Harassment video of Pakistan wrongly linked to women's safety in Bangladesh
A video showing a female student being harassed has been shared on Facebook, with many expressing concerns over women’s safety during the tenure of the current interim government of Bangladesh. But Dismislab’s verification shows the video is not from Bangladesh, but from Pakistan.
In the footage, a motorbike rider is seen harassing a female student. Sharing the video, one Facebook user wrote: “If you ask for a solution, most people will blame women for going outside. Then they will say the honor of keeping women confined at home is greater.” Another commented: “What I saw in this video proves that women’s safety in this country is very fragile.”
The post has been viewed more than 42,000 times and shared over a hundred times so far In one description, one user wrote: “What else can we expect from this state? They welcome rapists with garlands.” Another wrote: “Who will ensure social security for women in this country? What is the role of the state? Why is there no justice, out of fear or for some sort of favor?”
Outside of social media, mainstream outlet Kaler Kantho published an opinion piece titled “Indecency in an alley caught on CCTV,” using images from the same video.
Kaler Kantho also posted a photocard with the same photo and headline on its verified Facebook page. That photocard was shared by a Facebook page and multiple users (1, 2) with the same claim. One X user shared Kaler Kantho’s image and wrote: “There is no peace or security anywhere in the country. The nation is in the grip of the evil miscreant Yunus. Ordinary lives are devastated in such a situation.”
A keyframe search shows the video was already published on Facebook, YouTube and X (1, 2) by different Pakistani accounts and pages on August 23. A page named Khabarnama said the incident was in Multan, a city in Pakistan’s Punjab province. Another page, Chak Azam News, wrote in its post: “Suspect arrested for immoral behavior with a student. The incident happened in Multan two days ago. After the CCTV video went viral, the accused was arrested.”
A keyword search found a report published on August 24 by Pakistani outlet Dawn. It said: “On Saturday, police in Multan arrested a biker for allegedly harassing a 10th-grade student on a road in the Haram Gate area.” Another daily, Pakistan Observer, also shared the video on its Facebook page, stating it was from Multan’s Haram Gate area and that one person had been arrested.
In conclusion, the video of the harassment of a female student is from Multan, in Pakistan’s Punjab province. It has no connection to Bangladesh.
Disclaimer: The original version of this fact-check report was published in Bengali on Dismislab’s Bengali website on August 29, 2025. The English translation was completed later; however, to maintain time accuracy and avoid any potential misinterpretation, the English version has been published with the original publication date.
