The controversy erupted after Kerala’s Chief Electoral Officer’s (CEO) office came under scrutiny on Monday when copies of an EC letter—featuring a BJP seal—surfaced on social media. The EC, while issuing a clarification on a BJP communication related to a 2019 guideline, had inadvertently attached the party’s letter along with its clarification sent to political parties, triggering a political row.
CEO Rathan U. Kelkar said the earlier communication had been withdrawn and replaced with a corrected version circulated to all political parties.
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Acting on EC directions, the cybercrime police said the posts in question constituted a direct affront to a “respected national institution” and posed a risk to public order by potentially inciting division and hostility. “There is an urgent need for the immediate removal of all digital content featuring a superseded 2019 document that inadvertently contained a political party’s seal due to a clerical error, which has since been rectified,” the police said in a note.
Kerala Police invoked provisions under Section 79(3)(b) of the IT Act, 2000, along with the IT (Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media Ethics Code) Rules, 2021, to seek removal of the content.
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“The continued circulation of this retracted material is being used to spread false allegations, thereby undermining the integrity and transparency of the Election Commission. Such misinformation poses a grave threat to public order, with the potential to incite division and hostility among supporters of different political parties, possibly leading to serious law and order issues,” the note added.
Authorities have also asked media outlets and digital platforms to cease distribution of the document and remove it from archives and social media accounts.
Meanwhile, AICC social media and digital platforms head Supriya Shrinate criticised the move, alleging collusion between the BJP and the LDF, and described the directive as an attempt by the government to use coercive measures to secure content removal.
