This Op-Ed has been published in Eurasia Review on August 20, 2024
By Zulker Naeen
The political landscape in Bangladesh has experienced a seismic shift following the resignation of the longest-serving Prime Minister, Sheikh Hasina, from her post, and her fled to India due to anti-quota protests by students. The ousting of Hasina, who had held power for nearly 16 years, was the fruit of a nationwide protest movement spearheaded by the youth— the students of Gen-Z of Bangladesh.
This movement, which has been hailed as a “Gen-Z Revolution,” was not only aimed at toppling an authoritarian regime but also at laying the groundwork for a new and reformed Bangladesh. Now, textbooks are being rewritten to conceal the tumultuous history of the nation’s darker periods of anarchy and authoritarianism.
Courtesy: Eurasia Review
Following the fall of the Sheikh Hasina government, attacks have taken place on Awami League offices, leaders’ homes, and businesses in various districts. Hindu communities have also been targeted in some cases, raising concerns over a broader pattern of communal violence.
Indeed, there have been concerning reports of violence against minority communities. Bangladesh Hindu Buddhist Christian Oikya Parishad reported 205 incidents of persecution of members of minority communities across 52 districts.
Many Bangladeshi student protesters, including members of the Gen-Z cohort, have taken proactive steps to protect Hindu temples and households from vandalism. Social media platforms like Instagram are filled with images of young students guarding these sites, aiming to dispel fears of religious violence and show solidarity with the Hindu community.
This complex situation has not only heightened tensions within Bangladesh but has also led to a ripple effect in neighboring India, where the issue has become a flashpoint on social media. Numerous posts have gone viral, purporting to show scenes of Hindus being attacked or persecuted in Bangladesh, fueling a surge of anti-Hindu and anti-India sentiment across the region.
In the past two weeks, numerous posts claiming to depict scenes from the protests have rapidly spread across platforms like Facebook, WhatsApp, and X in India, many of which have taken on a distinctly communal framework where numerous verified accounts have spread rumors and unverified claims as factual news.
The unchecked spread of rumors and fake news on platforms like X, combined with sensationalist coverage in mainstream Indian media, is creating a narrative that paints India as an antagonist rather than an ally.
For instance, Republic Bangla broadcast a report alleging that the Navagraha Temple had been attacked, a claim that has since been debunked as disinformation. At the same time, Sudarshan News broadcast the Lakshmipur shop fire video as part of their coverage of supposed attacks on Hindus. These reports have been widely shared and viewed, contributing to a growing perception in India that Hindus in Bangladesh are under siege.
In a statement posted on its official Facebook page, the West Bengal Police stated that some local TV channels are violating the Press Council of India norms by reporting on the current situation in Bangladesh in such a communally inflammatory manner. They request people not to fall into the trap of one-sided, hateful, and misleading propaganda.
Many of these posts have been debunked by fact-checkers; it reveals a concerning trend of misinformation.
Independent fact-checking organizations like FactWatch and international news agencies such as BBC Bangla have published reports debunking several of these claims, confirming that the incident was falsely reported when Al Jazeera’s coverage highlighted the exaggeration of attack numbers by certain Indian media outlets.
Reports from Indian government-affiliated news agencies like ANI suggest a coordinated effort to depict the unrest in Bangladesh as a religiously charged crisis. A student leader from India told ANI that the student-led movement in Bangladesh was orchestrated by the nation’s adversaries—a narrative that BJP leaders have echoed; it has attributed the destabilization efforts to Jamaat-e-Islami.
Reports from Bangladesh, including those from Al Jazeera and other international media, have provided a starkly different perspective against these narratives. According to these sources, the attacks on the Hindu community were not primarily religiously motivated but were instead politically driven. Many of the targeted individuals were affiliated with the Awami League, suggesting that the violence was rooted in political retribution rather than communal hatred. Additionally, Hindu community leaders in Bangladesh have refuted the claims made by Indian media, stating that the attacks were politically motivated rather than communal.
Right-wing political groups in India have a vested interest in portraying the violence in Bangladesh as part of an anti-Hindu narrative. There is, therefore, a correlation between an increase in misinformation on Indian platforms and a rise in criminal activities and vandalism in Bangladesh, leading some within the country to suspect that pro-Awami League forces in India are intentionally promoting a narrative of communal unrest to destabilize the country.
While the attack against Hindus is true, the framing of these incidents as part of a broader anti-Hindu agenda is not universally accepted. The spread of misinformation, therefore, serves multiple purposes: it fuels communal tensions, undermines the government’s credibility, and provides a pretext for further crackdowns on opposition groups.
Recent exaggerated reports by certain Indian media outlets of violence against the Hindu community in Bangladesh have already intensified anti-India sentiments among the country’s Gen-Z population. Even this generation, already critical of what they see as India’s meddling in Bangladeshi politics, is increasingly viewing India not as a democratic but as a nation driven by religious bias.
The portrayal of Bangladesh’s crisis through a religious lens by some Indian outlets suggests that the ongoing turmoil is primarily about religious tensions rather than a broader struggle for democratic rights. Yet, the focus on religious violence, often exaggerated or misreported, is intensifying anti-India sentiments among these young people, who feel their aspirations for a better Bangladesh are being overshadowed by an external agenda.
This generation, which has successfully mobilized against what they see as autocratic rule, is acutely aware of the power of information and the dangers of disinformation. They are keeping an eye on India—whether through government channels or social media influencers—as an attempt to undermine their movement.
Overall involvement of India in our political crisis and narratives, often portraying the unrest in Bangladesh as a precursor to religious extremism, is having a profound impact on how the youth in Bangladesh view India—not as a democratic ally but as a meddling neighbor with ulterior motives.
As these young people move into leadership roles, their current perceptions will likely influence how they engage with India globally. The growing anti-India sentiment among the new generation is not just a short-term issue—in the future, this could lead to a more strained diplomatic relationship.
If this distrust continues to grow, it could lead to a more strained and adversarial relationship, undermining decades of cooperation and mutual support. The potential for long-term diplomatic fallout is real, and both countries must recognize the dangers of allowing misinformation to shape public opinion.
Zulker Naeen
Zulker Naeen is a research coordinator at the Center for Critical and Qualitative Studies at the University of Liberal Arts Bangladesh.
