After the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) won the West Bengal elections for the first time, political unrest gripped the state.
Amidst the claims of unrest, Lighthouse Journalism found a video being widely shared on social media platforms, where the police were found lathi-charging a Muslim youth. It was claimed that the video is recent and related to post-poll violence in West Bengal.
During the investigation we found that the video is old and from Bangladesh. The viral claim is misleading.
Claim:
X (formerly Twitter) user Shilpi Yadav shared the viral video along with mileading claim.
Other social media users are also sharing the video with similar claim.
Investigation:
We started the investigation by running a reverse image search on the keyframes obtained from the viral video.
We found the video posted on a Facebook page on 6 February. In the bio, the page stated that it was a book shop in Dhaka, Bangladesh.
The caption said: “How cowardly must they be for so many policemen to beat such a brave, unarmed man? The video clearly shows that he did nothing. Thousands of salutations to the mother who gave birth to such a strong and courageous son. One Hadi may die, but lakhs of Hadis will rise. Just think about the amount of courage and bravery in his heart.”
The reel was also shared by ‘Moeen Ali‘ on February 7.
The caption said: As the interim authorities failed to bring Sharif Osman Hadi to justice, police launched an attack on a protest demanding that Sharif Osman Hadi be tried under the supervision of the United Nations. During the crackdown, a young man was brutally beaten by the police, while bystanders were seen standing around in shock, unable to react.
The video was shared by other social media users too with similar claims.
One link also tagged the location of the video as: Chittagong, Bangladesh.
A relevant keyword search also led us to the news reports on the same.
The reports said: The interim government today reiterated its unwavering commitment to ensure justice for Sharif Osman Hadi killing, saying that it will formally send a letter to the relevant United Nations (UN) agency on Sunday, seeking an investigation into the Hadi killing case.
Conclusion: An old video from Dhaka of police lathi-charging protestors in Bangladesh is being shared as recent from West Bengal after the BJP won elections in the state. The viral claim is misleading.
