Photo: Bangladesh – Rohingya women in refugee camps share stories of loss and hopes of recovery by UN Women Gallery is licensed under CC BY-NC-ND 2.0.
Context
South Asia faces an urgent crisis of weaponised misinformation targeting refugees and migrants. This regional study examines systematic patterns of anti-immigrant narratives across India, Bangladesh, Pakistan, Nepal, and the Maldives. Our research team, comprising scholars from the discipline of misinformation studies, analyses how digital platforms transform humanitarian crises into political ammunition.
The problem is not new, but its digital acceleration is alarming. Misinformation around the Rohingya crisis frequently begins in Myanmar and Bangladesh, crosses borders, and influences public opinion across South Asia. Images from refugee camps and conflict zones are repurposed in anti-immigrant rhetoric to create false authenticity and strengthen biases against Muslim refugees.
In South Asia’s digital sphere, the Rohingya crisis is less about refugees and more about the stories told about them—stories shaped by propaganda, hate, and cross-border misinformation. As South Asian countries navigate shared challenges of migration, refugees, and digital transformation, understanding these misinformation patterns becomes essential for protecting both human rights and democratic institutions.
Regional Dimensions of the Crisis
India emerges as a critical site for anti-immigrant disinformation. Over 20 fact-checked reports document anti-Rohingya misinformation circulating widely on Indian social media and news outlets between 2017 and 2025. These narratives falsely portray Rohingya refugees as criminals, terrorists, or demographic threats.
Bangladesh experiences misinformation targeting religious sentiments, often with catastrophic consequences, including communal violence and loss of life. Misinformation frequently exploits religious identity by highlighting “Muslim” versus “Hindu” in sensational ways.
Pakistan’s narrative landscape reveals parallel patterns. Officials and media personalities falsely blamed Afghan refugees for rising crime and unemployment, claims unsupported by verifiable data. Such narratives gained traction across Urdu-language outlets while digital algorithms amplified anti-refugee rhetoric.
Nepal presents different yet equally concerning dimensions. The fake Bhutanese refugee document scam involved former ministers and top bureaucrats defrauding 875 Nepali citizens of over $2 million. This scandal exposed deep political-bureaucratic corruption while simultaneously undermining genuine refugee advocacy efforts.
Research Objectives and Significance
This study pursues three interconnected objectives. First, we document systematic patterns in how anti-immigrant narratives are constructed, disseminated, and weaponised across South Asian digital spaces. Second, we analyse the transnational dimensions of misinformation flows, examining how narratives migrate across borders through shared language networks and diaspora media channels. Third, we investigate how political actors exploit refugee crises for electoral advantage.
The normalisation of anti-immigrant rhetoric threatens regional stability. Every bordering country faces political instability, economic stress, insurgency, or foreign interference. Our regional approach offers unique insights unavailable from single-country studies. Misinformation about the Rohingya often originates in Myanmar and Bangladesh, then migrates into India via shared language networks. Only cross-border analysis reveals these transnational circulation patterns.
Most importantly, this study demonstrates that combating anti-immigrant misinformation requires coordinated regional responses, not isolated national efforts.
