Murshidabad: False claims around 2019 triple murder revived on social media

by Pooja Chaudhuri

Against the backdrop of the recent violence in West Bengal’s Murshidabad district, an image of a man, a woman and a child is being widely shared on social media.

Sharing the photo, X user Kashmiri Hindu (@BattaKashmiri) wrote, “Murshidabad, October 10, 2019.. Bandhu Prakash Pal, a Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) worker, his pregnant wife and their six-year-old son were hacked to death…. The sword or the axe is responsible.” (Archived Link)

Another user, Debajit Sarkar, wrote, “Jihadi activity in Murshidabad began with the killing of a Vishwa Hindu Parishad worker, his pregnant wife, and his child.” (Archived Link)

The image was also shared by X user Kreately.in (@KreatelyMedia), which amplifies misinformation and communal propaganda on a regular basis.

The family of three — Bandhu Prakash Pal, a government school teacher by profession, his pregnant wife Beauty Pal, and their 8-year-old child — was hacked to death on October 8, 2019 at their home in Jiaganj police station area in Lalbag sub-division of Murshidabad. A construction worker, Utpal Behera, was booked for the crime. Police found financial dispute to be the motive behind the crime. Behera was convicted by a fast-track court in 2023. Additional district judge Santosh Kumar Pathak ordered capital punishment on August 24, 2023.

This is not the first time the 2019 triple murder is being given a political/communal colour. Is their any truth is such claims? Was the victim an RSS or VHP worker? Was the alleged crime communal in nature? Where did these claims originate from?

BJP Politicized the Murder

Initial local reports carried details of the primary investigation where the police hinted at financial dispute as the possible motive behind the murders. According to Anandabazar Patrika, the family was killed around 12 pm on October 8 by an unidentified man who had entered the victims’ home with a knife. To them, the crime an “act of revenge”.

A report in The Indian Express also stated that the police were investigating the possibility of a known person’s role in the alleged crime.

On October 11, then BJP member and MP Gautam Gambhir suggested that the family was linked to the RSS. “Hope that assoc[iation] with RSS does not deter @MamataOfficial from taking action,” wrote the former cricketer.

Another former BJP MP from West Bengal, Arjun Singh, directly blamed the TMC for the murder of an ‘RSS’ worker.

BJP national general secretary Kailash Vijayvargiya also attacked the Mamata Banerjee government.

The party’s state president Dilip Ghosh, national spokesperson Sambit Patra and BJP Mahila Morcha national social media head Priti Gandhi were among the other BJP members who introduced a political angle to the crime.

Social Media Added Communal Overtones

Social media users came up with their own version of the incident — a Muslim link to the crime. The founder of propaganda portal Postcard News, Mahesh Vikram Hegde, claimed that ‘peacefuls’ lynched an ‘RSS karyakarta’ in West Bengal. ‘Peacefuls’ is a derogatory term used to refer to Muslims.

Several users followed by the office of then Union railway minister Piyush Goyal also brought in communal overtones to the murders. One Rakesh Krishnan Simha (@ByRakeshSimha) wrote that a ‘jehadi mob’ murdered an unborn baby in Murshidabad.

Madhu Kishwar alluded to a hate crime, suggesting that the large Muslim population of Murshidabad was somehow connected to the murders.

Media Gave Credence to Political & Communal Claims

Most media outlets carried reports which furthered the unverified ‘RSS’ angle. Incidentally, initial reports of the crime did not mention the victim’s alleged political affiliation but the same was highlighted only after the BJP made the assertion more than 24 hours after the crime was committed.

An October 10 report by ANI merely said, “In a gruesome incident, three people, including a child, were murdered by unknown miscreants in their house on Thursday in Jiyaganj area of Murshidabad…The investigation into the matter is underway.”

However, a subsequent report by the news agency referred to Pal as ‘RSS worker’.

India Today had published a PTI report on October 9 with no mention of Pal’s purported political links, however, an independent report published by the news organisation the next day carried the unconfirmed claim by BJP as a fact.


Several other news organisations gave credence to unverified claims – Hindustan Times, The Lallantop, India TV, Swarajya, Navbharat Times, Jansatta, The Frontline, DNA, Outlook, Prabhat Khabar, Oneindia and Nai Dunia. Right-wing website Opindia also carried a story with similar assertions.

Hateful Tweets by Journalists

Vikas Bhadauria’s tweet on the incident contained graphic imagery hence was taken down by Twitter. The ABP News journalist, however, construed this as ‘lynching’ of his right to expression. Bhadauria was defending a tweet where he had claimed that the triple murder was a hate crime, committed in an area with negligible Hindu population.

India TV executive editor Sushant Sinha also portrayed the murders as a hate crime. In a tweet which garnered nearly 10,000 likes, Sinha attacked certain sections of the citizenry who, as per the journalist, would be unaffected by the death of the child and celebrate the death of his parents. “They won’t see the dead body of a child but that of a Sanghi…They would be happy seeing the corpses of the entire family covered in blood,” wrote Sinha.

After West Bengal police clarified that the murders were not linked to any political or communal angle, editorial director of Swarajya R Jagannathan questioned the investigation. This came despite the statements of the victims’ family being in tandem with those of WB police.

Attacks on Liberals

The incident also drew sharp criticism for ‘liberals’. Union minister Ravi Shankar Prasad wrote, “Hope liberals will find it ghastly enough to empathize with the bereaved family.”

Times Now broadcast a show targetting the 49 celebrities who had written an open letter to the Prime Minister, expressing concern over mob lynching in the country.

Those critical of the government were attacked by social media users as well. The X handle Friends of RSS, (@friendsofrss) which is followed by top leaders of the BJP, including the PM Modi, wrote, “Will the Award Wapsi gang and the intellectuals who have coined the word lynching say something?”

What Did Police Investigation Say?

In an October 11 Twitter thread, West Bengal police clarified, “Prima facie it seems to be a case of personal enmity and it has nothing to do with politics.”

Police had also mentioned that Pal was in “serious financial crisis.”

Subsequently, media reports came pouring in that the family had denied RSS links. India Today reported that Pal’s brother-in-law, Diptiman Sarkar, said that an RSS member had offered him financial help, but he rejected it saying that his brother-in-law was never associated with any political party.

After the family’s statements, the BJP was on the back foot over the triple murder. The party’s state chief Dilip Ghosh denied that he ever said that the murders had a political motive. Days before, Ghosh had tweeted, “…political violence continues unabated even during Durga Puja.”

After a week-long investigation, West Bengal police arrested Utpal Behara from Bandhu Prakash Pal’s hometown and ruled out any political angle to the crime. “According to police, Pal also worked as an insurance agent and 20-year-old Behra had bought two life insurance policies from him. Behra told investigators that Pal had given him the receipt for the first policy but was dodging to give the receipt for the second,” reported The Hindu. The police also claimed in a tweet that Behara confessed to his crime.

Later, during hearing, the prosecution told a fast-track court that Behara had purchased a short time insurance policy through the schoolteacher for which he used to give the latter ₹24,000 a year as premium. The policy lapsed in 2019 because Pal allegedly did not deposit the premium with the insurance company. This enraged the mason, following which he planned to commit the murders. The woman and her son were killed as they were eyewitnesses, Hindustan Times reported.

Misinformation Continues Unabated

The gruesome murder of a family over a personal financial dispute was politicised by the BJP. Their unverified claims were given credence by the media which also added communal spin to the crime. Supporters of the party made massive attempts on social media to prove that the perpetrator was a Muslim.

Incidentally, none of these online influencers, media organisations and politicians has posted clarifications on the premature, hateful assertions which were laid to rest by West Bengal police. In fact, a few continued to amplify misinformation. A report by Swarajya post the details released by the police still refered to Bandhu Prakash Pal as an ‘RSS worker’.

Almost six years later, such false claims initiated by the BJP and Right-wing influencers not only survive, but also have managed to get a fresh lease of life on social media against the backdrop of the violence in Murshidabad.

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About the Author

Pooja Chaudhuri is a senior editor at Alt News.