Fact Check: 2018 video falsely shared as assault on woman in Sandeshkhali, WB

Hyderabad: After a large number of women in Sandeshkhali in West Bengal accused TMC leader Sheikh Shahjahan and his supporters of land encroachment and sexual assault, the Opposition BJP has been hitting out at the ruling TMC alleging complicity.

In this context, a video showing a man pushing a woman to the ground and hitting her with a stick while she was speaking to the media is viral on social media. People claim that the video is linked to the Sandeshkhali issue.

“For all the Liberals who say everything is alright in WB, there is no atrocity on women should look at this! Woman attacked on live camera !! Imagine what goes behind the scenes that isn’t recorded or reported. #WestBengal #SandeshkhaliHorror, (sic)” wrote an X user while sharing the video.

“This is “freedom of expression” in @MamataOfficial’s West Bengal. Imagine if women are hit right in front of the camera then what else happens off-camera? #SandeshkhaliHorrorStory, (sic)” wrote another X user while sharing the video.

Fact Check

NewsMeter found that the video is from 2018 and is being falsely linked to the Sandeshkhali issue.

Upon a reverse image search of the video’s keyframe, we found the video on X, posted on September 30, 2018. The user mentioned in the caption that the woman seen in the video is Nilima De Sarkar, who was ‘kicked’ by TMC leader Arshadujjaman’s aide Qutubuddin.

Taking this cue, we ran a keyword search and came across a report by The Statesman on October 1, 2018. It was titled “On camera: Woman BJP supporter kicked, beaten with sticks by ‘TMC leaders’ twice”.

According to the report, the incident took place on September 26, 2018, the day the BJP called for a 12-hour bandh to protest the death of two students in North Dinajpur district. It mentioned that BJP supporter Nilima De Sarkar was first attacked by TMC workers led by local panchayat chief Arshaduzzaman. Later, she was thrown to the ground by a man identified as Qutubuddin, an aide of Arshaduzzaman, while giving an interview to the media.

NDTV Bangla also reported the incident (Trinamool leader beat up female BJP worker in front of media) on October 1, 2018, stating that the BJP worker Sarkar was attacked twice on the same day—the first time by local panchayat chief Arsaduzzaman and the second time by Trinamool leader Qutubuddin.

Hence, we conclude that the viral video is being falsely linked to the Sandeshkhali issue.