Harish Rawat files FIR against BJP over 'misinformation' campaign against him

Dehradun, Dec 24 (PTI) Senior Congress leader and former Uttarakhand chief minister Harish Rawat has filed a police complaint here against the alleged misinformation campaign being carried out against him by the BJP on social media.

Rawat on Tuesday reached the Nehru Colony police station with his supporters and handed over a written complaint along with a pen drive and other evidence to the police.

Based on this, an FIR was registered under relevant sections of the Information Technology (Amendment) Act, 2008.

After filing the FIR, Rawat alleged that the police took four hours to register his complaint. He added that if it takes so long for a former CM to file an FIR, one can easily imagine the plight of a common man.

"Finally, after four hours, the police registered the FIR with trembling hands. Their hands were trembling because we have accused the BJP president and his associates, with factual evidence, of misusing AI to tarnish our and our party's image and trying to disrupt social harmony by targeting a particular community," Rawat said.

He said, "Just imagine, if the police take so much time to register an FIR of a former CM, what will be the condition of a common man in this state?" He expressed hope that after the registration of the FIR, the police would bring the culprits to justice.

Later, Rawat also handed over a copy of the FIR to the Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) of Dehradun and the SSP of the Special Task Force. Rawat also said that he would meet the District Magistrate of Dehradun and the State Election Officer with his complaint on Wednesday.

Recently, an AI-generated reel was uploaded on the official social media page of the BJP, which portrayed Rawat as a supporter of appeasement.

In the reel, a Congress leader is heard saying, "I take refuge in Muslims, I take refuge in dargahs (shrines), I take refuge in love jihad." The subsequent images show the construction of a dargah and some people smiling and talking about turning 'Devbhoomi' (the land of gods) into a land of dargahs.

At the end of the reel, Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami is seen walking with the police force and bulldozers.

Rawat also claimed that another AI-generated video was uploaded from a "fake" BJP platform, depicting him as a "traitorous Pakistani agent" engaged in espionage. However, the BJP has denied any connection to this video. PTI DPT NB DIV DIV