Bengaluru, 30 January: The Congress party has filed a First Information Report (FIR) against the Karnataka unit of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) following a controversial social media post. The BJP’s post targeted Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah, Deputy Chief Minister DK Shivakumar, and several other ministers, prompting legal action against the state BJP unit.
The BJP’s Karnataka unit shared a post on the social media platform ‘X’, featuring pictures of several leaders with the caption ‘Masterminds of Scams’. The post alleged that these leaders were involved in looting the state, stating, “This is the true story of Karnataka Government’s ‘scam empire’ which is plundering Karnataka day and night.”
Reacting to the post, Congress leaders from Karnataka filed a complaint at the Bengaluru Cyber Crime Police Station. They accused the BJP of posting defamatory content aimed at maligning the leaders and creating confusion within society.
The complainant stated, “A misleading image was posted from the BJP’s X account. The pictures of the Chief Minister, Deputy Chief Minister, and other ministers holding constitutional positions were deliberately presented under the label ‘Masterminds of Scams’. The post was false and insulting, with public figures’ images edited and portrayed dishonestly. Without any evidence, terms like ‘loot’ and ‘scam’ were used to provoke hatred and unrest among the public.”
The complaint demanded strict legal action against the operators of the ‘X’ account and others responsible for the post, accusing them of using digital media to spread misinformation and disrupt social harmony.
Following the complaint, the police have registered an FIR and initiated an investigation.