2017 image depicting sacrificial ritual at Assam temple given false communal spin

(Trigger warning: This article contains descriptions of graphic and distressing visuals. Reader discretion is advised.)

What is the claim? 

An image circulating online depicts a man holding the severed head of a Bovinae, falsely claimed to be a priest displaying a cow's head thrown into a temple by two men belonging to the Muslim community.

The image, originally shared by an X (formerly Twitter) user, includes a caption that reads, "Happy Bakrid," referencing Eid al-Adha, a Muslim festival celebrated by sacrificing a goat/sheep (known as 'qurbani'). In India, this festival was celebrated on June 17 this year.

The post further claims, "That chopped cow head was thrown by 2 Muslim guys in a temple. Pujariji had to do this to maintain the sanctity of temple and then see how this Islamist is making fun of it... Bloody secularism (sic)." This post garnered over 1,600 views, and archives of similar content can be accessed here and here.
 

Screenshots of the viral posts on X. (Source: X / Modified by Logically Facts)

The photo surfaced shortly after four individuals were arrested in Madhya Pradesh for allegedly throwing a cow's head into a temple in Jaora, a town in the central Indian state. This incident sparked unrest in the area.

However, the image in question does not depict this incident; instead, it shows a devotee participating in a sacrificial ritual at the Billeshwar Dewalaya Temple in Assam in 2017.

What we found 

Upon conducting a reverse image search, we traced the viral photo to Getty Images (archived here), dated October 7, 2017. According to the caption, it depicts a devotee at the Billeshwar Dewalaya Temple in Assam, participating in a sacrificial ritual during the Navami Durga Puja Festival. The photo, credited to David Talukdar, specifically states that it shows a buffalo sacrifice—not a cow—during a Hindu festival, not Eid al-Adha.

Screenshot of the original photo on Getty Images. (Source: Getty Images/Graphic details blurred)

Billeshwar Dewalaya Temple in Assam is dedicated to Lord Shiva, a Hindu God, and hosts buffalo sacrifices as part of the Durga Puja festivities. According to a Times of India article, from 2020, the temple traditionally sacrifices 50 buffaloes during Durga Puja, although only one occurred that year. The temple also witnesses sacrifices of goats, pigeons, and ducks on Maha Navami, the ninth day of Navaratri.

Furthermore, an India Today report (trigger warning: distressing visuals) from October 5, 2011, also documented buffalo sacrifices at the Billeshwar Dewalaya Temple in Belsor.

This practice of animal sacrifice is also observed at the Kamakhya and Ugra Tara temples in Assam during the Maha Navami festival.

The verdict 

A photo from 2017 depicting an annual sacrificial ritual at a temple in Assam during Durga Puja has been shared with a false communal claim.