FIR filed against Facebook India's Director Ankhi Das for ‘hurting religious sentiments’

Following up on massive row over Facebook's hate-speech policy in India, based on claims of a foreign media publication, an FIR has been filed against Ankhi Das, Facebook's Director for Public Policy in India for allegedly 'hurting religious sentiments'.

FIR has been lodged by a local journalist named Awesh Tiwari in Chhattisgarh naming Das and two ors for allowing hate-speech posts on social networking site by select political parties and groups. It is important however to mention that journalist's FIR comes a day after Ankhi Das filed a complaint with Delhi's Cyber Cell Unit naming five people for issuing death threats to her. Awesh Tiwari is one of people mentioned in her complaint. 

Read: Amid Row, Facebook's Public Policy Director Files Complaint In Delhi Over Getting Threats

According to sources, Public Policy Director for India, South and Central Asia has been receiving a flood of abusive comments and threats after a western media outlet claimed that Ankhi Das had allegedly told Facebook that punishing hate-speech violations by BJP on social networking site would 'dam company's business prospects in India'.

Ankhi Das along with Ram Sahu and Vivek Sinha have been booked under Indian Penal Code Sections 295(a) (deliberate and malicious acts intended to outr religious feelings), 505(1)(c) (with intent to incite, or which is likely to incite, any class or community of persons to commit offence against any or class or community), 506 (criminal intimidation), 500 (defamation) and 34 (common intention), according to news ncy PTI.

Read: Facebook Issues Carefully Worded Statement Amid BJP-Congress War On Its Hate-speech policy

What does article claim?

An American newspaper on August 14 claimed that BJP's Telangana MLA T Raja Singh had often made communal and incendiary speeches that were posted on Facebook, clashing with company's hate speech rules. report claims that inspite of posts allegedly violating Facebook's hate-speech rules and qualifying as dangerous, Facebook was t to keen on flagging m under its hate-speech policy owing to company's business prospects in India. Citing preferential treatment by Facebook, WSJ points to removal of thousands of Congress-linked Pakistan military posts and several BJP-linked fake news ps prior to Lok Sabha elections.  report furr points out that Facebook has faced issues with  launch of its telecommunications service - Free Basics in 2016 from Modi government, as it violated net neutrality.

Read: Sena Drags Sushant's Death Case In Cong-BJP Exchange Over Facebook's 'hate-speech Policy'

Read: Congress Writes To Zuckerberg; Wants Facebook India Probed For Alleged 'hate Speech' Bias