A video is viral on social media, depicting a few men atop a fire service truck, pelting some objects at a crowd while police stand nearby. Text written in Bengali, which translates to "Media will now say that those [objects] were tomatoes, not stones", is superimposed on the viral clip. Many social media users have shared the video -- either directly claiming or suggesting that it shows BJP members pelting stones during a CJP protest in Kolkata held on July 24.
The video was widely shared after reports came in that at least 14 people had been arrested in connection with the alleged violence against police and journalists during the protest.
A user named Suman Sengupta (@sumonseng) shared the clip on X (formerly Twitter) with the caption, "Who are these goons, throwing stones on the students of #Kolkata attending the rally on 24.7.26 for #ResignationofDharmendraPradhan ( which ultimately happened) riding on the vehicles of #FireBrigade of WB Govt? Will the #GodiMedia have so time to identify them?" (Archive)
Another user, Aditya Saha (@AdityaSaha12D), also shared the video claiming, "“Climbing onto the West Bengal government's fire engine, the BJP's goon squad—cockroach Janata Party supporters—are throwing stones in a Kolkata rally!” The question is, ‘Don't these people count as jihadis? How did the police allow them to climb onto this vehicle? Why didn't the police arrest them?’" The post has received over 30,000 views. (Archive)
CPI(M) leader Md Salim reshared Aditya Saha's post and tagged Bengal chief minister Suvendu Adhikari on X. (Archive)
Journalist Aparna Bhattacharya (@chhuti_is) shared a collage of frames from the viral video with a text written in Bengali, which translates to "Who are these Friday people? In the student movement in Dharmatala" (Archive)
A report published in The Wire by Bhattacharya noted that the phrase "Friday people" was used by Adhikari while insinuating that Muslims were behind the alleged violence at the Kolkata protest.
The video was also shared as from Kolkata by a X user named Sabir (@SabirAl72017365).
The video or the collage of photos from the clip was also shard widely by Facebook users, including SFI leader Mayukh Biswas. A post by a user named SK A Live was shared 12,000 times. All the posts claimed the incident was from Kolkata.
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Fact Check
To verify the viral clip, we broke it down into several key frames and ran a reverse-image search with them. This led us to a video, titled, "कांग्रेस द्वारा भाजपा कार्यालय घेराव के दौरान भाजयुमो के प्रदेश अध्यक्ष शशांक टमाटर फेकते हुए" [Translation: BJYM State President Shashank throwing tomatoes during the Congress-led gherao of the BJP office]. The video was uploaded on a news portal named 'Public' on July 23, 2026.
We compared this video with the viral clip frame by frame, and found that they were from the same incident and showed the same individuals. See the comparisons below:
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A closer look at the viral clip also reveals the word "Jharkhand" written in yellow over the fire-service vehicle. This confirms that the incident occurred in Jharkhand and not in Kolkata.
The video uploaded on the 'Public' app shows a 'SHIELD' signboard. Taking a cue from this, we geolocated the area on Google Maps and found that the viral video was shot near Harmu Housing Colony in Ranchi, Jharkhand. The geolocation has been explained in the following graphics:
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A video report of the same incident was published by Indo-Asian News Service (IANS) with the caption, "Ranchi, Jharkhand: During a Congress protest at the BJP office over the NEET paper leak and the lathi charge on students, eggs and tomatoes were thrown, along with demands regarding the position of Union Minister Dharmendra Pradhan." At the 0:43 mark of the video report, the men atop the vehicle can be seen holding a plastic bag containing tomatoes and throwing them at the protesters.
A report published by The Statesman, titled, "Tomatoes, eggs fly as BJP, Congress workers clash in Ranchi", stated that, "Congress march against the alleged NEET paper leak and police action on protesting students turned into a political street showdown in Ranchi on Thursday. BJP and Congress workers confronted each other outside the BJP state headquarters, hurling eggs, tomatoes and stones while police struggled to keep the rival groups apart."
The report also noted that the clash occurred on July 23, a day after BJP workers had protested in front of the Congress committee office over alleged irregularities in the Jharkhand Public Service Commission (JPSC) examination.
To sum up, a video is doing the rounds on social media with the claim that it shows BJP workers throwing stones during a CJP protest in Kolkata held on July 24. Our fact check reveals that the viral video is from Jharkhand, where some members of the BJP threw tomatoes at Congress protesters. The incident happened on July 23 and is not related to the Kolkata protest.
Abira Das is an independent researcher. She was formerly associated with Alt News.
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