What You Read In Election Season

It has been almost a month since the Election Commission of India (EC) brought social media content by/ for political parties under the ambit of the model code of conduct (MCC).

- Kaushik Deka

From March 20, social media giants such as Facebook, WhatsApp, Twitter and Google have also been following a ‘Voluntary Code of Ethics’ accepted by the EC. They have also given assurance that any political advertising will be pre-certified by the EC’s Media Certification and Monitoring Committee.

Yet, the menace of fake news continues unabated. Take, for instance, a two-page fake letter circulating on social media since April 14. Supposedly written by BJP stalwart M.M. Joshi to party patriarch L.K. Advani, the letter claims the BJP will get only 120 seats in the ongoing Lok Sabha election. A week earlier, a visual showing Congress president Rahul Gandhi and West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee waiting in a room while Pakistani PM Imran Khan talks to his army chief went viral on social media. The photo carried a message alongside asking people not to vote for the Congress.