Facebook responds to three hour questioning by Indian National Congress related to political bias

Facebook was accused of interfering in India’s democratic elections and of being negligent on applying its hate speech policy in India. The parliamentary panel on IT posed more than 100 questions about the functioning of Facebook in India and required answers in writing. The ruling party and the opposition alleged the platform is biased. The parliament requested explanations from Facebook after the media had reported that the platform’s moderators are forced to go easy on ruling party members, which violates the hate speech norms of the company. Facebook responded by stating it is committed to a non-partisan approach and opposition to hate and bigotry in all forms. The Indian National Congress acknowledged Facebook’s response, but said that it awaits further concrete action and specific corrective measures in India. It reiterated that the media report on Facebook bias in the country is heavily documented and incontrovertible.