Delhi peace and harmony panel summons officials of Facebook

The Peace and Harmony Committee of the Delhi Assembly has summoned the officials of Facebook India on November 2 in connection with communal tension and violence in Delhi in February last year.

New Delhi:The Peace and Harmony Committee has once again summoned the officials of the social media platform "Facebook" on November 2.

The Committee had been constituted by the Delhi Legislative Assembly to probe into communal tension and riots in the national capital in February 2020.

Under the chairmanship of Raghav Chadha, the committee has asked the representatives of Facebook India to express their views on the role of social media in preventing the spread of false, provocative and malicious messages in society.

According to an official statement, the committee has examined the important witnesses, including senior journalists, fact-checkers, digital rights activists and Facebook employees. To maintain transparency in the working of the committee, the proceedings will be telecast live on November 2.

Since Facebook has lakhs of users in Delhi, summons have been issued in accordance with the mandate of the Supreme Court judgment on July 8, 2021, the statement said.

The court held that the committee has the power to direct members and non-members to appear before it and depose on oath, it said.

At least 53 people had died and hundreds were injured in clashes between supporters of the Citizenship Amendment Act and those opposing it between February 23 and February 26, 2020, in North East Delhi.

Read:EXPLAINER: What are 'The Facebook Papers'?