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News agency Asian News International (ANI) on August 13 shared a video misidentifying an elderly man crying and holding a poster of his missing son as a Hindu seeking justice for his child in Bangladesh.
BOOM found that the man in the video is a Muslim, not a Hindu; several Bangladeshi news outlets interviewed the protester, who identified himself as Babul Haoladar.
The protester also said that he participated in the protest because his eldest son, Mohammed Sunny Haoladar, went missing during the Hasina regime in 2013.
Bangladesh's chief advisor Muhammad Yunus reassured the Hindu community amid the ongoing violence, emphasising that the interim government's primary goal is to uphold human rights and freedom of speech for everyone. His statement came in response to the violence against minorities that has occurred since the resignation of former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on August 5, 2024. As per reports, at least 440 people have lost their lives due to the deadly clashes in the country.
ANI shared the video from their official X handle and wrote, "Bangladesh: A member of the minority Hindu community protesting with a poster of his missing son says "I will give my life but I want justice for my child. Where is my child? I have been going from door to door to inquire about my child but no one is listening to me."
Below is a screenshot of the post.
The news agency later deleted their post, clarifying that the 'person is not from the minority Hindu community'.
The video shows the elderly man sitting on the road and pleading for the justice of his son. He says in Bangla, "Listen to me. I am going to die. I want justice for my son. Where is my son. I have run from door to door, nobody has heard me. Today I am here."
Several right-wing accounts on X, including @erbmjha, @RealBababanaras, and @epanchjanya, shared the video, further amplifying the same false claim.
Click here, here and here to view archive of the posts.
Fact Check
BOOM went through several news reports on the protest and found that the man in the video is from the Muslim community, not a Hindu minority in Bangladesh.
We noticed that the visuals of the protest were streamed live on August 13, 2024, from the Bangladeshi news portal Barta24's official YouTube channel. In the broadcast, the person featured in the ANI news report identified himself as Babul Haoladar and said that he was protesting because his elder son, Mohammed Sunny Haoladar, went missing during the Hasina regime in Bangladesh.
When a reporter from Barta 24 inquired about the individual in the photo that Haoladar was holding, he replied by saying, "This is my elder son, Mohammed Sunny Haoladar. I am Babul Haoladar. My son was taken from his relative’s house in Durgapur village, Pirojpur-3, on January 10, 2013, around 11:30 to 11:45, under the identity of RAB 10. Since then, I have searched everywhere...at Pirojpur police station, RAB 10, Kadamtoli police station, and the DB office...seeking justice, but no one has provided any information or registered a case."
Haoladar also mentioned that he received threats from the administration and was made to sign various documents without being given a clear explanation. When asked about his son's political affiliations, Haoladar said that his son was merely a supporter of the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP).
We also came across another news bulletin by the Bangladeshi news outlet Samakal News shared on August 13, 2024, which featured an interview with the same person making similar allegations.
The report stated that people from across Bangladesh gathered in front of the Jamuna State Guest House in Dhaka, seeking justice for their missing family members. Additionally, the report noted that the protesters called for the release of prisoners from ‘Aynaghor.’
Multiple news outlets have reported that Aynaghar, which translates to 'House of Mirrors' in Bengali, is a secret prison used for the torture of individuals. It is allegedly operated by the Directorate General of Forces Intelligence (DGFI), the intelligence agency of Bangladesh's defense forces, added the reports.
We also compared the man featured in the ANI video report with Babul Hawladar's appearance in the protest footage ran by Bangladeshi outlets, which can be seen below.
