Thiruvananthapuram, March 26 The cyber wing of the Kerala police has registered a case against the social media platform X and one of its accounts for circulating an AI-generated video allegedly depicting the Prime Minister and the Election Commission in a "misleading and defamatory manner."
The video in question refers to the incident of an EC letter carrying the seal of the BJP's Kerala unit – an issue that has turned into a political controversy in the state, which is heading towards elections.
Police said that the video has not yet been removed from the X account where it was posted.
In a statement, the police further said that the allegedly defamatory content was brought to their notice through official channels, including the Election Commission of India (ECI).
"Upon verification, it was assessed that the material had the potential to mislead the public, undermine the credibility of constitutional bodies, and adversely impact the conduct of free and fair elections," it said.
The police registered a case against the X (Twitter) account Laxmi N Raju (@valiant_Raju), and others – which includes X Corp – at the Cyber Crime Police Station, Thiruvananthapuram City, late Wednesday night, and an investigation has been initiated to ascertain culpability and take action in accordance with the law.
The FIR was lodged under sections 352 (intentional insult with intent to provoke breach of peace), 336(forgery),353(statements conducing to public mischief), 3(5)(common intention) and 174 (punishment for undue influence or personation at an election) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita and section 66C (identity theft) of the Information Technology Act.
According to the FIR, the 1 minute 17 second video was posted on the social media platform with the intention of causing riots in society and X, despite directions from the authorities to delete the content, allowed it to be circulated.
Police said that necessary legal notices were issued to the intermediary platform under relevant provisions of the Information Technology Act and Rules, seeking expeditious removal of the unlawful content.
They further said that, in accordance with the Model Code of Conduct and applicable legal provisions, the Cyber Operations Wing of Kerala police initiated immediate measures to prevent further circulation of the video.
"Members of the public are advised to exercise due caution and refrain from creating, sharing, or amplifying unverified or misleading content, particularly during the election period," police said.
They also said that prompt, lawful, and impartial action will be taken against any activity that disrupts or attempts to influence free and fair elections.
The controversy surfaced after CPI(M) flagged the issue on social media platform X, sharing an affidavit attached to a March 19, 2019 letter sent to political parties in the country that bore the BJP Kerala seal instead of the Election Commission's official seal.
The EC had said it was "purely a clerical error" and had been rectified immediately.
It also said that the official responsible for the error has been placed under suspension.