The Election Commission of India has issued an advisory to all political parties, asking them to refrain from using fake and other forms of misinformation in their social media posts during the ongoing general elections in the country. The move comes after the constitutional body faced criticism for not doing enough to combat such campaigns in the world’s most populous nation.
The counseling, released on Monday (PDF), requires political parties to remove any fake audio or video within three hours of becoming aware of its existence. Parties are also advised to identify and warn the individuals responsible for creating the fraudulent content. The Election Commission’s action follows a Delhi High Court order asking the body to resolve the matter after the matter was mentioned in a petition.
India, home to more than 1.5 billion people, began its general elections on April 19, with the voting process ending on June 1. The election has already been marred by controversy surrounding the use of fakes and disinformation.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi complained late last month about the use of fake voices to show leaders supposedly making statements they “never even thought of”, claiming it was part of a conspiracy designed to sow tension in society.
Indian police have arrested at least six people from the social media groups of the Indian National Congress, the country’s main opposition party, for circulating a fake video showing Home Minister Amit Shah making statements he claims he never made.
India has been battling the use and spread of deepfakes for several months now. Ashwini Vaishnaw, India’s IT minister, met with major social media companies, including Meta and Google, in November and “reached a consensus” that regulation was needed to better combat the spread of deepfake videos as well as apps that facilitate their creation.
Another IT minister in January warned tech companies of stiff penalties, including bans, if they don’t take proactive measures against deepfake videos. The nation has yet to codify its draft regulation on deepfakes into law.
The Election Commission said on Monday that it “repeatedly directs” political parties and their leaders to “maintain decency and maximum restraint in public campaigning”.
