(Trigger Warning: Visuals and description of molestation)
A disturbing video showing a group of men groping and molesting two women as they try to defend themselves is being shared as a recent incident from West Bengal.
The claim: People on social media have criticised the state's law and order situation and said that the incident involved Rohingyas.
(Note: Due to the distressing nature of the visuals, we have refrained from adding any links to the archives.)
The video had recorded more than 15,30,000 views.
(Source: Twitter/Screenshot)
What is the truth?: Neither the video is recent nor is it related to West Bengal. The video dates back to May 2017, when 14 men molested two women on a deserted road in Uttar Pradesh's Rampur.
How did we find out?: A Google Lens search led us to a report published in NDTV. It mentioned that 14 men groped two women near a village on 22 May 2017, which comes under the jurisdiction of Tanda police station.
The accused filmed the incident on their phone and released it on social media.
While it was not clear when the video was taken, the police filed a molestation case against all the accused.
It also said that two people were arrested, and the hunt for others was going on.
Rampur Superintendent of Police, Vipin Tada, said that the main accused was arrested and that an First Information Report (FIR) was filed.
The article was published on 29 May 2017.
(Source: NDTV/Screenshot)
News reports: According to a Times of India report, the main accused was identified as Shahnawaz. The other accused were named Danish, Saddam, Farman, and Siraj.
The report also said four accused would be charged under some relevant sections of National Security Act (NSA) because the act "disturbed public order".
It further mentioned that four teams of crime branch and surveillance officials were formed by district administration to arrest the remaining accused.
UP police also posted the names of four accused on their official Twitter handle.
An Indian Express report added that the police had filed an FIR against the accused under sections 354A (sexual harassment), 354B (assault or use of criminal force on a woman with intent to disrobe) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC).
They were also booked under the Information Technology Act.
According to Hindustan Times' report published on 31 May 2017, 12 out of 14 accused were arrested which included a minor.
Video was viral with misleading context in 2022: UP Police had replied to a user in February 2022 who shared the same video blaming the Samajwadi Party for the incident.
The tweet mentioned that the incident was from 2017 and legal action has been taken against the accused.
Conclusion: While we could not independently verify the identity of the accused, it is clear that the video is old and not related to West Bengal. It dates back to 2017 and is from Uttar Pradesh.
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