Fact Check: Viral Video Claiming CRPF’s Strictness During Bengal Assembly Elections Is From Bangladesh
The video going viral with the claim of CRPF's strictness before the elections in West Bengal is not from Bengal, but from the protest that took place in Bangladesh after the murder of student leader Osman Hadi.
- By: Abhishek Parashar
- Published: Apr 20, 2026 at 03:26 PM
- Updated: Apr 22, 2026 at 06:43 PM
New Delhi (Vishvas News). West Bengal will hold two-phase assembly elections on April 23 and 29, 2026, with results declared on May 4. A large number of paramilitary forces have been deployed in the state for these elections. In this context, a viral video on social media is being claimed to be from West Bengal, where the deployment of the CRPF has changed the atmosphere. In the viral video, security forces can be seen dealing harshly with some miscreants.
Several social media users have shared a similar video showing a convoy of security forces vehicles on a deserted road, claiming it depicts CRPF movement ahead of the 2026 Bengal Assembly elections. Several other users have also shared this video on Instagram with similar claims.
Vishvas News investigated and found this claim to be misleading. Paramilitary forces have been deployed in West Bengal for the upcoming assembly elections, but the viral video is from Bangladesh, and not from West Bengal.
What is viral?
Social media user ‘@HinduAsociation’ shared the viral video (Archive link) on April 7, 2026, with the caption, “The atmosphere in Bengal has changed with the entry of CRPF.The goons are being removed by tearing up the ground.Now, no more talks, direct action begins.There will be no Mian Raj in Bengal, only Hindu Raj will prevail.”
Many other users have shared it with similar claims on different social media platforms.
investigation
In the viral video, security forces can be seen taking action against some rioters. However, the uniforms of the security forces do not match those of India’s CRPF personnel. Therefore, we searched for the source of this video. A reverse image search of key frames from the video revealed a report dated January 11, 2026, on the website dailylokaloy.com, which uses some of the visuals from this video.
According to the report, “Army personnel lathi-charged students to control the protests following the murder of Bangladeshi student leader Osman Hadi. At least 23 people were injured in the incident. The incident occurred on Sunday afternoon (January 11) at the Sher-e-Bangla Park intersection in the district headquarters. It is reported that at around 2:15 pm on Sunday, students blocked a road after taking out a protest march. The march presented four-point demands, including the arrest and prosecution of Osman Hadi’s killers. The blockade lasted for about an hour and a half, leaving hundreds of vehicles stranded on both sides of the Panchagarh-Dhaka National Highway.”
Another Facebook user, ‘NEWS NOW Bangla’, has shared the video of the incident in the same context.
According to a BBC Hindi report, “Osman Hadi was the leader of the protests in Bangladesh last year, who was shot dead.”
Our investigation revealed that the viral video is from Bangladesh. To verify further, we contacted Tausif Akbar, a Bangladesh-based fact checker, who confirmed, “This video is from Bangladesh.”
Second Video
Several social media users have shared a similar video showing a convoy of security forces vehicles on a deserted road, claiming it depicts CRPF movement ahead of the 2026 Bengal Assembly elections. Several other users have also shared this video on Instagram with similar claims.
The viral video shows a curfew-like situation, which seems unlikely during an election campaign in Bengal. To verify the claim, we conducted a reverse image search of key frames and found the video on the official X account of ‘Neha Gurung’, shared on February 17, 2025, stating it was from Manipur.
The video is of high quality, and keyframes reveal a shop banner reading “KAIZEN”. Since the video was claimed to be from Imphal, Manipur, we traced the shop’s location using geolocation tools. Google Earth confirmed the location as Indo-Myanmar Road in Imphal, Manipur.
Our investigation revealed that the viral video is around a year old and originates from Manipur, not Bengal.
What is the context?
The two-phase elections in West Bengal are scheduled on April 23 and 29, 2026, and the votes will be counted on May 4, 2026.
Assembly elections are being held in four states and one union territory, including West Bengal, Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Assam, and Puducherry. Voting for the assembly elections in Assam, Kerala, and Puducherry took place on April 9, 2026. According to the Election Commission’s data, voter turnout was 85.38% in Assam, 78.03% in Kerala, and 89.83% in Puducherry.
The X user who shared the viral video has over one lakh followers.
Conclusion: The video going viral with the claim of CRPF’s strictness before the elections in West Bengal is not from Bengal, but from the protest that took place in Bangladesh after the murder of student leader Osman Hadi.
- Claim Review : CRPF tightens its grip before elections in West Bengal.
- Claimed By : X User-@HinduAsociation
- Fact Check : Misleading
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