A photograph showing a man hanging from a tree is being circulated on social media with the claim that he was murdered recently. The back of the man’s t-shirt reads, ‘Punished for working for the BJP (Translated from Bengali)’.
‘This is Trilochan Mahato, an 18-year-old boy from West Bengal. TMC activists murdered him and wrote on his t-shirt ‘This is a punishment for joining BJP’. Today TMC MP Derek O’Brien has gone to UP to talk about law and order. Do you see their disgusting politics? (Translated from Hindi),’ reads the caption of one such post.
Reportedly, on October 2, Trinamool Congress’s (TMC) Rajya Sabha (RS) member Derek O’Brien had visited Uttar Pradesh to show solidarity with the alleged Hathras gang-rape victim’s family.
ये पश्चिम बंगाल का एक 18 साल का लड़का त्रिलोचन महतो है। जिसका TMC कार्यकर्ताओं ने हत्या कर दी और उसके टीशर्ट पर लिख दिया ‘ये भाजपा में शामिल होने का सज़ा है।’और आज TMC सांसद डेरेक ओ ब्रायन यूपी गए है कानून व्यवस्था पर ज्ञान छिलने। घिनौनी राजनीति देख रहे हो इनके? pic.twitter.com/ngUylAHKfW
— Arpita Jana ♓ (@arpispeaks) October 2, 2020
@IndiaToday @rahulkanwal not sensational enough to cover? Oh I forgot not a BJP ruled state. @derekobrienmp and TMC…congratulations on the free pass to murder all those who oppose…especially if they are poor! @RahulGandhi planning to walk to WB anytime soon? https://t.co/OVzqhP14Ce
— Bitto (@reclusiveIndian) October 3, 2020
No liberals will utter a word on this ? You are the worst CM bengal ever had @MamataOfficial https://t.co/kpXU3uoItu
— Ajstyles 🇮🇳 (@Aj15891) October 3, 2020
@derekobrienmp @MamataOfficial @WBPolice what is happening in bengal . Need to be addressed.. https://t.co/C8AMDmrCHg
— Aviral Mittal (@aviral_mittal) October 3, 2020
Claim:
Photo of a BJP worker, who was found hanging from a tree is recent.
Fact Check:
The claim is false. The photo is from an incident that occurred two years ago.
A reverse image search of the viral photo led to a report by DNA from May 2018. The report which was published on May 31, 2018, said that the incident had occurred in Purulia district, West Bengal. The man identified as Trilochan Mahato was a BJP worker.
An unsigned note was also found near the video which read, ‘You have been working for BJP at this age. We have been trying to kill you since elections and today we killed you (Translated from Bengali)’.
Home minister Amit Shah had also shared the photo on May 30, 2018.
Deeply hurt by the brutal killing of our young karyakarta, Trilochan Mahato in Balarampur,West Bengal. A young life full of possibilities was brutally taken out under state’s patronage. He was hanged on a tree just because his ideology differed from that of state sponsored goons. pic.twitter.com/nHAEK09n7R
— Amit Shah (@AmitShah) May 30, 2018
News agency ANI reported on 24 June 2018 that a 45-year-old man was arrested in connection with the murder.
BJP Worker Trilochan Mahato murder case: A 45-year-old man was arrested earlier today in connection with the case. Body of Trilochan Mahato was found hanging from a tree in Balarampur’s Khudigora jungle (West Bengal) on May 30, 2018.
— ANI (@ANI) June 24, 2018
Therefore, while the incident is true, it is not recent.
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