Online misinformation on post-poll violence in Bangladesh

Since the day after the February 12 national parliamentary election and referendum in Bangladesh, news outlets have reported incidents of post‑election violence in various parts of the country. Such clashes are not unprecedented, but this time the situation has been inflamed by the spread of misinformation online.

While accurate information about the incidents has been reported, false claims have also circulated, using misleading narratives to implicate rival political groups.

Dismislab’s analysis shows that, in most cases, false claims have been circulated alleging that activists and supporters of Bangladesh Jamaat‑e‑Islami were attacked by the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP). In some instances, misinformation has also been spread claiming that Jamaat carried out the attacks or was involved in the clashes.

A review of the websites and Facebook pages of nine fact‑checking organizations that verify information related to Bangladesh shows that, in the two days following the election—February 13 and 14—at least 13 fact‑checks were published addressing false claims about post‑election violence or protests. When multiple organizations published fact‑checks on the same piece of misinformation, it was counted only once.

Misinformation involving Jamaat

Several pieces of misinformation circulated online claiming that Jamaat supporters were subjected to violence.

One such claim involved a Facebook video alleging that homes were set on fire because residents voted for Daripalla (Jamaat’s electoral symbol) in Debidwar, Cumilla. However, verification reports found that the video was old, and had been circulating on Facebook for at least a month before the election.

Another video was spread with conflicting claims, including that BNP activists attacked homes belonging to minority communities in Cumilla after the election victory, or that houses were vandalized simply because people had voted for the Jamaat. This, too, was later fact-checked and debunked.

A third piece of misinformation involved a seven‑year‑old video claiming that BNP’s student wing, Chhatra Dal, forcibly evicted members of the National Citizen Party (NCP) and Jamaat’s student organization, Islami Chhatra Shibir, from residential halls at Dhaka University.

During this period, several other unrelated videos were also shared on social media with the false claim that they showed Shibir protest marches in response to post‑election attacks.

Misinformation implicating BNP

A number of misleading and fabricated claims have also been circulated online implicating the BNP.

One such claim was spread through a Facebook video, presented as footage of post‑election attacks. In the caption, the poster accused the party that “came to power” of assaulting people for voting for the opposition. However, a fact‑check revealed that the video actually showed a clash between BNP and Jamaat supporters during the election campaign, not a post‑election attack.

Another video was shared with the false claim that BNP activists gang‑raped a female leader of NCP.

False information has also circulated targeting Jamaat in the context of election‑related violence. A video shared on the social media platform X alleged that Islamist groups were attacking Hindu communities after Jamaat’s defeat in the election.

Fact‑check showed that the video was unrelated to the 2026 election. It actually depicted an incident in which a man was assaulted for chanting “Joy Bangla” during the funeral of former Prime Minister Begum Khaleda Zia.