The Chief Adviser’s press wing on Sunday raised concerns over a report published by Press Trust of India (PTI), an Indian news agency, regarding the recent death of a man in Natore.

After a man was killed in a possible theft at a crematorium in Natore, PTI described the incident as communal violence without proper verification, said the fact-checking wing of the CA’s press team.

On Saturday, PTI published the news quoting a video published on the X (formerly Twitter) handle of Kolkata ISKCON spokesperson Radharaman Das.

No Bangladeshi authorities, Hindu leaders, or relatives of the victims were quoted in this news, said the CA’s press wing, adding that many Indian media, including Hindustan Times and The Indian Express, have published this unsubstantiated report.

"It is not responsible to pass off an incident as a communal murder without verifying it. Such exaggerated news can damage communal harmony in Bangladesh,” CA’s press wing quoted Hrishikesh Gauranga Das, a member of the executive committee of the International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON) Bangladesh, as saying.

Confirming that Tarun Kumar was not a member of ISKCON, he urged the media to collect information at the local level or through official channels before publishing any such news.

Police recovered the body of a man named Tarun Kumar Das, 60, from the Bara Harishpur cremation ground under Sadar Police Station in the Natore district on Saturday.

Initially, it is suspected that the killer strangled the victim to death as he screamed when unidentified thieves were carrying out the burglary at the Bhogghar inside the cremation ground.

Police said that some bronze plates were stolen from the crematorium.

According to a local community leader, the victim was mentally ill for a long time and had been staying at the crematorium for several days.

Officer-in-Charge (OC) of Natore Sadar Police Station Md Mahbubor Rahman said, "Based on the information we received from Saturday to Sunday morning, it is initially believed that some drug addicts tried to steal the place. All possible motives for the murder are being investigated.”

Satya Narayan Roy Tipu, general secretary of the cremation committee in Natore, said, "Tarun Kumar is not a member of the cremation committee, and he was not a priest. He was a bit mentally unstable. Tarun Kumar was not a member of ISKCON or any other organisation. We do not think there is any communal involvement in this incident.”