Sikhs in Canada say they are alarmed that the Narendra Modi government is aggressively seeking to promote nationalism and combat “adversaries” globally in the lead-up to national elections in India.
India’s government is looking for a company to analyze social media posts to help boost nationalism and neutralize any “media blitzkrieg by India’s adversaries.”
“The Indian government has come under sharp criticism for its human rights record, particularly in relation to minorities and to women and girls. Rather than trying to improve the situation, it has moved to shut its critics down, characterizing any vocal supporters of human rights at home or abroad as ‘extremists,” said the group Sikhs on Media.
“Worryingly, India has become more divided on sectarian lines since Narendra Modi’s election as Prime Minister in 2014. Tactics like the ones revealed will only serve to harden those divisions and make sectarian violence worse. Further, they foster tensions abroad between communities that are drawn into these issues and narratives.
“However, we are not surprised. The Indian government regularly uses similar methods against Canada’s Sikh community for political reasons. Recent examples include issues raised during the Canadian Prime Minister’s visit to India earlier this year and, cynically, a statement in response to the restaurant bombing in Mississauga.
“Given these troubling developments, media should carefully consider the source of the information and the political agenda behind it when reporting on Canada’s Sikh community.”
Sikhs on Media is a group of Canadians dedicated to helping the media and public better understand Sikhs and Sikh issues. “We’re here to help reporters get the full story on the challenges that affect us and to promote fair and accurate reporting about our community,” it said.
In a tender posted online, India’s Ministry of Information and Broadcasting said it wants a company to provide analytical software and a team of at least 20 professionals to “power a real time New Media Command Room,” Bloomberg reported.
They should monitor Twitter, YouTube, LinkedIn, Internet forums and even email in order to analyze sentiment, identify “fake news,” disseminate information on behalf of the government and inject news and social media posts with a “positive slant for India,” the tender said.
Under Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s administration, India’s ministries and cabinet ministers have been active on social media, tweeting new policies and interacting with citizens. But this tender suggests Modi’s government now wants more powerful social media tools to shape a positive narrative about India and encourage nationalism among its citizens in the lead up to state and national elections.
“Essentially, the hub will be a mass surveillance tool,” said Nikita Sud, an associate professor of international development at Oxford University. “Nationalism seems to be equated with agreement with the government of the day, or even with the party in power. There are grave implications here for India’s democracy, and for the fundamental rights to free speech and expression guaranteed by the Indian constitution.”
“This tender contains a worrying emphasis on isolating and countering individual views,” said Saksham Khosla, a research analyst at Carnegie Endowment for International Peace’s India office. “Will it collect other personal data? The line between surveillance and responsiveness is blurry, and without rigorous privacy safeguards and oversight, the potential for misuse and overreach is high.”
Courtesy South Asian Post
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