Committee to issue summons for FB officials
Delhi Assembly’s Peace and Harmony Committee has found Facebook complicit in Delhi riots that took place this year. The Committee has decided to issue summons for the appearance of Facebook officials before the committee on the basis of the aforesaid material and the scathing deposition.
The witnesses submitted incriminating material on record before the committee as well as made scathing depositions against Facebook Inc, Prima facie reflecting the complicity of the Social Media giant of aggravating Delhi riots.
The deposition and the evidence tendered to the Committee reveals that there have been major lapses by Facebook India in applying their community standards.
Witness Awesh Tiwari, a Senior Journalist based in Chhattisgarh who lodged FIR against Ankhi das, has claimed that a riot like situation was planned to be executed before Delhi assembly elections. He also asserted that Facebook deliberately reduces the visibility and reach of content which aims at highlighting the unity and amity between the communities. The witnesses have alleged strong complicity on the part of Facebook in aggravation of Delhi Riots
The committee took the decision on the premise of incriminatory material produced on record by the witnesses as well as their scathing depositions before the Committee, and thus deciding to summon the Facebook officials in its next meeting in order to examine them on oath and determine on their culpability.
Further, the committee has also urged the need of an independent investigation leading to the filing of a supplementary charge sheet in the ongoing cases related to Delhi riots on the basis of supportive and corroborative material during the course of purported investigation. On Monday, three witnesses were examined by the committee namely Awesh Tiwari: Journalist from Chhattisgarh who had lodged FIR against Ankhi Das, Kunal Purohit, independent journalist and researcher, Subhash Gatade, an independent journalist.
The committee had earlier called upon other expert witnesses who deposed before the committee and contributed some valuable insights.