Tensions prevailed in Malda after fireworks were allegedly set off in front of the Mothabari mosque on the night of March 26, 2025. the situation escalated when a protest was called against the incident on Thursday, March 27, 2025. The BJP has alleged that members of the minority community selectively vandalised Hindu houses and shops. State BJP President and Union Minister of State, Sukanta Majumdar, has criticised the state government over the worsening law and order situation.
The opposition leader of the West Bengal Assembly, Shuvendu Adhikari, has accused the ruling TMC party of appeasement politics for the incident.
Amidst these developments, a video showing a group of people vandalizing and setting vehicles on fire has gone viral on social media. Some netizens claim that the footage is from Mothabari, Malda. Sharing the video on X, one such user wrote, “COMMUNAL VIOLENCE A serious situation in Mothabari Malda on March 28 2025. Violent scene with individuals using a homemade firearm amid fires and chaos. Reports confirm a mob allegedly targeting Hindu-owned shops escalating tensions in West Bengal. This demands a President’s rule in the state due to the deteriorating law and order situation under the leadership of CM @MamataOfficial”
Archive links of such posts can be seen here and here.
Fact Check/ Verification
A reverse image search of a keyframe from the viral video revealed that the same footage was uploaded on November 27, 2023, on the official YouTube channel of Prothom Alo, a media outlet from Bangladesh. The video was titled in Bangala “Torch procession and vehicle vandalism in support of the blockade in Sylhet.” According to the report, Bangladesh’s then-opposition party, BNP, had called a bandh (strike) in Sylhet. BNP supporters initially took out a procession in support of the strike, but the situation later escalated, leading to incidents of arson targeting shops, houses, and vehicles.
A shop named “Mir Ceramic Limited Khan Emporium“ is clearly visible in the video posted on Prothom Alo’s official YouTube channel. A Google Maps search confirms that the shop is located in Sylhet, and a comparison of both videos verifies that they depict the same location.
Further investigation also took us to a post on X by the West Bengal Police, who clarified it to be fake.
Conclusion
Thus, it is clear that the viral video is not from Mothabari, Malda. It is footage of a clash that occurred in Sylhet, Bangladesh, in 2023.
Sources
Video by Prothom Alo, Dated November 27, 2023
X Post by West Bengal Police, Dated March 28, 2025
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