Fact Check: Video of mob attack on BJP candidate in WB shared as assault on security forces
A video has gone viral with the claim that it shows security forces being attacked in a village in West Bengal.
By Sibahathulla Sakib Published on 27 May 2024 5:09 PM GMT
Claim: The video shows security forces being attacked in a village in West Bengal during the sixth phase of the 2024 Lok Sabha elections.
Fact: The claim is misleading. The target of the mob was a BJP candidate from Jhargram, WB, and not just the security personnel.
Hyderabad: The sixth phase of polling in the ongoing Lok Sabha elections was held on May 25 in 58 constituencies across seven states and one Union Territory.As part of the sixth phase, polling was held for some seats in West Bengal, and sporadic incidents of violence were also reported, even while the highest polling percentage of 79.47 per cent was recorded here.
Against this backdrop, a video has gone viral with the claim that it shows security forces being attacked in a village in West Bengal.
An X user shared a video captioned, “Assaults on security personnel in a West Bengal village amid the sixth phase of Lok Sabha elections. (translated from Telugu)” (Archive)
A similar post can be seen here.
Fact Check
NewsMeter found that the claim is misleading as the video shows an attack on a BJP MP candidate and not just on the security personnel.
When we conducted a reverse image search of the viral video, we found several news reports related to the violent incident during the sixth phase of the Lok Sabha elections in West Bengal.
BJP candidate Pranath Tudu from Jhargram in West Bengal was attacked by a violent mob on Saturday. A video of the incident shows a mob pelting stones and chasing Pranath and his convoy. As the attack took place, the security personnel responded quickly and took him safely away from the scene. A Times of India news report stated that a BJP leader’s car was also destroyed in the incident.
According to a post on X by ANI News dated May 25, miscreants attacked BJP candidate Pranath from the Jhargram Lok Sabha seat while he visited booth number 200 in Monglapota constituency.
Hence, we conclude that the claim is misleading as the video shows a BJP candidate being attacked by a mob in West Bengal.
