Clash between two groups over idol immersion in Bilaspur falsely viral with communal spin

by Kinjal

A video of a clash in which a group of people are seen pelting stones and sticks at a truck is being circulated widely on social media. It has been claimed that the footage is from a clash in Chattisgarh’s Bilaspur. According to the accompanying message, Hindus were allegedly attacked with swords, sticks, and rods during the idol immersion ceremony of the Hindu deity Durga. As per Hindu tradition, the idol of the deity is immersed at the end of Navratri. It is worth noting that the viral message mentions Hindus being attacked. In other words, users are stating the perpetrators of the attack are from another religious community.

Twitter user Vishnu Kumar Mishra amplified the footage with this claim. The post was retweeted by more than 385 handles at the time of writing. (Archived link)

Twitter user ‘Yogi Yogesh Agarwal (Dharmasena)’ also shared the video with a similar message. He questioned for how long Hindus will be thrashed for celebrating their festivals in their own country. (Archived link)

Several other Twitter users also promoted the video. (Link 1, Link 2, Link 3)

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The video is widespread on Facebook with the same claim.

Fact-check

Alt News performed a keyword search, which led us to a report by News18. The article has quoted the police as saying that a scuffle broke out between two Durga Puja committees during the idol immersion in Bilaspur on October 7. During the clash, both groups attacked each other’s members with sticks and stones. According to the police, this row broke out over which party would go for the immersion ceremony first.

News agency ANI also tweeted about this video. The thread quotes ASP Rajendra Jaiswal, who states that the dispute was between two Durga Puja committees and the police are still interrogating the accused in this case.

Hindi daily Dainik Bhaskar reported that during the Durga immersion in Bilaspur, religious processions were passing from Devkinandan Chowk to Juna Bilaspur. Meanwhile, a dispute arose between devotees from Shanichari Bazaar and Kududand Durgotsav Samiti. People from both parties attacked each other with sticks and lathis. According to the report, “Following the dispute, both parties have filed cases against each other. Abhijit Tiwari has filed a case against Himanshu Rai, Shailesh, Paras and others, while on the other side, Shailesh Kashyap has filed an FIR against Naveen Tiwari, Vijay Gupta and others.

To sum it up, a video of a scuffle between two Durga Puja committees in Chattisgarh’s Bilaspur, Chhattisgarh was falsely circulated on social media as an ‘attack on Hindus’.

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About the Author

Kinjal Parmar holds a Bachelor of Science in Microbiology. However, her keen interest in journalism, drove her to pursue journalism from the Indian Institute of Mass Communication. At Alt News since 2019, she focuses on authentication of information which includes visual verification, media misreports, examining mis/disinformation across social media. She is the lead video producer at Alt News and manages social media accounts for the organization.