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  • 2019-05-23 (xsd:date)
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  • No, these photos do not show attacks on Hindus by Muslims in the Indian state of West Bengal in 2019 (en)
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  • Two photos have been shared in a Facebook post published in May 2019 alongside claims that Hindus are being attacked by Muslims in the Indian state of West Bengal. But the photos actually show unrelated incidents that happened in neighbouring Bangladesh, according to media reports and Bangladeshi police. The photos were shared in this Facebook post on May 17, 2019. Below is a screenshot of the misleading post: Screenshot of misleading Facebook post The lengthy Hindi language caption translates to English in part as: Many examples of extreme violence against Hindus have been seen in various districts of West Bengal in the last couple of days. People are fleeing, leaving behind their homes, farms, land and cattle etc. Announcements are being made from mosques in the month of Ramazan that Hindus will have to chant 'Allah is great' if they want to live. The police are silent spectators because all the accused are from the so called peace-loving minority community and belong to the Trinamool Congress, led by respected Mamata didi. Trinamool Congress refers to the ruling party of West Bengal. This is their official website. Mamata didi (Mamata sister) refers to Mamata Banerjee, the chief minister of West Bengal. Here is her biography on the Trinamool Congress website. There have been clashes between the Trinamool Congress and India’s ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in West Bengal during India's general election. Here is a recent AFP report about the incidents. One of the photos in the misleading post was also shared in a Facebook post here alongside similar claims. But the photos have actually circulated online since April 2019 in reports about unrelated incidents in Bangladesh. A reverse image search on Google for the first image in the misleading Facebook post found it had been published in this story on Bengali news site www.desh1.com on April 16, 2019. Below is a screenshot comparison of the two photos in the misleading Facebook posts (L) and the same photos on the Bengali news site (R): Screenshot comparison of the two photos in the misleading Facebook posts (L) and the same photos on the Bengali news site (R) The www.desh1.com report’s Bengali language headline translates to English as: Miscreants vandalise idols in Biteswar Kalibari temple in Daudkandi in Comilla. The Bengali text reads: Miscreants have vandalised idols in the Biteswar Kalibari temple in Daudkandi (subdistrict) in Comilla (district). It happened today (Apr 16, 2019) at around 4pm, sources said. Daudkandi police chief Rafiqul Islam told AFP by phone the statues were damaged accidentally during an incident in April. Three minors went inside and were playing in the temple when they accidentally pushed the clay-made idols, he said. We have later solved the matter with the local Hindu elders and the priests. But meanwhile some people took photos and spread it over the internet saying it was an incident of vandalism. Another reverse image search on Google found the second photo in the misleading Facebook posts in this report on Bengali news site Bdmorning.com published on April 20, 2019. The report describes an incident in the district of Bandarban, Bangladesh. Below is a screenshot comparison of the first photo in the misleading Facebook posts (L) and the photo in the Bdmorning.com report (R): Screenshot comparison of the first photo in the misleading Facebook posts (L) and the photo in the Bdmorning.com report (R) The Bengali language headline of the Bdmorning.com report translates to English as: Photo of teenage girl tied to a tree goes viral, technology minister wants to learn identity. The text reads: Recently a photo of the torturing of a teenage girl who was tied to a tree has been shared on social media. Facebook users condemned the incident that took place in Bandarban district's Lama subdistrict. Lama district police chief Oppela Raju Naha told AFP: The photo (accompanying the April 20, 2019 news story) is from Fythong municipality in Lama subdistrict in Bangladesh's southeastern Bandarban hill-district. It is from December 2018. A quarrel between families broke out over some land, and one group tied up this teenage girl to the tree. Someone took the photo and spread it on the web. The girl, aged between 13 and 14, has recovered, he told AFP. (en)
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