EC takes 'serious note' of Congress complaints, directs removal of Jharkhand BJP's objectional social media posts

Ramesh criticised the video as part of a deliberate attempt to influence voters and dissuade them from supporting opposition parties.

Election Commission of India on November 17 took a "serious note" of the complaints filed by Congress and JMM against the Jharkhand unit of BJP for spreading a "false narrative" against a religious minority, demanding blocking of the party's Facebook and X accounts.

EC has directed CEO Jharkhand to immediately direct BJP Jharkhand to take down the said post from party social media platforms along with a notice to explain the alleged violation of provisions of MCC in the said post.

Moreover, CEO has been directed to immediately take action in the matter and in coordination with designated authority in the state under section 79(3)(b) of the IT act, shall get the objectionable posts removed from social media platforms expeditiously.

The complaint, filed by Party General Secretary (Communications) Jairam Ramesh, accused BJP of posting a video that spreads a "false narrative" against a religious community. Congress also sought an order for the removal of all "communal, divisive, and malicious" videos shared by the party on its social media platforms.

Ramesh's complaint highlighted the BJP’s failure to take down a previous video, despite Congress’s earlier complaint, which led to a case being registered under the EC’s directives.

The new complaint is based on a video recently uploaded by the BJP, which Ramesh claims maligns the I.N.D.I.A. bloc partner Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM), suggesting it favors a minority community. The video also features an actor resembling Jharkhand Chief Minister Hemant Soren.

Our second complaint to the Election Commission against BJPs false, misleading, and communal social media posts being uploaded on BJPs official Facebook and X Account. Despite registration of a criminal case, the BJP has not taken down their earlier social media posts. They are pic.twitter.com/01ADlQEW0t
Jairam Ramesh (@Jairam_Ramesh) November 17, 2024

Ramesh criticised the video as part of a deliberate attempt to influence voters and dissuade them from supporting opposition parties. He described the BJP’s actions as a continuation of a divisive campaign to propagate a communal narrative. “The malafide motive and messaging behind the video is very clear,” Ramesh said, adding that the BJP had become emboldened due to the lack of action on their previous complaint.

In addition to blocking the BJP’s social media handles, Congress is urging the EC to delete all similar content and register an FIR against those responsible for managing the party's online accounts. This complaint follows a similar issue raised by Congress on November 10, when they had approached the EC regarding a BJP video that allegedly made anti-tribal allegations against leaders from the JMM, Congress, and RJD. An FIR was also filed in that case.

With agency inputs