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Video of candlelight vigil in Bangladesh falsely linked to protests for murdered Indian doctor

Footage of crowds at a candlelight vigil in Bangladesh has emerged in social media posts falsely claiming to show protests in India demanding justice following the rape and murder of a doctor. The photographer who shot the video told AFP it showed a gathering in Bangladesh's capital Dhaka in memory of protesters killed in clashes that led to the ouster of former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina.

“This protest last night made history. People across Kolkata took to the streets,” said a Facebook post sharing the video on September 5, 2024.

“It is impossible to stop this movement until Tilottama gets justice.”

“Tilottama” is the name given to a murdered Indian doctor on social media after a court asked local media not to reveal her identity.

The discovery of the 31-year-old doctor's blood-soaked body in a government hospital in the eastern Indian city of Calcutta on August 9 sparked nationwide protests and repeated strikes by medical professionals demanding safer conditions for women.

The one-minute video showed excerpts from drone camera footage of a large candlelight vigil.

<span>Screenshot of the fake post</span>” data-src=”https://s.yimg.com/ny/api/res/1.2/kI4dPKZs3fZGOS6Hapgamg–/YXBwaWQ9aGlnaGxhbmRlcjt3PTk2MDtoPTEyNzk-/https://media.zenfs.com/en/afp_factcheck_us_713/4a302d4412f5e 0fc575eb4260e5dfae4″/><span></div> </div> </div> <div-Klasse=
Screenshot of the fake post

The video, which was also shared on X, emerged as thousands of people joined a candlelight march in Kolkata on September 5, demanding justice for the murdered doctor (archived link).

Doctors announced that they would continue their protests and rejected an invitation from the state's chief minister, Mamata Banerjee, for talks on September 10.

Sexual violence against women is a widespread problem in India – in 2022, an average of nearly 90 rapes were reported per day in the country of 1.4 billion people.

Drone footage from Bangladesh

A reverse image search on Google revealed a video of the same scene posted on X on August 9, weeks before the Calcutta march.

The X-Post is said to show a vigil in the Uttara district of Bangladesh's capital Dhaka (archived link).

A further keyword search on Google found the original video, which Bangladesh-based drone photographer Tamzid Islam Zihan shared on Instagram and Facebook (archived here and Here).

He told AFP he shot the video at the August 9 vigil to commemorate protesters killed in the student-led uprising that led to Hasina's ouster.

Below is a screenshot comparison of the video shared in fake posts (left) and the original video uploaded to Instagram (right):

<span>Screenshot comparison of the video shared in fake posts (left) and the original video uploaded to Instagram (right)</span>” data-src=”https://s.yimg.com/ny/api/res/1.2/e2D4_h97N.c0gZchUm_kNw–/YXBwaWQ9aGlnaGxhbmRlcjt3PTk2MDtoPTQ1OA–/https://media.zenfs.com/en/afp_factcheck_us_713/d8977521552e6 6c8601637869565e90c” /><span><button-Klasse=

Screenshot comparison of the video shared in fake posts (left) and the original video uploaded to Instagram (right)

<span>Screenshot comparison of the video shared in fake posts (left) and the original video uploaded to Instagram (right)</span>” data-src=”https://s.yimg.com/ny/api/res/1.2/29MSfxT6HKowKStfQaNaAg–/YXBwaWQ9aGlnaGxhbmRlcjt3PTk2MDtoPTQ2MQ–/https://media.zenfs.com/en/afp_factcheck_us_713/1952b893b660ecb dcf2c6de2ea331c59″/><span><button-Klasse=

Screenshot comparison of the video shared in fake posts (left) and the original video uploaded to Instagram (right)

Bangladeshi broadcasters NTV News and Business Standard published similar images of the vigil (archived here and here).

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