Leopard Spotted During Swearing-In Event? Delhi Police Clears Air On ‘Mystery Animal’ At Rashtrapati Bhavan

Delhi Police in response to the speculations made on social media regarding the 'mystery animal' said, "the animal captured on camera is a common house cat. Please don't adhere to such frivolous rumours."

The viral video shows that while the ceremony is going on and BJP MP Durga Das was carrying out official procedures on stage, an animal passes by inside the building of Rashtrapati Bhavan.

The social media users have shared their guesses on posts as they shared the viral clip and they were - a leopard, a dog or a bigger than normal cat.

What Did Delhi Police Say?

Delhi Police in a post on X cleared the controversy triggered regarding the spotting of the mystery animal.

They wrote, "Some media channels and social media handles are showing an animal image captured during the live telecast of oath taking ceremony held at the Rashtrapati Bhavan yesterday, claiming it to be a wild animal."

Further explaining what the animal is, they wrote, "These facts are not true, the animal captured on camera is a common house cat." Also suggested, "Please don't adhere to such frivolous rumours."

'Leopard' In Rashtrapati Bhavan: Social media Reactions

One of the social media users asked, "Was it a leopard? An ordinary cat? Or a dog?" as they shared the viral video.

Another user pointed out a security breach if the animal is a dangerous one, they wrote, "If it’s a cat, it’s fine. If it’s a leopard, then what are the guards doing? This breach, that too in Rashtrapati bhawan?"

"Seems a damn leopard due to tail and gait. People were really lucky it peacefully passed," a user wrote.

Narendra Modi was sworn in as Prime Minister for the third time on June 9 along with 72 ministers at Rashtrapati Bhavan in Delhi. The oath-taking ceremony was attended by nearly 8,000 guests, including foreign leaders, dignitaries, industrialists, and film stars.

Senior BJP leaders including Rajnath Singh, Amit Shah, Nitin Gadkari, Nirmala Sitharaman and S Jaishankar from the Modi 2.0 cabinet have retained position in the new cabinet.

President Droupadi Murmu administered the oath of secrecy and office to Modi and 30 Cabinet ministers, five Ministers of State with Independent charge, and 36 Ministers of State. Portfolios of the new ministers are yet to be announced.

After taking oath PM Modi in a post on X wrote, "This team of ministers is a great blend of youth and experience; we will leave no stone unturned in improving people's lives."