‘Bengal has never believed in culture of hatred’: Dev says manipulated videos of him being circulated to mislead people

After videos of Dev went viral on social media where several people were seen calling him ‘thief’, the actor has flagged them as fake and misleading.

In West Bengal, BJP sealed a landslide victory with 207 seats in the 294-member assembly, ending the Trinamool Congress's uninterrupted 15-year rule. Actor Dev, who has been associated with Mamata Banerjee's TMC for years now, took to his Facebook account to strongly react to videos of him getting mobbed by people who shouted ‘chor (thief)’ at him. Dev said that these videos are fake and made to mislead people. (Also read: Dev reacts after BJP sweep in West Bengal, hopes new government ends ‘culture of bans’ in Bengali film industry)

Dev has issued a statement after videos of him went viral on social media.

What Dev said

Dev took to his Facebook account to address the social media chatter surrounding a video in particular, where he was seen in public. As he made his way in the midst of a tight security, hundreds of people rushed around him and were heard shouting ‘chor (thief)’. Dev did not react and was seen trying to cover his face due to the dust around the place.

In the caption, Dev wrote a caption in both Bengali and English to clarify the situation. He said, “Bengal has never believed in a culture of hatred. Over the past few days, several altered and manipulated videos of me have been circulated with the intention of defaming and misleading people. I sincerely request everyone not to believe in such false content and also refrain from sharing them further. Deliberate misinformation and character assassination can never be the culture of Bengal.”

Dev via Facebook.

‘Bengal has always stood for harmony’

“I have full faith in the new government that they will take the necessary steps to ensure that such nuisance and malicious propaganda are stopped. Bengal has always stood for harmony, culture and mutual respect — and I believe it will continue to do so,” he concluded.

A day ago, Dev had reacted to BJP's landmark victory in the Assembly elections over TMC. He said, "As someone deeply connected to both public life and the film fraternity, I would earnestly request the new government to uphold the spirit of unity and artistic freedom by ensuring that the culture of bans and divisions within the Bengali film industry becomes a thing of the past. Cinema is one of Bengal’s greatest identities, and its growth can only happen through mutual respect, coexistence and collective progress."

Another actor from the Bengali film industry, Prosenjit Chatterjee, had clarified rumours of him calling up BJP candidate Rudranil Ghosh to congratulate him on his victory. “I did not call anyone; rather my younger brother called me. As a big brother, it is my duty to bless someone, and I have only done that. It has nothing to do with politics,” he said.

Meanwhile, West Bengal governor RN Ravi on Thursday dissolved the state assembly at the end of its five-year term. The move comes days after Trinamool Congress chief Mamata Banerjee declared that she would not follow the convention of going to the governor to hand over her resignation as the state’s chief minister despite losing a landslide election to the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).