Ankhi Das, the Facebook public policy director for India, has submitted a written complaint to the Delhi Police cyber cell, claiming that she has been receiving ‘violent threats against my life and body.’ The Facebook executive said that these threats came after a Wall Street Journal (WSJ) article on August 14 said that the platform had failed to take action against posts by BJP MLA Raja Singh, although the post fell under Facebook’s hate speech rules and had been marked as dangerous. Like in this case, the report says that because of Ankhi Das’s intervention, action was not taken for at least three other “Hindu nationalist individuals and groups” because it would damage Facebook’s business prospects in the country.
The article goes on to claim that Ankhi Das said that policing posts uploaded by BJP leaders will ‘affect the company's interests in India.’
The four-page complaint submitted by Ankhi Das mentions the Facebook and Twitter handles of the people she has accused of sending her threats. In her complaint, she has also said that the alleged “violent threats” also contained her photos. She has also sought the ‘immediate arrest’ of those behind the threats and also sought police protection.
Responding to the Wall Street Journal report, a Facebook spokesperson has said that the social media company enforces policies on hate speech “without regard to anyone’s political position or party affiliation.” He added, “We prohibit hate speech and content that incites violence and we enforce these policies globally without regard to anyone’s political position or party affiliation. While we know there is more to do, we’re making progress on enforcement and conducting regular audits of our process to ensure fairness and accuracy.”
Meanwhile, the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Information Technology has stated that it will look into the WSJ report.
“I will certainly look into the issue and the committee will seek the views of Facebook,” committee chairman Shashi Tharoor told The Indian Express.