TMC slams Opposition over misinformation campaign
Kolkata: Opposition parties' attempts to malign the image of Bengal government by tweeting misinformation along with unrelated photographs has created an uproar, with TMC leaders stating it to be a ploy to defame the state.
Senior TMC leaders said that there is no difference between BJP and CPI(M) leaders in Bengal. Both BJP and CPI(M) have joined hands to share fake news about Bengal. Previously, it was BJP's culture to spread wrong information on social media, to garner more likes and shares and malign the state government, but now CPI(M) has also joined hands to spread fake news.
Both Sujan Chakraborty CPI(M) leader and former Meghalaya Governor and BJP leader Tathagata Roy have been accused of tweeting photographs which they claimed were of Bengal when in reality, they were not.
While former Meghalaya Governor Tathagata Roy tweeted a photograph of a book to emphasise how arithmetic is taught to young 8-year-olds in Bengal's Madrasas, Chakraborty tweeted a photograph on September 4 of a dilapidated road claiming it to be from Bengal.
Incidentally, the book Tathagata was talking about is from Bangladesh Qawmi Madrasa and not West Bengal. Even Chakraborty's photograph is of a road in Pune and not in Bengal.
Chakraborty's tweet mentioned "pitiable condition in #WB in all counts. Dilapidated road conditions. Replica of the Indian map in potholes bears testimony! Isn't it @MamataOfficial?" The tweet received 230 likes and 46 retweets.
Roy's tweet mentioned "CALLING ALL HINDUS ALL OVER THE WORLD! This is how arithmetic is taught to tender 8-year-olds in MAMATA's West Bengal! A Mujahid in the maidan of jihad killed 24 enemies on the 1st day, 18 on the 2nd and 12 on the 3rd. How many enemies did he kill in all"?
The post received over 1.1 lakh likes and 935 retweets. Many people on the social media platform have written that without going into the controversy over where the book is taught, students of such tender age should not be inculcated with such heinous senses of homicide.
After the post went viral and trollers claiming it to be a post from Bangladesh and not from Bengal, Roy tweeted another post where he claimed that he stands corrected and that the book is from Bangladesh, and went on to claim that these Bangladeshi textbooks are being taught at Kharizi and Wahhabi Madrasas in West Bengal.
He drew reference to the former chief minister of Bengal, Buddhadeb Bhattacharya, who he claimed had accepted that this textbook is being taught at the Madrasas in West Bengal, earlier.
Ritabrata Banerjee who joined TMC from CPI(M) tweeted in response to Chakraborty's tweet where he said: "Both CPI(M) and BJP leaders have joined hands to spread misinformation and unverified news."
This is not new and now people of Bengal are aware of the fake news and misinformation that both BJP and CPI(M) post on their social media handles to garner support for themselves before the elections.
A senior TMC leader said that the cyber wing of Kolkata Police had already taken up the cases and necessary action will be taken soon. Roy's posts have been deliberately posted in order to create communal tension in the state, the party leader said.
Kolkata Police stands alert and is taking action against each and every person who is involved in spreading such fake messages on social media.
Sources in the Kolkata Police said that around 300 cases have been registered till August where false clips and videos have been circulated on social media claiming it to be from Kolkata.
