UDF Govt Following Centre’s Footsteps in Media Censorship; Protecting Accused in MDMA Case: Pinarayi Vijayan

Thiruvananthapuram: The UDF government in Keralam is following the path of the Central government by imposing media censorship, Leader of the Opposition Pinarayi Vijayan said. He alleged that the government was protecting those arrested in drug-related cases.

As part of the anti-drug Operation Toofan, the Chief Minister’s social media coordinator was arrested. However, news reports related to the arrest are being removed from Facebook. These posts are being taken down following intervention by the state government, Pinarayi alleged.

The Leader of the Opposition demanded that the government clarify why it had taken the position that news about the arrest should not appear on social media. He raised the allegations at a press conference.

Imposing censorship is an authoritarian measure, Pinarayi said. There has been widespread criticism of the measures adopted by the Central government using Meta, he added. Following the youth protest at Jantar Mantar, Meta imposed restrictions on posts and reels related to the protest on Facebook and Instagram. The UDF government in Keralam is taking similar steps, Pinarayi alleged.

The UDF government is receiving indirect assistance from the BJP government, he further alleged. The government itself claims that Operation Toofan is progressing effectively, yet it is suppressing an arrest made as part of the same operation, Pinarayi said.