An FIR has been registered against BJP IT Cell chief Amit Malviya and Republic TV Editor-in-Chief Arnab Goswami for allegedly spreading false information, according to police officials.
The case was filed at the High Grounds police station on Tuesday following a complaint by Shrikant Swaroop B N, head of the legal cell of the Indian Youth Congress.
The complaint invokes sections 192 (provocation with intent to cause riot) and 352 (intentional insult to provoke breach of peace) under the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita.
Swaroop accused Malviya and Goswami of orchestrating a "criminally motivated campaign" to spread false claims that the Istanbul Congress Centre in Turkey is the international office of the Indian National Congress (INC).
He alleged that the misinformation was "deliberately designed to mislead the Indian public, defame a major political party, stir nationalist sentiments, and incite unrest."
"The actions come amid strained diplomatic ties between India and Turkey, largely due to Turkey’s perceived support for Pakistan," he said.
"This makes the misinformation campaign even more dangerous and inflammatory."
Calling the campaign “an unprecedented attack on India’s democratic foundations,” Swaroop urged authorities, including the Press Council of India, Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, and the CBI, to treat the complaint as an emergency and take strict action.