleep which led to Rijiju and Singh laughing, it is not yet known if the sleeping parliamentarian was indeed Gandhi, a report by the Free Press Journal said.

As Rijiju was speaking on the Waqf Amendment Bill, several BJP MPs including Giriraj Singh, Bhupendra Yadav and Jitendra Singh, started laughing and pointed out the opposition MP who fell asleep.

"That's why I tell you not to speak in between or not to try and interrupt repeatedly as it will make you fall asleep," Rijiju said

Did Gandhi doze off in 2016 too?

A similar situation was seen in Lok Sabha in 2016 when Gandhi allegedly dozed off when his party the Congress was cornering the Modi government over the crucial issue of Dalit protests in Gujarat.

Amid a heated war of words between BJP MPs and opposition MPs, television cameras panned to show Gandhi, then vice-president of the Congress, sitting with his hands on his forehead and his eyes shut.

Congress leader Renuka Chowdhury provided a clarification that Gandhi was not sleeping during the discussion on Dalit protests in Gujarat.

"He was not sleeping. Can anyone sleep with such loud noise," Chowdhury told the news agency ANI and pointed out that Gandhi was just resting his eyes. 

(With inputs from agencies)