Video shows Indian journalist commenting on sexual violence in 2023, not after doctor rape case in 2024

"Here is Rajdeep Sardesai refusing to acknowledge horrific rape and murder of a young doctor in a Kolkata Govt hospital," read part of the caption to the video shared on Facebook on August 14, 2024.

The 45-second video shows a panel of speakers which included television news presenter Rajdeep Sardesai (archived link).

He could be heard talking about cases of rape in Gujarat state and in the cities of Mumbai and Muzaffarnagar before being asked by one member of the panel: "Why didn't you mention Bengal? It happened recently in Bengal also."

"Political patronage can silence voices, compromise journalists and bury what Rajdeep once called 'Moral Compass' in a dung heap of immorality," the video's caption added in an apparent reference to Sardesai's marriage to West Bengal MP Sagarika Ghose.

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Screenshot of the false post, taken on August 19, 2024

The video was also shared with similar claims elsewhere on Facebook and on social media site X.

The posts circulated as the rape and murder of a doctor in West Bengal's capital city Kolkata sparked medical strikes and protests across India, channelling anger at the chronic issue of violence against women.

An average of nearly 90 rapes a day were reported in 2022 in the country of 1.4 billion people.

In a post on X on August 12, Sardesai wrote: "Story that caught the eye: absolute shocker from Kolkata. A rape and murder of a trainee doctor inside a hospital is totally shocking. NCRB 2022 data suggests Kolkata is the safest metro for women.. but this incident shows how safety cannot be taken for granted. Maximum punishment must be given to the criminal. Zero tolerance and fast track justice" (archived link).

Old video

Moreover, a reverse image search of keyframes on Google found the circulating video is old. It corresponds from the 2:36:36 mark of longer footage posted on the official YouTube channel of Hindi news outlet The Lallantop on August 5, 2023 (archived link).

The longer footage shows an episode of the weekly political talk show "Netanagari".

Below is a screenshot comparison of the clip shared in false posts (left) and the video from The Lallantop (right):

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Screenshot comparison of the clip shared in false posts (left) and the video uploaded on the YouTube channel of The Lallantop (right)

During the show, the speakers were asked by a member of the audience about sexual violence in India.

Sardesai responded in part: "This is a power equation. And if you see, specially in northern India, if you go to a public place, women don't get that much space. And if there's  violence, they become soft targets.

"I have seen, be it Gujarat, Mumbai in 1992-93, or Muzaffarnagar in 2012, every time there are riots, we get stories of rapes and gang rapes. What is the reason?"

At this point, another panellist asked him: "Why didn't you mention Bengal. It happened recently."

To which Sardesai said in part: "Bengal is the only state with a woman chief minister. The fact is whenever there is a political or mass violence, women are the soft targets because women are seen as male power. Since system is dominated by men, whenever a woman challenges it at any level, men exert their power."

"Even the chief minister being a woman doesn't make a difference. The control is in hands of men at the local level," he added.

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