T IS not new that misinformation targeting Rohingya refugees often originates in Myanmar and Bangladesh, transcends borders and evolves into a transnational narrative that shapes public perceptions across South Asia. Images and videos drawn from Bangladeshi refugee camps and Myanmar conflict zones are repurposed in anti-immigrant and state propaganda to lend false authenticity, evoke fear and reinforce existing prejudices against stateless Muslim refugees.
A recent study traces how anti-migrant narratives targeting the Rohingyas migrate across borders 鈥� from Myanmar to Bangladesh, India and beyond 鈥� transforming humanitarian sufferings into socio-political fiction.
Most significantly, the study classifies more than 20 fact-checked reports on anti-immigrant misinformation that have circulated widely on Indian social media and even in some news outlets. The fact checks from 2017 to 2025 highlight how the 鈥楤angladeshi Rohingya鈥� framing has become a central weapon in anti-immigrant narratives through systematic disinformation campaigns. This narrative conflates anti-migrant sentiment, anti-Muslim rhetoric and hate speech targeting Bangladeshis into a unified exclusionary discourse.
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Identity merger and consequences
THE findings show 75 per cent of fact-checked reports involved old visuals, 12 out of 16 reports, demonstrating the deliberate strategy of reusing authentic imagery with false contexts. Twenty-five per cent involved grossly inflated population figures such as claims of 鈥�5 crore鈥� or 鈥�11 crore鈥� illegal immigrants when actual numbers are in the tens of thousands. Fifty per cent of the reports specifically targeted the 鈥楻ohingya Muslim鈥� identity while others focused on 鈥榠llegal Bangladeshis,鈥� showing how religious and national identities are weaponised together.
This study reveals a complex weaving of narratives categorised broadly into three groups: Bangladeshi Rohingyas, Rohingya Muslims and Illegal Bangladeshis. The categories are often blurred in public discourse, but they have distinct implications on how identity and legal status are manipulated.
First, 鈥楤angladeshi Rohingya鈥� is frequently associated with exaggerated claims such as the viral assertion that 鈥�5 crore Bangladeshi and Rohingya immigrants live illegally in India.鈥� Fact checks found official data indicating only a few tens of thousands of Rohingyas in India, with no evidence supporting these inflated numbers, concluding the claims to be baseless. Similarly, videos purportedly showing Rohingya migrants in transit, such as a 2023 video of 63 children inside a truck in Kolhapur, turned out to be Indian students returning to a madrassah, not Rohingyas, debunking another viral claim.
Second, 鈥楻ohingya Muslim鈥� is used to describe the actual refugee population fleeing persecution in Myanmar. An image traced to 2017 showed a Rohingya man carrying his mother after fleeing Myanmar. This image was, however, falsely shared during the Covid migrant crisis in India as depicting Bangladeshi migrants, thus misrepresenting the Rohingya plight. Fact checks also confirmed misinformation using images from Bangladesh falsely labelled as Rohingya attacks in India, further distorting public perception.
Third, 鈥榠llegal Bangladeshi鈥� intersects with 鈥楻ohingya Muslim鈥� but carries the narrative of organised illegal migration, often conflated with the Rohingya identity to justify exclusion or deportation policies. Fact-checked reports debunked claims of millions of the Rohingya and Bangladeshis living illegally in India, confirming that roughly 14,000 Rohingya refugees reside there, far from the inflated figures circulated online. Furthermore, videos of illegal construction demolitions in Jammu and Kashmir were falsely claimed to involve Rohingya and Bangladeshi refugee colonies, whereas investigations proved the demolitions targeted unauthoriszed local structures, not refugee settlements.
Ironically, the 鈥淏angladeshi Rohingya鈥� with illegal migrant narratives specifically refers to displaced people recognised under humanitarian frameworks, often denied formal protection though. The misuse of this categorisation wrongly conflates refugee movement with illegal migration.
Together, the three misinformation categories distort and weaponise Bangladeshi identities, driving xenophobia and an anti-Muslim sentiment. Such narrative misrepresents refugee crises as invasive migration, escalating the vulnerability of displaced populations across South Asia.
Why is anti-immigrant framing of 鈥楤angladeshi Rohingya鈥� frequent in India? Anti-immigrant framing 鈥楤angladeshi Rohingya鈥� is particularly frequent in India because pf long-standing anxieties about porous borders and security threats to India鈥檚 northeastern and border states. The portrayal of the Rohingyas as 鈥楤angladeshi infiltrators鈥� exploits fears of demographic change and terrorism, linking a persecuted refugee groups with crimes and radicalisation to justify restrictive policies and surveillance.
Since 2012, successive waves of Rohingya refugees, estimated between 20,000 and 40,000, have entered India and live largely without legal recognition in Jammu and Kashmir, Hyderabad, New Delhi and other states. Political actors in states such as Assam, Jammu and Kashmir and Maharashtra use digital misinformation to mobilise support for framing demolitions or detentions of unauthorised structures as actions against 鈥楻ohingya and Bangladeshi colonies鈥� to demonstrate law and order credentials.
The Hindu-nationalist discourse portrays the Rohingya Muslims as disloyal outsiders, repeatedly highlighting 鈥楳uslims鈥� versus 鈥楬indus鈥� in sensational ways. Many claims stress that perpetrators are Rohingya Muslims attacking innocent Hindus, even when the footage shows something else.
Together, the factors create fertile ground for repeated anti-immigrant disinformation targeting 鈥楤angladeshi Rohingya,鈥� transforming humanitarian displacement into a perceived existential threat in India鈥檚 public discourse.
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Anti-Bangladesh biscourse
THE portrayal of the Rohingya refugees as 鈥楤angladeshi Rohingyas鈥� serves as a foundation for broader anti-Bangladesh discourse. This narrative conflates Rohingya refugees with alleged illegal Bangladeshi migrants, creating a dual delegitimisation effect.
By framing the Rohingya crisis as evidence of Bangladesh鈥檚 inability to control its borders or manage its population, the discourse positions Bangladesh not as a humanitarian host providing refuge for the persecuted minorities but as an irresponsible state that exports its problems to others.
The conflation becomes particularly damaging when politicians and media outlets use terms such as 鈥楤angladeshi Rohingya鈥� in deportation campaigns, effectively making Bangladesh complicit in what is portrayed as illegal migration rather than refugee protection.
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鈥楤angladeshi Rohingya鈥� narrative
THE transformation of Rohingya identity 鈥楤angladeshi Rohingya鈥� framing illustrates the power of digital media 鈥� how authentic refugee imagery can be weaponised through digital circulation with altered contexts, effectively erasing humanitarian obligations. This digital reframing creates what scholars term 鈥榙igital borderscapes鈥� 鈥� virtual spaces where identity categories are contested and reconstructed in ways that can have profound material consequences for vulnerable populations.
However, the portrayal of the Rohingya refugees as 鈥榠llegal Bangladeshiss represents a broader failure in digital governance concerning refugee protection. This framing reflects not only the spread of misinformation across social media platforms but also systemic shortcomings in how states, platforms and international actors manage digital identity and information flows related to displaced populations.
This failure is compounded by the active role of state representatives and mainstream media in failing to contest such narratives, which embed harmful stereotypes into public discourse.
To address this failure, states should resist the conflation of refugees with illegal migrants, backed by clear legal protections and identification mechanisms. Lastly, public awareness and digital literacy campaigns are needed to empower citizens to critically evaluate migration narratives and counter xenophobic misinformation.
Only through coordinated efforts across digital platforms, governments and civil society can the digital space become a safe environment that respects refugee dignity and counters harmful misinformation rather than enabling it.
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Zulker Naeen, a research coordinator at Fact-Watch and the Centre for Critical and Qualitative Studies, teaches media studies and journalism at ULAB.
