OpIndia’s false Bangladesh trafficking claim on Sonam Raghuvanshi case backfires
Mohammad Zubair highlights propaganda
Indore: As the investigation into Sonam Raghuvanshi’s disappearance and her husband Raja Raghuvanshi’s murder unfolded, extremist groups and media outlets like OpIndia spread false claims that Sonam had been trafficked to Bangladesh. These baseless allegations sought to stir communal hatred against the indigenous communities of Northeast India. However, official police findings have thoroughly disproved these narratives.
Sonam and Raja, a couple from Indore, Madhya Pradesh, had first visited the Kamakhya temple in Assam before proceeding to Meghalaya for their honeymoon. After a few days, they went missing, leading to a large-scale search. Raja’s body was later found near a hillside in Meghalaya with post-mortem reports confirming his murder by a wood-cutting machine. Sonam was traced and arrested in Ghazipur, Uttar Pradesh, where she was found safe and questioned by police. She is now accused of hiring men to murder her husband.
Before the facts emerged, right-wing platforms such as OpIndia propagated a false story claiming Sonam had been trafficked to Bangladesh.
Prominent fact checker Mohammad Zubair addressed these false narratives in a recent social media post, pointing out how such misinformation exploits tragedies for communal propaganda. Zubair reminded his followers that Sonam was safely found in Ghazipur, not Bangladesh, thus debunking trafficking rumours.
Research scholar Anshuman Chaudhary also noted on X, how extremist factions attempted to manipulate this case to fuel ethnic hatred and division. The investigation revealed a more complex truth: Sonam is implicated along with others in Raja’s murder, currently under police custody.
Sonam Raghuvanshi who went missing in Meghalaya was arrested from Ghazipur in Uttar Pradesh for allegedly murdering her husband. But here, propaganda website @OpIndia_com earlier claimed that the wife was suspected to be trafficked to Bangladesh. pic.twitter.com/K6D2BU7Uzm
— Mohammed Zubair (@zoo_bear) June 9, 2025
The whole incident also sparked intense racism against the Northeast. Twitter was full of comments about how savage the region’s tribals are & how “NE, like Kashmir, should be avoided.” Sanghis had their own sideshow on trafficking to Bangladesh. Cesspool of a public discourse. https://t.co/Vv69kZdML6
— Angshuman Choudhury (@angshuman_ch) June 9, 2025
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Austrian police detain suspect in case of rat poison found in baby food jars on supermarket shelves
Vienna (AP): Police in eastern Austria say a 39-year-old suspect has been arrested after rat poison turned up in some HiPP baby food jars on supermarket shelves in central Europe.
HiPP, which recalled some of its baby food jars in Austria, Slovakia and the Czech Republic after the case came to light last month, said in a statement Saturday it was “greatly relieved” by the arrest, and would provide further updates as verified details come in.
The Burgenland State Criminal Police Office, under the direction of prosecutors, said a probe was launched after poison turned up in a baby food jar purchased at a supermarket in the city of Eisenstadt on April 18.
It said the suspect was being questioned, and that no further details would be immediately provided. The Burgenland public prosecutor's office has announced an investigation into suspected “intentional endangerment of the public.”
The Austrian Press Agency reported that an expert report on the toxicity of the poison was pending. A total of five tampered baby food jars were seized before they could be consumed, APA reported.
Authorities said previously they believe the tampering occurred in 190-gram (6.7-ounce) jars of baby food made with carrots and potatoes for 5-month-olds that were sold from SPAR supermarkets in Austria.
HiPP responded by recalling all of its baby food jars sold at SPAR supermarkets — which include SPAR, EUROSPAR, INTERSPAR and Maximarkt stores — in Austria as a precaution. Vendors in Slovakia and the Czech Republic also removed all of the brand's baby jars from sale.
The company said the recall was not due to any product or quality defect on its part, and said the jars left its facility in “perfect condition.”
Police said a customer at the time of the discovery had reported that a jar appeared to have been tampered with, but no one had consumed the baby food.
