As Hindus in Muslim-majority Bangladesh marked the traditional Durga Puja festival amid tight security following a wave of violence against minority communities, an altered picture showing several clerics offering Islamic prayers in what appeared to be a Hindu temple has surfaced online. The original photo actually shows them at a cemetery where an Islamic scholar is buried.
“What’s happening in this temple,” read a Bengali-language caption with the image shared in a Facebook post on October 10, 2024.
The image shows four men with hands raised in an Islamic prayer position with idols of Hindu deities in the background. The head of a fifth man can also be seen.
Screenshot of the false post
The altered image circulated online as seven people were charged for “hurting religious sentiments” after organisers of a Durga Puja celebration in Chattogram in southern Bangladesh asked performers to sing Islamic songs, according to local news outlet Dhaka Tribune (archived link).
AFP reported the festival has been marked in Bangladesh under tight security as a spate of attacks targeted minority communities, including Hindus — who are seen as a steadfast support base for former prime minister Sheikh Hasina’s Awami League party — following her ouster in August (archived link).
The image was also shared here and here on Facebook with similar claims.
But the image was digitally created.
Doctored image
A Google reverse image search found the photo showing the Muslim clerics was shared in a Facebook post on February 5, 2023 (archived link).
The post’s Bengali-language caption said the picture showed them offering prayers at the grave of Syed Fazlul Karim — a celebrated Islamic scholar in Bangladesh.
Below is a screenshot comparison of the photo used in false Facebook posts (left) and the picture shared in the 2023 post (right):
Screenshot comparison of the photo used in false Facebook posts (left) and the picture shared in a 2023 post (right)
Images on Google Street View also show the original picture was taken at the cemetery where Karim is buried (archived link)
Below is a comparison of the picture in the 2023 Facebook post (left) and the cemetery seen on Google Street View (right):
Comparison of the picture in the 2023 Facebook post (left) and the cemetery seen on Google Street View (right)
AFP has debunked other misinformation related to the violence against Hindus in Bangladesh after Hasina’s ouster.