Cops In Tizzy As Rumour Gangs Strike

As fake posts flood social media and WhatsApp groups to incite violence in Delhi, police form crack cyber team, launch big Op

- Chayyanika Nigam

A photo of a cop stomping on a student… An image of a protester killed in police firing… A clip showing stone-pelters targeting schoolkids… A photo of a civilian allowed to be with cops and thrash agitators… A video of policemen burning buses… And a clip of an ACP asking students to leave the Capital…

The above are some of the fake posts that have flooded social media and WhatsApp groups to add fuel to the fire, after the passage of the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) on December 11 triggered a wave of protests and violence in Delhi.

Clearly, maintaining law and order on the ground isn’t the only challenge facing the cops as rumors gangs have struck chaos and tried to incite violence in the National Capital.

A rattled Delhi Police have taken the threat “very seriously” and formed, for the first time, a crack cyber team that is registering cases under the IT Act and reaching those creating and spreading these instigating contents.