claim: Video shows attack on a Hindu temple in Bangladesh
Fact Check: BOOM found that the incident in the viral video is of an attack on a Sufi shrine in Kazipur, Sirajganj, Bangladesh in August 2024. BOOM Bangladesh contacted local journalists who confirmed the location and said that it is a Sufi dargah and not a Hindu temple.
The video of a mob vandalizing a Sufi shrine in Bangladesh in August this year is being shared as an attack on a Hindu temple in the country.
The incident in the video is from August 2024 when the Sufi shrine of Ali Pagla was vandalized in Kazipur, Sirajganj, Bangladesh.
BOOM Bangladesh contacted local journalists who confirmed the location and said it is a Sufi temple and not a Hindu temple. Bangladesh has been in turmoil since former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina was forced to flee the country following widespread protests in early August.
Viral video of Bangladesh shared with false claim
The two-minute long video is being shared on Instagram with the caption, “Situation at Hindu temple in Bangladesh tomorrow.”
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Fact-check: The building attacked in the viral video is a Sufi shrine
BOOM found that the viral video is from August 2024 when the Sufi shrine of Ali Pagla in Kazipur, Sirajganj, Bangladesh was attacked and vandalized.
Taking a hint from the replies that the location in the viral video is not a temple but a Sufi temple named Ali Pagla in Sirajganj, Bangladesh, we found several Bangladeshi news reports on the incident. The report said that Ali Pagla Mazar was vandalized on August 29, 2024.
We found a news report from Kalbela which stated that the incident in the viral video took place on August 31, 2024. The report also contains a screengrab that matches scenes from the video.
The report noted that in Kazipur, Sirajganj, Bangladesh, villagers had sacked the Imam of a mosque in the area after he was allegedly attacked by his people. The report said that many people in the area had claimed that Imam Ghulam Rabbani and his men had vandalized the shrine of Ali Pagla on August 29.
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Local journalist confirms location Video from Boom Bangladesh
BOOM Bangladesh contacted Abdul Jalil, a local journalist from Sirajganj, Kazipur, who confirmed that the viral video is from Ali Pagalar Mazhar, Sirajganj. Daily Star correspondent Shahidul Islam Nirob also confirmed to BOOM Bangladesh that the video is of Ali Pagalar Mazhar and said that it is not a Hindu temple as is being falsely claimed. The scenes of temple vandalism in the news report below also match the viral video. From the timestamp of 2.50 minutes we can see that the temple is being attacked with steel rods.
(This story was originally published by BOOM, and republished by NDTV as part of Shakti Collective)
