Viral video shows a robbery gang member demonstrating how they conceal intoxicated pills in Dates at Howrah GRP Police Station
Update (23 January 2025):
A video (here, here, here, and here) showing a man crushing tablets into powder, mixing them with water, and stuffing the paste into date palms is going viral on social media platforms. The accompanying claim alleges that RSS and BJP workers are planning to kill Muslims by mixing dangerous poisons into dates and selling them to Muslims during the upcoming Ramzan season. However, as explained below, there is no communal angle involved in this. The viral video shows a member of a robbery gang demonstrating how they conceal intoxicating pills inside dates (khajur) at the Howrah GRP police station after being arrested by the Howrah GRP police on 11 January 2024, at Platform No. 7 of Howrah Railway Station’s old complex.
Published (20 January 2025):
A video (here, here, and here) is going viral on social media platforms, claiming that Muslim vendors are selling date palms adulterated with impotence-inducing medicines to Hindus. In the video, a man can be seen crushing tablets into powder, mixing it with water, and inserting it into date palms. Additionally, individuals in uniform, possibly police officials, are seen questioning the man about the medicine and the duration for which he has been engaging in this activity. Through this article, let us fact-check the claim made in the post.
Claim:Video shows Muslim traders adulterating date palms with impotence-inducing medicines and selling them to Hindus.
Fact: On 11 January 2024, the Howrah GRP police arrested a group of three robbers from Platform No. 7 at Howrah Railway Station’s old complex, who had been committing robberies on trains. The video was recorded at the Howrah GRP station, where a member of the robbery gang demonstrated how they conceal intoxicated pills inside dates (khajur). There is no communal angle involved in this. The FIR mentions that the individuals arrested are Shambru Paswan, Govind Kumar, and Mohammad Irfan. Hence the claim made in the post is FALSE.
To gather details about the viral video, we conducted a Google reverse image search using keyframes from the video. This search led us to a video (archived link) uploaded on an Instagram page called ‘Taaza TV’ on 13 January 2025. According to the description of the video, it shows a demonstration by a robbery gang that commits robberies on trains. The gang uses a unique method to rob passengers by mixing drugs into dates (khajur). The RPF team apprehended them at Howrah station. We also found the same video posted by other social media users with a similar description (here, here, here).
We then contacted a local news reporter from Kolkata who runs a news website, Facebook page, and Instagram page called ‘The Local Journalist.’ Speaking to us, they clarified that the video is from Howrah GRP police station and shows a robbery gang demonstrating how they commit robberies on trains by giving passengers dates (khajur) mixed with intoxicated pills, after being apprehended by the Howrah GRP police.
We then visited the West Bengal Police website and viewed the FIR related to this incident. According to the FIR, on 11 January 2025, a group of three robbers was arrested from Platform No. 7 at Howrah Railway Station’s old complex. They had been committing robberies on trains by giving passengers dates (khajur) mixed with intoxicated pills (Ativan 2 MG). The FIR mentioned the names of the accused to be Shambru Paswan, Govind Kumar, and Mohammad Irfan. FIR filed in this incident can be seen here.
Furthermore, we also contacted the Howrah GRP Police Station to learn more about this incident. Speaking to us, the Howrah GRP police officials refuted any communal angle, stating that these robbers commit robberies on trains by giving passengers intoxicated eatables. They further clarified that the robbers do not target any particular religious group and that the pills used are not impotence-inducing medicines.
To sum it up, this viral video shows a robbery gang member demonstrating how they conceal intoxicated pills inside dates at Howrah GRP Police Station.