The Hyderabad Cyber Crime Police have registered two cases against several social media users and the head of Meta India following a complaint by BJP activists over allegedly objectionable online content targeting Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
The FIRs were registered under Sections 66C (identity theft) and 67 (publishing obscene material in electronic form) of the Information Technology Act, along with Sections 353(2) and 336(4) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), based on a complaint filed on July 29 by a member of the Telangana BJP’s social media core committee.
“The cases were registered against those who posted the content and those who allowed it to remain on the platforms,” a Cyber Crime official told PTI on Friday.
In one of the cases, the FIR names the “users of Instagram and Facebook” referred to in the complaint, along with the head of Meta India.
The complainant sought an investigation into several Instagram accounts accused of publishing and circulating content allegedly derogatory towards the Prime Minister.
According to the complaint, the content promoted narratives considered prejudicial to the country’s sovereignty, integrity and public order. It also included links to the relevant Instagram and Facebook posts.
The complainant urged the police to preserve electronic evidence related to the accounts and posts, identify those operating the accounts, conduct a detailed investigation, and coordinate with Meta to obtain account information and secure digital evidence where necessary.
Meanwhile, Telangana BJP chief spokesperson N V Subhash called for immediate and stringent legal action against those responsible for creating, sharing and amplifying what he described as morphed, abusive and derogatory content targeting the Prime Minister during the CJP-led protest over the NEET paper leak.
He said the issue raised a “fundamental constitutional question” about whether repeated and organised abuse directed at a constitutional office-holder could be protected as free speech or should be treated as actionable misconduct.
“The Constitution protects liberty, but it does not legitimise lawlessness. Rights come with responsibilities, and accountability must follow where legal limits are allegedly crossed,” Subhash said in a statement.
(With inputs from PTI)