Posts falsely claim Bangladesh train station clip shows Muslims sabotaging Indian train
- Published on January 27, 2026 at 08:09
- 3 min read
- By Devesh MISHRA, Eyamin SAJID, AFP India, AFP Bangladesh
A video of children tinkering with the coupling of a stationary train has spread among social media posts in Hindu-majority India, where it has been falsely presented as showing Muslim kids sabotaging an Indian passenger train. The video's creator told AFP it was filmed in Bangladesh's capital Dhaka, and has nothing to do with India.
"We are not afraid of the Pakistan that is outside our border. We are afraid of the thousands of mini-Pakistans that exist within India," reads the Hindi-language caption of an Instagram video shared on January 14, 2026.
The video shows several children clambering onto a stationary train, and focuses on one child who appears to be striking a coupling with a rock and tinkering with the connection.
Hindi text on a yellow banner over the video reads: "The threat is not from the Pakistani army, but from the religious ideologies present within India."
The same video was also shared in similar Facebook and Instagram posts by India-based users.
"This is the state of Jihadi thinking in India; terrorist training is already being instilled in the minds of children," reads a comment on one of the posts.
Another reads: "This is a known strategy of Islamic barbarians. Getting juveniles to commit grave crimes. Indian Railways must pay attention to this."
Hindu-majority India and Muslim-majority Pakistan fought for four days in May 2025, weeks after New Delhi accused Islamabad of backing a deadly attack on tourists in Indian-administered Kashmir, claims Pakistan denied (archived link).
The nuclear-armed neighbours' ensuing conflict killed at least 70 people, and saw both sides make extensive use of drones as well as intense missile and artillery barrages.
The circulating video, however, does not show Muslim children tampering with a train in India.
A reverse image search on Google using keyframes from the falsely shared video led to a higher-quality version posted on Facebook on December 28, 2025 (archived link).
"All the boys are on the train. Children are working in Kamalapur," reads the Bengali-language caption, referring to a railway station in Bangladesh's capital Dhaka (archived link).
"I filmed the video on December 28, 2025, at the Kamalapur Station," Alamin, a content creator and local journalist, told AFP on January 21, 2026.
"The boys were trying to take metal parts from the engine coupling of a train when it entered the platform," he said.
He added that children in the area play near the railway station, and will sometimes help staff to earn some money.
In a comment added later to his Facebook post, Alamin said the children were not stealing, contrary to claims circulating on social media.
The livery of the train in the circulating video also matches with photos of passenger trains that operate in Bangladesh, available in AFP's archives, and Bengali writing on the side the carriage also indicates the video was filmed in Bangladesh.
AFP has previously debunked a similar false claim, alleging a video shows a Bangladeshi refugee stealing from Indian train passengers.
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