The Election Commission of India (ECI) has directed political parties, candidates and campaigners to strictly adhere to the Model Code of Conduct (MCC) and guidelines governing the use of artificial intelligence (AI) in election campaigns, following the announcement of the Bihar assembly elections and bye-elections to eight constituencies on October 6.
In a press note issued on Thursday, the ECI said, “The Commission advised the parties against misuse of AI-based tools to create deep fakes that distort information or propagate misinformation over social media platforms.”
It added that “criticism of other parties when made shall be confined to their policies and programme, past record and work,” and warned that “criticism based on unverified allegations or distortion shall be avoided.”
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The ECI also instructed all political parties, leaders and campaigners to clearly label any synthetic or digitally altered content used during campaigning.
“All Political Parties and their leaders, candidates and star campaigners shall take necessary measures for prominent labeling of AI-generated/synthetic content, if any, being shared for campaigning through their social media platforms or in the form of advertisements using clear notations such as ‘AI-Generated’, ‘Digitally Enhanced’, or ‘Synthetic Content’,” the statement said.
The Commission noted that the MCC applies to online content as well, including material posted on social media by political parties and candidates. It stated that a “strict watch on social media posts is being kept to ensure that the election atmosphere is not vitiated,” and that any violation “would be dealt with strictly.”
{{/usCountry}}The Commission noted that the MCC applies to online content as well, including material posted on social media by political parties and candidates. It stated that a “strict watch on social media posts is being kept to ensure that the election atmosphere is not vitiated,” and that any violation “would be dealt with strictly.”
{{/usCountry}}The Bihar Assembly election will be held in two phases on November 6 and November 11, with counting scheduled for November 14. The ECI said it has made “elaborate arrangements for ensuring the effective implementation of MCC Guidelines.”