On Monday, November 25, the Dhaka Metropolitan Police arrested Chinmoy Krishna Das, leader of the International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON) in Bangladesh. Das was named in a complaint accusing him and several others of insulting the national flag of Bangladesh. Known for his advocacy of religious minority rights, Das was denied bail and remanded to jail by a court in Chattogram on November 26. Following the court’s ruling around noon, Das’ supporters began protesting, obstructing the movement of the prison van transporting him. The situation escalated into clashes between security personnel and the demonstrators, resulting in the death of a lawyer, Saiful Islam.
After the death of Saiful Islam, claims have surfaced alleging that a Muslim lawyer, Saiful Islam, who was defending ISKCON’s Chinmoy Das, was killed in police violence in Chittagong, Bangladesh. Some users are sharing an image of him lying on the ground with a head injury, falsely identifying him as a Hindu. However, these claims are inaccurate. Saiful Islam, also known as Alif, was killed during a clash between the supporters of Chinmoy Krishna Das and law enforcement. He was not defending Chinmoy Krishna Das.
Misleading claims surfaced about Chinmoy Krishna Das
Making a post on X (Formerly Twitter) @republic report. “A Muslim lawyer defending ISKCON’s Chinmoy Krishna Das was killed in police violence in Bangladesh’s Chittagong. Later, they deleted the post.
Right-Wing media outlet, @OpIndia_com also made a post and reported. “Muslim lawyer representing ISKCON monk Chinmoy Krishna Das killed amid protests”.
Several other media outlets have also disseminated the claims. Their posts can be seen here, @firstpost, @EconomicTimes, @SudarshanNewsTV.
Influencers and propagandists have also disseminated visuals from the incident and made similar claims, their posts can be seen here. @MeghUpdates, @RadharamnDas, @TimesAlgebraIND, @BattaKashmiri, @FrontalForce, @VHindus71, @KreatelyMedia, @pakistan_untold, @FuriousSunanda, @divya_gandotra, @arunpudur, @HinduVoice_in, @AdvaitaKala.
Some users shared visuals from the incident, falsely claimed that he was a Hindu. @RealBababanaras (2, 3), @VHindus71.
The truth behind the claims about Chinmoy Krishna Das, Fact Check
As soon as the posts containing the visuals and claims came to our notice. Subsequently, we conducted research and analysis regarding the incident and found that these claims about the lawyer were not true.
To verify the claims made by the users. We performed relevant keyword searches and found multiple reports regarding the incident. According to the reports, (1, 2, 3), Saiful Islam, also known as Alif, was killed during the clash between supporters of Chinmoy Krishna Das and law enforcement. Saiful Islam was not representing Chinmoy Das; he was serving as an Assistant Public Prosecutor (APP).
We also came across Saiful Islam Alif’s Facebook profile, where he shared a video on November 25 that explained the grounds supporting Chinmoy Krishna Das’s arrest. Saiful Islam was a vocal opponent of ISKCON and had previously supported banning the organization in Bangladesh, alleging it engaged in activities that went against the country’s interests.
According to a BBC Bangla report, Subhashis Sharma is the lawyer representing Chinmoy Das. Additionally, the press wing of the Chief Advisor of Bangladesh’s interim government also debunked the rumour on Facebook. Clarified that Subhashis Sharma is the lawyer for the Hindu priest.
Therefore, it is evident from verified sources that the lawyer Saiful Islam who was killed during the violence in Chittagong was not representing Chinmoy Krishna Das.
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— D-Intent Data (@dintentdata) November 26, 2024
ANALYSIS: Misleading
FACT: Claims are being circulated asserting that a Muslim lawyer defending ISKCON's Chinmoy Krishna Das was killed in police violence in Bangladesh's Chittagong. Some users are sharing an image of him lying on the ground with a head injury, (1/4) pic.twitter.com/gGA5QIWSVg
Intent
Social media users, influencers, propagandists and media outlets circulated misleading claims about the killing of Saiful Islam.
Conclusion
Claim– A Muslim lawyer defending ISKCON’s Chinmoy Das, was killed in police violence in Chittagong, Bangladesh.
Fact – The deceased lawyer Saiful Islam was not defending ISKCON’s Chinmoy Krishna Das. The lawyer representing Chinmoy Krishna Das is Subhashis Sharma.
Related Article: Fact Check: Videos of clash between two groups of Muslim community circulated as religious hate crimes against Hindus in Bangladesh – D-Intent Data
