This poll season, the Election Commission has a formidable task at hand: Ensuring that leaders, political parties or their supporters do not misuse social media platforms. The poll watchdog has asked Facebook, Twitter, Ticktock, and the likes to formulate their own model of conduct. Recall that Section 126 of the Representation of People Act prohibits advertising and campaigning on TV and other electronic media during the silent period, which is 48 hours before the end of polling. The code and a robust tracking mechanism will enable these networking sites to crack down on violators. The Commission’s concerns are justified. This time there are 15 million first-time voters in the age group of 18-19. This population, highly active on the Internet, can be gullible, thus falling prey to fiction or false narratives. Moreover, the march of the Internet in India has been relentless. With over 460 million internet users, India is the second largest online market, ranked just below China. By 2021, there will be about 635.8 million internet users in the country. This means that the battle for minds and eyeballs has shifted to the virtual world. The propagation of fake news — in other words, dangerous propaganda techniques — has the potential to destabilise the biggest electoral exercise in the world’s most populous democracy. The EC is also extremely wary of outside influences.
The last US presidential election was marred by allegations of Russian interference in the poll process. In India, though the EC does a sterling job of ensuring free and fair polls, its writ in the virtual world is limited. Hence, it has called upon social media intermediaries and the Internet and Mobile Association to come up with a bulwark against any kind of misuse. The EC has emphasised on a process that makes tracking of complaints and redressal of grievances swift and effective. Transparency in expenditure of political advertisements is another cause for concern for the poll body, which has warned social media giants not to allow political advertisements without the prior approval of certification committees set up in the districts. The worldwide web is an untameable beast, and that makes it extremely dangerous in a country like India where sharp divisions in society on religious and caste lines have led to a spate of violence and loss of lives in recent years. Despite robust laws, people can sneak in propaganda material during the silence period, 48 hours before the polls. However, harsh punishment for violators can act as a deterrent for these people. Now that the EC is taking every possible precaution, it should also invest in cutting-edge technology and rope in experts to become even more effective. It’s heartening to know that the EC in Karnataka has roped in some college-goers who are expert at detecting violations in social media. The EC’s reputation depends on how well it can nip mala fide content on the web in the bud. Social media majors too have their jobs cut out. Their reputation is also on the line.
