The Hindu appears to have discovered a rather unique way of spreading misinformation on the internet. The caption it has shared on its Twitter account tells a completely different story than the video the caption is for. The video is related to an incident involving Trinamool Congress (TMC) candidate from Arambagh Sujata Mondal Khan.
TMC candidate from Arambagh Sujata Mondal Khan was attacked by BJP supporters, and her security officer sustained injuries.
— The Hindu (@the_hindu) April 6, 2021
Here are the live updates: https://t.co/YW0PPhB4xn #WestBengalElections pic.twitter.com/KVJQ04YBeC
The caption says, “TMC candidate from Arambagh Sujata Mondal Khan was attacked by BJP supporters, and her security officer sustained injuries.” However, the video paints a completely different picture.
In the video, the reporter can be heard speaking in Bengali, saying that the TMC leader and her workers are accused of attacking villagers after entering their houses and injuring the hand of one of them. The reporter says the villagers have accused the TMC workers of breaking the hand of one of their own. And therefore, villagers came out in large numbers against the political leader.
The villagers can be seen chasing the Trinamool gang with sticks in their hands. The Hindu, instead, presents a completely different picture accusing the BJP of attacking the TMC candidate. One reason appears to be that the reporter speaks in Bengali. Therefore, those who do not understand the language would be easily misled by the caption. It is one of the factors that appears to have played a part in the manner in which the video was captioned.
Incidentally, it is not only The Hindu which has engaged in such mischief. Poulomi Saha, India Today journalist, shared the same video and failed to note the accusations against Sujata Mondal Khan.
TMC candidate from Arambagh in Hooghly district, Sujata Mondal comes under attack while going around her constituency
— Poulomi Saha (@PoulomiMSaha) April 6, 2021
Polling in Arambagh is underway today.
Sujata is the estranged wife of BJP MP Saumitra Khan #BattleForBengal pic.twitter.com/oKvXluEjm1
There appears to be a motivated campaign to trivialize the persistent political violence in West Bengal, committed by TMC goons against opposition workers and candidates. Multiple BJP candidates have been attacked during the course of these elections. The media, now, appears to downplay the toxic political violence by insinuating that the BJP is also engaging in it.