Mark Zuckerberg to be summoned over remark on 2024 LS polls in India

A parliamentary standing committee plans to summon Meta chief Mark Zuckerberg's remark on charges of spreading “misinformation” about the 2024 Indian parliamentary election.

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In a podcast on January 10, the Facebook co-founder said the Covid pandemic led to an erosion of trust in incumbent governments the world over.

What Zuckerberg said

He said ruling parties the world over lost elections in 2024, and he mentioned India too in this context.

“There is some sort of a global phenomenon -- whether it was because of inflation or the economic policies to deal with Covid or just how the governments dealt with Covid,” he said.

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Minister disputes claim

Union minister Ashwini Vaishnaw disputed Zuckerberg's remark and said that Indians reaffirmed their trust in the ruling coalition led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi last year.

"Zuckerberg's claim that most incumbent governments, including India in 2024 elections, lost post-Covid is factually incorrect," Vaishnaw wrote on X.

“Meta, it's disappointing to see misinformation from Zuckerberg himself. Let's uphold facts and credibility," he added.

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BJP MP’s threat

Nishikant Dubey, a BJP MP and chairman of the House panel on communication and IT, said Meta would be summoned on grounds of spreading misinformation.

"Misinformation on a democratic country maligns its image. The organisation would have to apologise to the parliament and the people (of India) for this mistake," Dubey said in a post on X.