Man held for publishing fake polls schedule on website

A 21-year-old man was arrested for allegedly publishing fake news about the 2019 general elections schedule on his website from a WhatsApp group in January, police said Tuesday.

The accused was identified as Gomunt Kumar, a resident of Jharkhand. He was pursuing his graduation in B.Sc from Ranchi, they said.

The arrest was made on January 31 after police received a complaint from the office of Chief Electoral Officer regarding fake news about the upcoming Lok Sabha polls schedule that was circulated on various online and social media platforms, Anyesh Roy, Deputy commissioner of police (cyber cell) said.

A case was registered on January 18 and an investigation was taken up, he said.

During the investigation, police found a website named www.mytechbuzz.in which has apparently published the fake schedule of the general elections.

A technical investigation was conducted and the admin of the website was identified, he added.

The accused told police that he received the election schedule on a WhatsApp group, which he published on his website to increase the popularity of the website, the DCP said.

His devices have been seized and further investigation is underway, the police official said.

The accused was released on bail after the conclusion of the investigation in respect of his role, he added.

Police are also checking Kumar's involvements in previous cases if any.