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INDIA bloc demands 'neutrality' from Mark Zuckerberg, Sundar Pichai, accuses YouTube, Meta of spreading hate
The letter, shared by Congress leader Mallikarjun Kharge on X, declared partisanship by a foreign company "is tantamount to interfering in India's democracy".
The INDIA alliance has accused WhatsApp, Facebook and YouTube of aiding "the communal hatred campaign of the ruling BJP" and suppressing Opposition leaders' content. In a strongly worded letter to Meta CEO Mark Zuckerburg and Google CEO Sunder Pichai, the bloc of 28 political parties alleged the social media platforms were culpable of abetting social disharmony and inciting communal hatred in India.
"You may be aware of the recent exposes by the Washington Post newspaper about the role of WhatsApp and Facebook in aiding the communal hatred campaign of the ruling BJP. Specifically, the article cites details of how this vile, communally divisive propaganda is carried out using WhatsApp groups by BJP members and supporters." the letter reads.
Citing another WP report, the letter claimed the newspaper carried evidence of what it called blatant partisanship by Facebook and Google's executives towards the government.
“It is very clear from these exhaustive investigations by the Washington Post that Meta is culpable of abetting social disharmony and inciting communal hatred in India. Further, we have data that shows algorithmic moderation and suppression of Opposition leaders' content on your platform while also promoting ruling party content,” it said.
The letter, shared by Congress leader Mallikarjun Kharge on X, declared that such partisanship by a private foreign company "is tantamount to interfering in India's democracy".
It wrote an identical letter to Pichai whose firm Google owns YouTube.
"In light of the upcoming national elections in 2024, it is our earnest and urgent plea to you to consider these facts seriously and ensure immediately that Meta's operations in India remain neutral," it added.
In an article titled 'Inside the vast digital campaign by Hindu nationalists to inflame India', the Washington Post attributed BJP's electoral success to what it called "a massive messaging machine built on top of U.S. social media platforms".
In another article on October 8, titled 'A toxic mix of tech and hate threatens India’s democracy', it accused social media platforms of becoming "conveyor belts for hate under Prime Minister Narendra Modi".
