Fact Check: Old Videos Depicting Violence During CAA Protests In Bengal Going Viral With Misleading Claims
Vishvas News verified that the viral video showcasing the railway station’s vandalism is not recent but stems from the 2019 protests against the CAA in West Bengal. It is being shared with false claims, attributing a communal context to the footage.
- By: Pragya Shukla
- Published: Nov 10, 2023 at 12:27 PM
New Delhi, Vishvas News: A video showing people vandalising a railway station is being widely shared on social media platforms with false claims. The video, being given a communal angle, alleges that it portrays an incident at the Navpara Mahishasur Railway station in Bengal. It is claimed that individuals disrupted by the sound of train whistles went to the station and began vandalising it.
Vishvas News conducted an investigation and determined that the viral video does not depict a recent occurrence. Instead, it is footage from protests against the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) in West Bengal in 2019. This video is now being shared with misleading claims, attempting to incite communal sentiments.
What’s going viral?
A Facebook user named ‘Rohtash Bansal’ shared the video on October 7, 2023, with the caption “Naopara Mahishasur railway station in Murshidabad, West Bengal has been completely vandalised and practically destroyed. It was given that the sound of the train whistle is disturbing his prayers. Look at the age of the goons, the product of Madrassa. Are you able to see the future of Bengal as well as India?”
Investigation:
Vishvas News investigated to verify these claims. We extracted keyframes from the video using the Invid tool and performed a Google reverse image search. We found out that the video was originally uploaded on a YouTube channel named Wild Films India on November 18, 2020. The video pertained to the protests against the CAA in Bengal in 2019. Further exploration revealed similar videos shared on Facebook in 2019, all depicting incidents at a railway station in Murshidabad district, Bengal.
A longer version of the viral video was found on a YouTube channel named Mohammad Ajaz Ahmed, uploaded on December 14, 2019, with a description indicating a protest against the CAA.
Further investigation revealed a report on a local website, EI, dated December 15, 2019. The report detailed protests against the CAA in various locations in Bengal, including incidents of violence and vandalism, such as at the railway station in Murshidabad district. The state government had urged people to refrain from engaging in such violence.
Additionally, we also found a report on NTVWB News, a local YouTube channel from Bengal, detailing the breaking of the line at Navpada Mahishasur station in Murshidabad district during the CAA protests, as depicted in a video report from December 14, 2019.
Local journalist Anand Saha from Murshidabad district confirmed that the video is from 2019 and related to protests against the CAA, which were marked by significant violence, including vandalism at various railway stations, including Navpara Mahishasur.
The Facebook user who shared the video with false claims has a limited following and has shared posts associated with a particular ideology.
Conclusion: Vishvas News verified that the viral video showcasing the railway station’s vandalism is not recent but stems from the 2019 protests against the CAA in West Bengal. It is being shared with false claims, attributing a communal context to the footage.
- Claim Review : Naopara Mahishasur railway station in Murshidabad, West Bengal has been completely vandalised and practically destroyed
- Claimed By : Facebook user named 'Rohtash Bansal'
- Fact Check : False
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