BJP spokesperson tweets image of Gujarat riots, says it’s from WB

Bharatiya Janata Party’s (BJP’s) official spokesperson Nupur Sharma has been called out for sharing a fake image which she claimed was taken during the ongoing violence in West Bengal. The image of a burning vehicle that Sharma shared, it later turned out, was taken in 2002 during the Gujarat riots.

The picture by the BJP spokesperson on Saturday was shared with an appeal that called on the citizens to participate in a protest against the West Bengal state government. The BJP has been accusing the Trinamool Congress of not doing enough to contain the communal flare up, sparked after a 17-year-old youth from North 24 Parganas reportedly posted a derogatory image of Prophet Mohammad on June 3.

Authorities in West Bengal have been closely monitoring the social media for fake posts. According to news reports, the police on Saturday arrested a 38-year-old-man who had shared a still from a Bhojpuri movie. The accused claimed that the image depicted the violent situation in West Bengal.

Kolkata Police has been urging locals to not get incited by fake news circulating on social media.

Despite being told by users of the wrong image that she had shared, Sharma didn’t take down her Twitter post, which had been re-tweeted 2,000 times until Monday afternoon.

On the other hand, she seemed to have doubled down on her fake Twitter post as she continued issuing appeals against the West Bengal government.

Trinamool chief and West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee has accused the BJP of “destroying the federal structure of the country with the sole aim of grabbing power.” Banerjee also promised strict action against two news channels for passing off older videos as ones taken during the ongoing unrest.

“Video clips of an incident in Comilla, Bangladesh, and a Bhojpuri film were being shown as if these incidents had taken place in Bengal,” the Trinamool Congress chief alleged at a press conference on Saturday, where she also announced a judicial probe into the communal clashes at Baduria and Basarhat in North 24 Parganas district.

“Once again I am saying, it is the ploy of the BJP to disturb the peace of the state,” she added.

The West Bengal Police had on Saturday detained a delegation of three BJP MPs who were trying to make their way into the violence-hit district. This came following an appeal by the state government asking political parties to stay away from North 24 Parganas in the wake of the situation.