Rahul Gandhi says BJP and RSS control Facebook, Ravi Shankar Prasad hits back

Senior BJP leader and Union Minister for information technology, Ravi Shankar Prasad has slammed Congress Leader Rahul Gandhi for alleging that the BJP and RSS control Facebook and WhatsApp in India.

He said that Gandhi's party has no standing to question the BJP given previous allegations of Congress having used online platforms to influence elections in India.

Earlier on Sunday, Rahul Gandhi has posted a tweet, " BJP & RSS control Facebook & Whatsapp in India. They spread fake news and hatred through it and use it to influence the electorate. Finally, the American media has come out with the truth about Facebook."

He also shared screenshots of the Wall Street Journal news report which said that Facebook has not implemented its hate-speech rules on posts by BJP leaders suggesting that the social media giant and BJP have been working together.

BJP & RSS control Facebook & Whatsapp in India.

They spread fake news and hatred through it and use it to influence the electorate.

Finally, the American media has come out with the truth about Facebook. pic.twitter.com/Y29uCQjSRP

Advertisement

- Rahul Gandhi (@RahulGandhi) August 16, 2020

Replying to Gandhi's tweet, Ravi Shankar Prasad wrote, "Losers who cannot influence people even in their own party keep cribbing that the entire world is controlled by BJP & RSS" Prasad also said that Gandhi's party has no standing to question the BJP given previous allegations of Congress having used online platforms to influence elections in India.

Losers who cannot influence people even in their own party keep cribbing that the entire world is controlled by BJP & RSS.

You were caught red-handed in alliance with Cambridge Analytica & Facebook to weaponise data before the elections & now have the gall to question us? https://t.co/NloUF2WZVY

Advertisement

- Ravi Shankar Prasad (@rsprasad) August 16, 2020

Prasad was referring to Cambridge Analytica controversy of 2018. Back in 2018, Christopher Wylie, the whistleblower in the Cambridge Analytica case had told British lawmakers that he "believed" the Congress party in India was a client of Cambridge Analytics at the regional level.

Cambridge Analytica is infamous for being linked to Facebook data breach of around 50 million users in the US to benefit Donald Trump's presidential campaign in 2016.

In a second Tweet, Prasad attacked Rahul Gandhi for not condemning the recent communal violence in Bangaluru. He said, "Btw, haven't yet heard your condemnation of the Bangalore riots. Where did your courage disappear?".

The fact is that today access to information and freedom of expression has been democratized. It is no longer controlled by retainers of your family and that is why it hurts.

Btw, haven't yet heard your condemnation of the Bangalore riots. Where did your courage disappear?

- Ravi Shankar Prasad (@rsprasad) August 16, 2020

Also Read: Russia produces first batch of coronavirus vaccines

Also Read: India erred in imposing lockdown restrictions; entered, exited too soon, says Abhijit Banerjee