Dismislab debunks sexualised posts, drug ads targeted at Tasnim Jara
Dr Jara has long used her YouTube platform to share reliable health information. While she had faced occasional trolling in the past, the scale and sophistication of abuse dramatically intensified after she joined NCP in February 2025
In a case study of how digital spaces are weaponised against women in politics, an investigation by Dismislab has uncovered a coordinated campaign of online abuse targeting Dr Tasnim Jara—a physician, YouTuber, entrepreneur and newly-appointed Senior Joint Secretary of the National Citizen Party (NCP).
Over a five-month period, Dismislab identified a total of 62 Facebook posts between March and August 2025 that used manipulated images, AI-generated videos, fake audio clips, and fabricated media cards to defame Dr Jara. Many of the posts used sexually suggestive, abusive, and derogatory language, violating platform policies and pointing to broader patterns of gendered political disinformation.
The content—which included fake drug ads featuring her deepfake clips—amassed staggering reach: nearly 7.4 million views, 29,693 shares, and over 34,000 comments, the majority of which were extremely degrading and sexualised.
Keep updated, follow The Business Standard's Google news channel
Technology-driven character assassination
Dr Jara has long used her YouTube platform to share reliable health information. While she had faced occasional trolling in the past, the scale and sophistication of abuse dramatically intensified after she joined NCP in February 2025.
The smear campaign took a darker turn after she, along with senior NCP leaders, visited Cox's Bazar on 5 August to mark the first anniversary of the July Mass Uprising. The very next day, manipulated images and altered narratives flooded social media. One viral image falsely showed her in an intimate setting with party leaders, while others placed her face onto the bodies of other women in compromising scenarios.
Dismislab's reverse image searches confirmed that at least 20 posts used manipulated photos—in some cases, replacing faces or adding suggestive captions. Another 23 posts used genuine photos of Jara, but distorted them with inflammatory, sexualised commentary. A single Facebook group, "Dr Tasnim Jara Friends Club—DR Tasnum Zara," with nearly 11,000 members, circulated a doctored image with a caption reading: "Course on sexual intercourse."
Fake news masquerading as mainstream
Perhaps more concerning is how fake photocards using branding of mainstream outlets—including Channel 24, Samakal, Jugantor, and Jamuna TV—were widely shared to spread falsehoods.
One fake Channel 24 card used an image from the Cox's Bazar trip with a sexually vulgar caption, falsely attributed to a fellow NCP leader. Another fabricated Samakal card alleged that Jara was gang-raped in a hotel by party colleagues—an incident that never occurred, and which was not reported by any verified news source.
Even when legitimate outlets such as Daily Ittefaq and Kaler Kantho addressed these disinformation campaigns, they were criticised for clickbait headlines that failed to clearly state the images were AI-generated, leaving room for suspicion and harm.
Video and audio deepfakes
Dismislab found that AI-generated deepfake content was a growing tool in this campaign.
One video, shared on 8 July, falsely appeared to show Jara naming a price for intimacy—an illusion created by stripping the audio from a pregnancy advice video on her YouTube channel and replacing it with falsified dialogue.
Other manipulated clips spliced Jara's image with commentary from unrelated men, attempting to suggest scandal. Deepfake imagery showed her in swimsuits or in kissing scenes with controversial figures, such as the chief of Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami. AI slip-ups—like six fingers on a hand—confirmed the forgeries.
In one of the most viewed pieces of disinformation, a 12-minute fake audio clip was posted purporting to reveal a phone call between Jara and an alleged lover. The voices never mention names, and the male image used was actually of Sadat Rahman, a child rights activist.
Name used to sell sexual health products
The abuse didn't stop at harassment—it extended into commercial exploitation.
At least 17 separate Facebook pages used Dr Jara's name, image and even video content to falsely endorse dubious products—from male sexual health drugs to weight loss pills and piles treatments.
From April to August 2025, these fake endorsements garnered over 543,000 views and nearly 30,000 reactions, violating Meta's advertising rules which ban misleading use of public figures.
Some of these advertisements were listed in Meta's Ad Library, indicating that they were actively promoted using paid ads.
Targeting women in politics: A systematic issue
Dismislab and other researchers argue that this case is not isolated. Rather, it reflects a systemic pattern of gendered online violence against women in politics in Bangladesh.
During the 2024 general elections, actress-turned-politician Mahiya Mahi was subjected to similar attacks, with the majority of political content about her laced with sexual innuendo or defamation.
Gender and media studies expert Professor Gitiara Nasreen told Dismislab that Bangladeshi society remains shaped by classic patriarchy, where deeply rooted misogyny persists. While the immediate context may be elections, she noted that attacks on a female candidate's sex life or 'character' are often used as tools to trivialise her and undermine her legitimacy.
Maliha Tabassum, assistant professor at the Bangladesh University of Professionals, warned that such tactics are structural tools to drive women out of the public space. "This is not just a personal attack. It is a structural process that undermines a woman's political agency and seeks to push her back into the private sphere," she said.
Despite clear platform rules on hate speech, sexual harassment, and misleading advertising, many of the posts identified by Dismislab remained online for weeks—some still active.
Meta's policies forbid the use of derogatory or sexualised content, impersonation of media brands, or use of public figures in misleading ads. Yet enforcement appears inconsistent at best.
Dr Jara told Dismislab that despite reporting numerous fake posts, deepfakes, and ads, she received little to no support from platforms. "Since entering politics, however, the scale and nature of this harassment have completely changed. Now there is an organised campaign aimed at portraying me as unethical."
She expressed concern that other women in public life could be next, and warned that unless platforms take responsibility, more women will be discouraged from civic engagement.
Call for accountability
With over 130 Facebook admins across 62 pages, mostly located in Bangladesh, driving the disinformation, the campaign against Tasnim Jara is not just about one individual—but about the digital cost women pay for seeking public office.
"Male politicians also face smear campaigns, but these are generally focused on political or financial corruption. But almost all attacks on women are sexually suggestive, defamatory," she said, explaining the gender dimension of such hate and disinformation campaigns.
Unless these patterns are broken, experts warn, Bangladesh's democratic future will remain incomplete—missing the voices of half its population.
