A distressing video showing a woman wearing a burqa being paraded down a street by a man while her waist is shackled with chains has gone viral on social media. In the video, the woman appears visibly distressed and is heard crying.
The video is shared widely by many social media accounts claiming it shows a Muslim woman being treated inhumanely in India.
A social media user shared the video with a caption that reads, “In India, a Muslim woman is being dragged while bound in chains. The woman is saying, ‘Am I not human?’”
SouthCheck found that the claim is false. The viral video is from Bangladesh.
On a Google reverse image search, we found that the same video was shared by Bhorer Kagoj Live, the official YouTube channel of Bhorer Kagoj, a prestigious and influential daily newspaper in Bangladesh. The video is shared with a caption that reads, “Young woman chained and tortured in Sylhet! CCTV footage captures shocking incident of theft!?”
On a Google reverse image search, we found that the screenshot of the video was shared by a Bangladeshi website, UTSAB TV, on September 9.
The report suggests that the video of a teenage girl in Sylhet, Bangladesh, being chained around her waist, beaten and dragged over alleged shop theft has gone viral. Locals detained her Monday night in D-Block Mosque Market, then tortured and paraded her. Police rescued her around 11:30 pm and handed her to court on theft charges. Authorities are identifying those involved and promise immediate legal action. The incident sparked outrage; officials said legal action will be taken against those responsible.
We further found that the screenshot was also shared by the Bangladesh-based website, Sarbangla.net, on September 19.
According to the report, police in Sylhet arrested three men after a viral video showed a 15-year-old girl being chained around her waist and dragged in Shahjalal suburb. The arrested were Md Zakir Hossain, Md Mozakkir Hossain and Md Burhan Uddin. The girl was detained by locals over alleged cash-box theft on September 7 and later handed to court under the SMP Act. No written complaint was filed. Legal experts said citizens cannot torture or punish suspects themselves.
Hence, we can ascertain that the viral claim is false.
