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| - Fact Check: Only Hindus didn't die during Bengal Panchayat polls violence, most were Muslims
Of the 18 people who died during the violence across the state, 12 were Muslims and 6 were Hindus.
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India Today Fact Check
Although there were some Hindus among those who died, more Muslim persons were killed during the violence on polling day.
While West Bengal's Panchayat elections were swept by the incumbent Trinamool Congress, several incidents of violence and deaths during the poll process raised questions about the state's law and order situation. In its aftermath, a video making the rounds on social media purported to show the violence. However, it also claimed that only Hindus were killed during the polls.
The video shows a man brandishing a pistol while others around pelted stones. The text inside the video read in Hindi, "16 people have been murdered on the first day of Panchayat elections in West Bengal, all the dead are Hindus." An archived version of this post can be seen here.
India Today, however, found that of the 18 deaths in the state during the polls, the majority were Muslims.
Our Probe
A reverse search of keyframes from the viral video led us to an AajTak report from July 8, featuring the clip’s frame of the man brandishing a pistol. The report mentioned that 18 people were killed within 24 hours of the polling day.
A subsequent search led us to an Economic Times report from July 8, which contained some of the names of the people killed on the polling day. This list included several Muslim names like Babar Ali, Sabiruddin Sheikh, Malek Sheikh, and Saidul Sheikh.
We found the complete list of those who died in the July 9 e-paper of The Telegraph. Out of the total 18 people on this list, 12 were Mulsim names. They were Md Shahenshah, Sheikh Malek, Md Jameruddin, Babar Ali, Sabiruddin Sheikh, Raushan Ali, Liyakat Sheikh, Yasin Sheikh, Rajibul Haque, Hamzar Ali Halsana, Anisur Ostagar, Shamsul Haq. The remaining six names were Hindu.
According to the Telegraph report, five deceased Muslims belonged to the Murshidabad district. India Today reached out to the Murshidabad police and obtained copies of the FIR that had been filed after the deaths.
In these FIR copies dated July 8, we found the name of Liyakat Sheikh from Murshidabad's Nawada written as “Haji Niyakat Sheikh” and the name of Sabiruddin Sheikh from Khargram was written as “Sattaruddin Sheikh”. Subsequently, India Today spoke to the officials from the Nawada and Khargram police stations, who confirmed that those names belonged to the same persons.
India Today also reached out to police in Nadia and North Dinajpur, who confirmed that Muslim people died in these districts during the violence on polling day.
Thus, it’s clear beyond any doubt that all who died during the West Bengal Panchayat polls violence were not Hindus.
(With inputs from Gopal Thakur, Murshidabad)
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