Indian News Outlets Misidentify Scrap Trader Brutally Murdered In Dhaka As Hindu

The gruesome lynching of a scrap trader in Dhaka last week triggered a massive outrage in Bangladesh, with protesters hitting the streets to demand justice for the deceased. The news also garnered a huge attention in India with multiple outlets, including India TV, Mirror Now, Wion, Republic World, India Today, News 24, Punjab Kesari, identifying the deceased as a Hindu scrap dealer ‘Lal Chand Sohag.’ 

The video of the brutal murder also went viral on social media platforms with multiple users giving a communal twist to the incident, alleging that the murder was the latest incident of attack against Hindus in Bangladesh. Newschecker, however, found the claims to be untrue.

Such posts can be seen here and here. 

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Fact Check/Verification

A Google keyword search for “Lal Chand,” “murder” and “Dhaka” in Bengali led us to a report by Bangladesh-based Prothom Alo, dated July 12, 2025. Detailing the incident, it stated that a 39-year-old scrap dealer, Lal Chand alias Sohag, was brutally murdered in front of Mitford Hospital in Dhaka. The deceased’s sister, Manjuara Begum, filed a case at the Kotwali Police Station regarding the same, the report added.

Kotwali Police Station Officer-in-Charge Md Moniruzzaman reportedly said that four of the accused, including Mahmudul Hasan alias Mohin and Tarique Rahman alias Robin, were arrested in the case, and that further investigation was underway.

The report also featured a screengrab from the viral video. However, we did not find any mention of a communal angle in the report.

Carrying a photo of the deceased, The Daily Star reported that the police and the victim’s family members cited a “long-standing feud over control of the scrap trade and territorial dominance in Old Dhaka’s Mitford area” as the cause of Sohag’s murder. 

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“The accused had asked my uncle to close the shop or give them Tk 2 lakh and a portion of his income every month. My uncle did not agree, and for this, they killed him brutally,” Sohag’s niece Bithi Akter was quoted as saying in the report. It also identified the deceased’s wife as Lucky Akter.

A report by Alokito Bangladesh, dated July 12, 2025, stated that the victim was buried next to his mother’s grave in his village, indicating that Sohag was not a Hindu.

Further, we also found a Facebook post by the Bangladesh Chief Advisor’s Press Wing Facts from July 13, 2025, clarifying that the deceased was a Muslim, and not a Hindu as widely claimed. 

“Md Sohag, alias Lal Chand, was a Muslim businessman. His father’s name is Md Aiyub Ali, his mother’s name is Aleya Begum. He is survived by his wife Lucky Begum, his sister Fatema, and his son Sohan,” it stated.

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Conclusion 

Hence, the viral claim of a Hindu trader being brutally murdered in Dhaka was found to be false. 

Sources
Report By Prothom Alo, Dated July 12, 2025
Report By The Daily Star, Dated July 12, 2025
Report By Alokito Bangladesh, Dated July 12, 2025
Facebook Post By Bangladesh Chief Advisor’s Press Wing Facts, Dated July 13, 2025