HYDERABAD: Despite social media stakeholders enforcing the voluntary code of ethics for the upcoming Lok Sabha elections, not much seems to have changed. Political advertisements continue to flout rules on various social media platforms. Advertisements like those which target first-time voters with goodies, if they “pledge to vote for Modi”, are still doing the rounds.
A few days ago, the Election Commission of India had announced that all political advertisements will require certification from the ECI. The idea is that political advertisements can only appear on social media platforms, if it is in accordance with code of conduct.
However, this is hardly the case now. For instance, a page on Facebook called ‘My First Vote for Modi’, floated an advertisement aimed at enlisting young voters to their campaign, with the promise of winning ‘limited edition T-shirts’. The caption on the advertisement read: “Share your suggestions, today, for strengthening the India of Future and Get a chance to win a T-shirt.”
Another advertisement by the same Facebook Page was also aimed at first-time voters. It asked youngsters to “pledge your vote” for Prime Minister Narendra Modi “for the better India and win exciting goodies”. Both were aimed predominantly at men aged between 18 to 24 years.
These advertisements are problematic because the Model Code of Conduct (MCC) stipulates that one cannot ask for vote in return of freebies, cash, or gifts. Mistakes in paid advertisements are also common. Independent security researcher Srinivas Kodali said, “After seeing the ads on Facebook, I realise that the EC is struggling with the pre-certification of ads. Despite the voluntary code of ethics having come into effect, not much has changed.”