End Facebook interference in India's democracy: Sonia

Gandhi referred to a report claiming that Facebook had offered BJP cheaper deals for election advertisements as compared with other parties

Congress president Sonia Gandhi on Wednesday raised the issue of social media giants aiding the BJP through fake ads as revealed by a news report in an international publication, and said that global social media companies are being used to “hack India's democracy”.

Speaking during the zero hour in Parliament, Gandhi said that the issue she is raising is of paramount importance. “Global companies like Facebook and Twitter are increasingly used to shape political narratives by leaders, political parties and their proxies. It has repeatedly come to public notice that these companies are not providing a level playing field to all political parties,” Gandhi said.

She said that last year, for instance, the Wall Street Journal reported how Facebook’s own hate speech rules are being bent to favour politicians of the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party. She mentioned a recent piece published in Al Jazeera by the Reporter’s Collective about how a “toxic ecosystem of proxies and advertisers posing as news media” is flourishing on Facebook, bypassing India’s election laws, breaking Facebook’s own rules and “completely suppressing” the voice of those who are speaking up against the government.

Read | 'Surrogate' ads used to boost BJP on Facebook: Report

She also said that the “blatant manner” in which social harmony is being disturbed by Facebook with the connivance of the ruling establishment is “dangerous for our democracy”. “Young and old minds alike are being filled with hate through emotionally-charged disinformation, and proxy advertising companies like Facebook are aware of this and profiting from it,” Gandhi said. She said that the AlJazeera report shows a growing nexus between big corporations, the ruling establishment and global social media giants like Facebook.

Gandhi was interrupted by members from the treasury benches, some of whom wanted to know what her demand was.

“I urge the government to put an end to the systematic influence and interference of Facebook and other social media giants in the electoral politics of the world’s largest democracy. This is beyond partisan politics; we need to protect our democracy and social harmony regardless of who is in power,” Gandhi said.

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