Farmers' protest: Delhi Police registers 4 FIRs against social media accounts for spreading fake news

New Delhi [India], February 3 (ANI): In a bid to check the spread of misinformation in the aftermath of the violence that broke out in Delhi on Republic Day, the Delhi Police has registered 4 FIRs against several social media accounts and also sent requests for removal of offensive posts, said an official on Wednesday.
According to the police, one person has been arrested and another one is apprehended for posting fake information on social media.
"CyPAD (Cyber Prevention Awareness Detection) unit registered 4 FIRs against several social media accounts and sent requests for removal of offensive posts. One accused from Rajasthan's Churu arrested for posting the old video along with fake news of resignation by 200 police personnel. One person apprehended from Bharatpur, Rajasthan," Delhi Police PRO Chinmoy Biswal said in a statement.
"Old images and videos of law and order action, that are unrelated to the current situation in Delhi, are being peddled to generate resentment against the administration. In many of the posts, the attached media is also observed to be edited and manipulated and the same is being pushed in the guise of news reports along with inciteful and alarming hashtags," he said.
Biswal said that several other accused indulging in such activities have been identified and efforts are underway to arrest them.
"Notices to join investigation have been issued to 4 persons. Further action against them will be taken on basis of their deposition. As part of an investigation of these cases, the accounts/handles that have posted these fake, offensive, provocative content have been escalated to the concerned OTT platforms for getting their Basic Subscriber Information and also for their removal," he said.
Protestors broke barricades to enter New Delhi and clashed with police in several parts of the national capital during the January 26 'tractor rally' protest organised by farmers. The protestors also entered the iconic Mughal Era monument Red Fort and unfurled their flags from its ramparts.
Farmers have been protesting on the different borders of the national capital since November 26 last year against the three newly enacted farm laws - Farmers' Produce Trade and Commerce (Promotion and Facilitation) Act, 2020; the Farmers Empowerment and Protection) Agreement on Price Assurance and farm Services Act 2020 and the Essential Commodities (Amendment) Act, 2020. (ANI)