Chinese vloggers accused of defaming India by filming poor neighbourhoods in Dhaka and falsely portraying the footage as scenes from New Delhi have “scaled down” their activities following increased surveillance by local law enforcement agencies, a Bangladeshi police official said.The authorities stepped up monitoring of the Chinese nationals, around 150 in number, after India expressed concern over the alleged use of Bangladeshi territory to tarnish its image.Also Read | ‘This is New Delhi’: Chinese vloggers pass off Bangladesh slums as India in bizarre videosAccording to Mohammad Khalid Mansur, officer-in-charge of Dhaka’s Uttara West Police Station, intelligence agencies intensified surveillance of the Chinese nationals and began monitoring them closely. This led to a decline in their activities, the newspaper Prothom Alo reported on Thursday.Earlier, Bangladeshi media reports said the Chinese vloggers were active in Dhaka’s Tekpara and Uttara neighbourhoods, livestreaming footage of narrow streets and impoverished localities on Chinese social media platforms. They are accused of misrepresenting these areas as parts of New Delhi and making “disparaging” comments about the residents’ living conditions.The vloggers filmed people’s homes and everyday activities, at times entering residential premises without permission. Residents were unaware of where the footage was being uploaded or how they were being portrayed.The activities are suspected to be part of a coordinated disinformation campaign.“There was no police surveillance of their activities. More than 100 vloggers were making such videos every day. They also paid Bangladeshi citizens to assist them in this work,” Prothom Alo reported.On Tuesday, the ministry of external affairs in New Delhi called for appropriate action against the vloggers for peddling “false narratives” to defame India.Also Read | ‘Unfortunate’: Govt condemns anti-India campaign by Chinese vloggers, urges Bangladesh to take actionFollowing the controversy, the Chinese nationals were asked to produce their passports and visas and explain why they were engaging in such activities while visiting Bangladesh on tourist visas.Police also instructed them to leave the country upon the expiry of their authorised stay.However, it remains unclear whether a formal investigation has been initiated into their activities or whether any action has been taken over possible violations of visa conditions.Residents, meanwhile, reported that they had not seen any Chinese nationals in Uttara or Tekpara over the past few days.“I have been at home for two days due to illness and have not seen any Chinese citizens around,” Md Selim, a Tekpara resident, told the newspaper.Rickshaw puller Imamul Islam described a bridge over a canal near Sector 12 in Uttara as a “hideout” for the Chinese vloggers.“They would film us throughout the day and night, including our passengers. I haven’t seen them around for some time now,” he added.(With PTI inputs)
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