NEW DELHI, Nov 10: India on Tuesday termed it “unfortunate” that videos shot in poor areas of Bangladesh's capital Dhaka were circulated on Chinese social media as scenes from New Delhi, and urged the Bangladesh authorities to act against those involved.
Ministry of External Affairs spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said such attempts to portray a distorted image of any country damaged the credibility of those involved as well as the parties behind them.
“We have seen media reports in this regard. Such attempts to portray a distorted image of any country are unfortunate,” Jaiswal said.
He called on the authorities concerned to act on allegations that foreign nationals were being used to portray areas of Dhaka as Delhi.
For several months, some Chinese nationals allegedly filmed videos and live streams in poor areas of Dhaka, identifying the locations as parts of New Delhi. They were also accused of making derogatory comments about living conditions, cleanliness, food habits and poverty in India.
The activity was reported from Sector 12 in Uttara and the adjoining Tekpara area of Dhaka. Local residents estimated that more than 150 Chinese nationals had made videos in the area. Some allegedly carried two mobile phones and live-streamed for hours on roads and lanes, and at times entered homes to film.
A Chinese national identified as Fangyu said the live streams were part of product promotion through WeChat. Ritu Akhter, a Bangladeshi woman working with Chinese nationals, said they also earned money by posting videos on platforms such as Douyin.
Residents alleged that videos were made inside homes without permission. A resident, Rozina Khatun, said people sometimes entered their houses to film, affecting families' privacy. It remained unclear whether the videos were part of an organised disinformation campaign.
