Fact Check: Images Of Women Shared Claiming They Were Bangladeshi Freedom Fighters Who Converted To Islam

Two photos are being shared online, claiming both images are of freedom fighters who fought for Bangladesh's liberation. In both images, four women are sitting in a jeep with rifles in their hands. Social media users are sharing the photo claiming both images are of the same women after a gap of 50 years, and these women had fought for the freedom of Bangladesh from Pakistan in 1971.

Many social media users are sharing these images with the claim that the ladies in the photo converted from Hinduism to Islam in Bangladesh.

VHP spokesperson Shriraj Nair shared the two images with a caption that insinuates that these ladies converted to Islam. Nair tweeted, "The picture at the top is of four Bangladeshi freedom fighters taken in 1971, during the liberation war against West Pakistan. The photo below has been taken recently, 50 years on. The same women now in HIJAB in the same jeep, with the same rifles."

Many other Twitter handles are sharing the image with a caption that translates in English as, "Brutality against Hindus in Bangladesh. The above photo was of 1971 Bangladesh freedom struggles when they were Hindus, but now these women are sitting on the same jeep and getting the image clicked when they have converted to Islam".

The Logical Indian also received the query on its Whatsapp number +91 636340 00343 asking if these ladies have converted to Islam.

Claim:

The women in the photos are Bangladeshi freedom fighters who were once Hindu and later converted to Islam.

Fact Check:

The Logical Indian found that the photo was also viral in Bangladesh, where many people claimed that the ladies in the viral image are freedom fighters who fought for the liberation of Bangladesh. According to the Bangladeshi Twitter handle, they claimed that the black and white image is from 1971.

We contacted a Bangladeshi journalist who told us that while both the images were of the same women, these ladies were neither freedom fighters nor they were Hindus who converted to Muslims. The journalist shared with us a Facebook page, 'Bangladesh Old Photo Archive', that had shared the black and white photo on July 19, 2013. The photo is captioned, "Women are posing with a gun on a village trip. Bangladesh (1965) Photo courtesy- Renan Ahmed."

We also found that a Facebook user, Afrina Haque, had also shared the photo to debunk the viral claim that these ladies were freedom fighters. Haque claimed that the ladies in the viral picture were her aunts, and the image is of 1965 when they went hunting with family members. She also posted that the ladies had no relation with the Bangladesh liberation movement as claimed online. She also informed that two of the aunts were not alive now.

In the comment section of the same post, Haque had shared two more pictures of these ladies, one where they were young and the other one when they became old.

The Bangladeshi journalist also confirmed that the ladies were born Muslims and were never Hindus, as many social media users claimed.

If you have any news that you believe needs to be fact-checked, please email us at factcheck@thelogicalindian.com or WhatsApp at 6364000343.

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