A recently viral postcard features several army personnel standing around four individuals, with some sacks lying in front of them. The image is being circulated on social media with the claim that these four individuals are operatives of India's intelligence agency RAW, and that the Bangladesh Army has arrested them.
The caption accompanying the image states, “Allowing the presence of Indian RAW in Bangladesh is a threat to the country's sovereignty; their roots must be uprooted from this land.”
Fact-checking confirms that the claim is false. The image being circulated shows four individuals arrested in Netrokona in 2024 for illegally smuggling Indian sugar. These individuals are being misrepresented as RAW agents.
Verification: To examine the validity of the claim, keyword-based searches such as “Indian spy arrested by Bangladesh Army” were conducted using Google and other search engines. No credible news reports or reliable information were found to support the claim, suggesting that the news is likely baseless.
Subsequently, a reverse image search was performed on Google. This revealed reports from media outlets including Netrokona Journal (archive), Amar Sangbad (archive), and Daily Inqilab (archive), all related to this photograph. According to reports dated August 12, 2024, the Bangladesh Army conducted an operation in the Atrai Khali area of Durgapur upazila, Netrokona district, where they detained four individuals involved in smuggling 58 sacks of Indian sugar. The estimated value of the seized sugar was BDT 360,000. The names of the detained individuals were withheld to aid the arrest of other members of the sugar smuggling syndicate. Later, the four detainees and the 58 sacks of Indian sugar were handed over to the 31 BGB. None of the reports identified the individuals in the image as members of India's intelligence agency RAW.
Conclusion: Through verification, Fact Crescendo concludes that the image from 2024 showing four individuals arrested for smuggling Indian sugar in Netrokona is being falsely circulated as evidence of Indian intelligence agents captured by the Bangladesh Army.
Original News Source: https://bangladesh.factcrescendo.com/irrelevant-photo-shared-claiming-to-show-four-raw-agents-arrested-by-the-bangladesh-army/
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Fact-Check Alert
Please be aware of misleading information about Bangladesh politics on social media and verify sources before sharing.
Before sharing any photocard, always verify it by checking the original media source.
Sharing religious misinformation and disinformation can cause harm. Always verify before sharing.
Before sharing any photocard, always verify it by checking the original media source.
Sharing religious misinformation and disinformation can cause harm. Always verify before sharing.