Congress attacks Modi govt after X crackdown on trolls sponsored by opposition parties: Read how anti-India propaganda was being spread

On 18th March (Wednesday), the central government invoked section 69A of the Information Technology Act, 2000 and certain social media accounts which seem to be affiliated with the opposition ecosystem were withheld in India. The section gives the authority to restrict internet content on grounds such as public order, national security and sovereignty. Shortly after the development, the Indian National Congress initiated a campaign to charge the government with curtailing freedom of expression. A press conference was held on the issue by Supriya Srinate, the chief of the party’s social media and digital platforms department, in New Delhi. She referred to the move as a rising culture of censorship and accused the centre of smothering dissent, strengthening its control on digital discourse and attacking the persons who hold unfavourable views of its policies. She alleged that the Modi government has engaged in a pattern of silencing independent dissenting voices across all online platforms. Shrinate contended that such measures essentially give bureaucrats power over decisions regarding open accessibility to information. “This is not merely about shaping narratives; it is an encroachment on the very spirit of free expression,” she added. She further purported that the government was expanding its role into the world of social media after interfering with sections of mainstream media. “Many of those affected are not aligned with the Congress. Some have even pointed fingers at us for our decisions, but we raise our voice in their support. We have learned from Rahul Gandhi to stand by anyone who encounters injustice, regardless of whether they have been against us and they are not an official part of our ecosystem, contrary to the assertions made by the Bharatiya Janata Party and its trolls,” the Congresswoman stated. She then announced, “Blocking accounts will not block questions.” She also complained that the matter was a part of a broader issue, blaming the government for diverting emphasis from growing legislative and economic challenges alongside foreign policy flaws. Shirante even uploaded a video with similar arguments and tweeted in support of the banned accounts, labelling the decision as “unacceptable” and Prime Minister Narendra Modi as a “coward.” Interestingly, the grand old party has a long history of crushing disagreement and has frequently violated the freedom of speech. Nevertheless, it has rallied behind these people not out of genuine concern for the lofty ideals articulated in formal statements, but because they peddle the opposition’s narrative. Of course, this cannot be the only reason for the move against them, as there appears to be much more to their online activities than meets the eye. The knack for distributing misleading information and propaganda Nehr_who, with 242.3 K followers, is one of the popular accounts from the Islamo-liberal cabal that has been restricted by the government. It has repeatedly not only spread false news but also exhibited racism and cast aspersions on the Indian Army. He even condemned the judiciary for its refusal to offer protection to the infamous gym owner “Mohammad” Deepak Kumar, who had mocked the victims of the Pahalgam terror attack, remarking, “Only in India a hero is treated as a villain.” He shared a speech from Prime Minister Keir Starmer, which celebrated the diversity present in the United Kingdom, to declare that “this is actually the opposite in India,” leaving no chance to disparage the nation, even through falsehoods. The account has been at the forefront of circulating manufactured stories about “minorities under threat” while either sanitising the incidents of assaults on Hindus or poking fun at their massacre. In 2024, he cited the Hinduphobia tracker of OpIndia to suggest that Hindus are more secure in Kashmir than in Uttar Pradesh to showcase his shockingly derogatory and insensitive viewpoint about their in the valley. He is clearly aware of the exodus of Kashmiri Pandits due to jihadis but chose to deride their pain and anguish. The United States Ambassador to India, Sergio Gor and the Commander of the United States Indo-Pacific Command, Samuel J Paparo went to the headquarters of India’s Western Army Command in Chandigarh this month. The talks centred on serious security matters along the western theatre, which is critical owing to military stalemates and hostilities with Pakistan. However, the meeting was used to insinuate that PM Modi was compromised, an allegation often levelled by the Congress party and in turn raising questions on the integrity of the defence forces. Nehr_who instigated a racist attack on the people of Bihar for their voting choices and ridiculed, “Enjoy the migration in toilets for another 5 years,” to demean the hardworking labour class merely because they refused to elect his preferred parties. “Lakhs of migrants from UP and Bihar suffer horribly just to visit their hometown during festivals. Some of them even die,” he conveyed similarly in 2024, hitting out at them for backing the saffron party and charging that its government introduced Vande Bharat for the affluent. “You reap what you sow,” he added gleefully. The man has continuously downgraded the state and its residents over hygiene and other things. He also invoked Osho to perpetrate xenophobic attacks against the people of Gujarat and Bihar, conveniently ignoring that these states were under the control of the parties he endorsed. A woman reported that she voted for the Samajwadi Party but ended up with a BJP slip instead in Lakhimpur Kheri of Uttar Pradesh. “I had an infant baby with me during the time of voting because of which I pressed the wrong button, and I have no problems with the EVMs,” she later clarified. However, her bogus statement was leveraged to denounce the Election Commission of India by him. The Chief Minister of Assam, Himanta Biswa Sarma, has enforced rigorous measures to stop illegal immigration from Bangladesh in the region. However, Nehr_who, not only sought to inject a communal perspective into his anti-intruder statement by crying “apartheid,” but also demanded action against him. He and Mohammed Zubair of Alt News even tried to mark a target on journalist Nisha Pal for posing questions related to the Pahalgam terror incident, Operation Sindoor and the Israel–Hamas war directed at some Muslim children. He even uploaded a video with a supposed Pakistani man celebrating the victory of the Indian cricket team, declaring the Islamic Republic to be a superior country compared to India, while disregarding all its massive transgressions including terrorism against his own land. Moreover, the person which has “no ties” to the Congress seethed, “This is how you speak when you learn history from a movie and not from an actual book,” in response to a comment expressing that Dhurandhar 2 made them understand why the party should never regain power. Disguised anti-India propaganda framed as disapproval against Modi government Dr. Nimo Yadav 2.0, another prominent account that has been barred in India, went so far as to associate two union ministers with anti-national activities. He stated, “Is it true that N Sitharaman’s office and Rajeev Chandrashekhar were following a person on Twitter who was training terrorists in India,” and called for the National Investigation Agency (NIA) to investigate the leaders. Meanwhile, the parties that these elements support have been propping up mafias and gangsters for vote bank as they overstep all boundaries of human decency to push their agenda. He even made a joke about the appearance of the Indian Army officials and mentioned, “This is what happens when you ban eggs in mid-day meals,” illustrating the respect he has for the men in uniform who have been exemplary on the battlefield and otherwise while tackling enemies like Pakistan and China. He derived amusement from the arrest of Nikhil Gupta, who was alleged to be involved in a unsuccesful assassination scheme against Khalistani terrorist Gurpatwant Singh Pannun, wishing his story to be featured in Dhurandhar 2 alongside R Madhavan who plays National Security Advisor of India in the movie. This was his pitiful effort to make a spectacle of Indian intelligence agencies. Dr. Nimo Yadav 2.0, in another post, asserted that “things are not looking good for India” because “Russia offered crude oil to Pakistan at a discounted price,” which he characterised as a substantial failure for the government. On the other hand, India has been acquiring oil from Russia at considerable discounts, particularly in 2022, despite the threats and tariffs from the United States. He understands that Russia’s offer to Pakistan, much like India’s closeness with Israel, does not obstruct the ties between the two countries, yet he did not let that to distract from his propaganda. He was among those who targeted wrestler Bajrang Punia, denouncing him as a bigot and a BJP lackey for his endorsement of Bajrang Dal on social media. He was forced to retract his post and was asked to apologise for his “audacity” a directive for him to yield to their conditions to receive their support for the agitation at Jantar Mantar. Others were even instructed not to participate in trending his hashtag. Different accounts, same objectionable conduct Manish RJ, whose account has experienced similar constraints in India, had stated that Bihari voters sold their souls for 10,000 because they supported the BJP. This democratic exercise is only acknowledged by this cabal when it leads to the triumph of their chosen parties. He, like the others, was unable to restrain himself from disseminating false information and wrote “fatherland” in reference to Israel, falsely attributing this to PM Modi, who had made the remark regarding Indian Jews, indicating that they view the West Asian country in that light while considering India as their motherland. The RJ even dragged the mother of the victim into the horrific rape and murder case that occurred at Kolkata’s Medical College and Hospital in his petty politics, charging that her pleas for justice were motivated by her desire to contest elections on a BJP ticket. He unabashedly slammed the grieving woman rather than demanding accountability from the ruling Trinamool Congress government. He has continually been retweeting posts that make fun of any detrimental effects on Indians caused by the geopolitical crises. “Activist and social worker” Sandeep Singh, another name on the list, has been openly batting for Congress, particularly its Haryana unit, through multiple posts, contradicting Shrinate’s claim that these accounts do not endorse her party. Furthermore, he also desires the prohibition of Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) in India, as mentioned in the recent controversial report by the United States Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) in the name of freedom of religion and prevent discrimination. The report also prescribed targeted sanctions against the Research and Analysis Wing. Union Minister Kishan Reddy categorically reprehended Rahul Gandhi and his party for succumbing to the unwarranted interference of the United States, which he noted jeopardised Indian interests and termed this behaviour as “anti-national.” Another withheld account in India, in its blind hatred, referenced Dhurandhar, a term that celebrates the unsung heroes of India in the film, to highlight an illegal currency note printing scam in Gujarat, thereby belittling the sacrifice of those warriors. Dr Ranjan, whose account encountered the same outcome, posted a video from a program to inaccurately claim that the Indian media, influenced by the Modi government, is obscuring crises and disasters from the citizens. Nevertheless, the media is persistently covering this significant issue and India has effectively secured crude oil from the narrow passage after Iran allowed vessels to pass through it. The clear objective seems to be to create fear among the people and provoke resentment against the government, without considering the repercussions for the country. The statement made by Foreign Minister Dr S Jaishankar, indicating that there was “no blanket arrangement” with Iran and “every ship movement is an individual happening,” was presented as if the centre had failed to secure any agreement with the Iranian regime, leaving the country to endure hardships. However, discussions took place and oil-laden vessels successfully navigated the strait, docking at Indian ports despite the extensive propaganda and contrary assertions. He also launched an attack on Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath after he criticised casteism while endorsing the caste system, alluding to the “varna vyavastha,” which was completely founded on social function and transformed with shifts in occupation. Ranjan, however, tried to manipulate CM Yogi’s appeal with the intention of fostering a caste divide in society, claiming that he committed the “gravest sin” by defending the caste system. Some individuals even secured their tweets following the incident, raising many eyebrows. A number of such accounts have been banned due to their propensity to engage in the spread of misinformation, half-truths and unfounded allegations. Moreover, if they are not guilty of such actions and the government has committed any form of “injustice” against them, they can always turn to the judiciary for remedy. However, they seem to be more interested in crying victim. Moreover, these individuals were delighted when the account of Hindu activist Vijay Patel was suspended, and Malabar Gold wanted to imprison him for his criticism of their hiring of Pakistani influencers who berated Operation Sindoor. They take pleasure in the “censorship” as long as it unfairly targets their opponents. The hypocrisy and double standards are indeed astonishing. Conclusion In April 2024, just before the Lok Sabha elections, Amit Shah rebuked Congress for using his edited video that alleged that reservations would end if the BJP was elected to power. This video was broadly circulated as authentic by the Congress-led I.N.D.I.A. Alliance and their entire network. Thus, the propagation of disinformation with harmful intent cannot be dismissed lightly. Likewise, it is not surprising that the largest opposition party in the country, which has employed such tactics, is upset following action against these accounts.