Election-related hate speech on Meta platforms in India is rampant

An alarming pattern has surfaced, pointing to a marked increase in Islamophobic rhetoric in political advertising campaigns in the neighboring nation, as the Indian political arena heats up for the current general elections.

According to a BOOM investigation, stooges on social media platforms have been actively spreading content that is divisive and frequently has Islamophobic overtones. These stooges have been specifically directed towards opponents of the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).

The analysis, which examined Meta’s Ad Library Report for April 2024, brought to light the large sums of money that different political organizations invested in social media ads.

With almost INR10 crore spent on Facebook advertisements alone, the BJP emerged as the biggest spender, with its chief competitor, the Indian National Congress, trailing far behind with INR6.5 crore. Other regional players, like the Biju Janata Dal (BJD) of Odisha and the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) of Tamil Nadu, too surpassed the INR1 crore threshold in advertising spending.

Still, the investigation’s most concerning finding was how commonplace Islamophobic content appeared on surrogate pages. These pages targeted BJP opponents with ads featuring provocative memes and dog-whistle messaging while posing as independent companies.

The rise of new pages like “Meme Hub” after prior offenders like “MemeXpress” were banned highlights the ongoing difficulty in suppressing hate speech online, even in spite of efforts by platforms like Meta to do so.

The inquiry also turned up alarming examples of prominent political handles—including those connected to the BJP—disseminating stories that are hostile to Muslims.

The development of dummy pages connected to political consulting organizations like Varahe Analytics adds to the complexity of the situation and casts doubt on the responsibility and transparency of political advertising on the internet.

The discovery that these pages are a part of a coordinated network supported by political parties emphasizes the necessity of more stringent laws to stop the transmission of false information and hate speech.

Concerns have been expressed about the possible effects of such polarizing rhetoric on social cohesiveness and democratic values in reaction to these findings.

In addition to undermining secularism, the weaponization of religion for political ends threatens the very foundation of Indian society.