JOIN USFacebook removes Rahul Gandhi's post for policy violation
Facebook removed a post by Congress leader Rahul Gandhi that identified the family of a nine-year-old victim of alleged rape and murder in Northwest Delhi.
The US-based social media platform cited that Rahul Gandhi posts violated the social media platform's policies for its removal.
The move came days after micro blogging platform Twitter took similar steps after the National Commission for Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR) demanded immediate removal.
"We have taken action to remove the content as it was in violation of our policies," a Facebook spokesperson said in an emailed statement on Friday.
Facebook and its photo sharing app Instagram take action against a content if it violates its Community Standards or upon receiving a valid legal request as per Indian laws.
Facebook has informed Gandhi and the NCPCR about the removal of the posts from Facebook and Instagram.
Earlier this week, Facebook had written to Gandhi asking him to remove the said post from Instagram -- Facebook's photo sharing platform.
Earlier, NCPCR, which issued notice to Twitter about Gandhi's post, had asked Facebook to take appropriate action against Gandhi's Instagram profile over violation of provisions of the Juvenile Justice Act, 2015, the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act, 2012, and the Indian Penal Code. The NCPCR further demanded the removal of the video from the platform.
Following the communication from Facebook to Gandhi earlier week, NCPCR withdrew its direction to the company to appear before the commission with an explanation over non-action regarding Gandhi's post.
Earlier this month, Gandhi kicked up a row by sharing an image of his meeting the family of the nine-year-old girl in his Twitter account and asserted that he is with them on the path to justice. Soon after, NCPCR took up the matter and BJP leaders criticised him for politicising the tragedy.
Twitter had locked accounts of Gandhi as well as many other Congress leaders who tweeted the controversial post. Gandhi then took to Instagram and said he was guilty if fighting for justice for a rape and murder victim is a crime.
On August 14, Twitter restored Gandhi's account after the Congress leader submitted a consent letter from the family of the victim.