Meta apologizes after Zuckerberg’s false claim on India’s 2024 elections

NEW DELHI: Meta has issued an apology following Mark Zuckerberg’s inaccurate claim about the 2024 Indian general elections. In a recent podcast, Zuckerberg suggested that incumbent governments worldwide, including India, lost elections after the COVID-19 pandemic, citing India as an example. He said, “2024 was a big election year around the world… India… had elections and the incumbents basically lost every single one.”

This comment was immediately challenged by Indian officials. Union Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw strongly refuted the claim, highlighting that the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) won a third consecutive term in the 2024 elections. He stated that the assertion was “factually incorrect” and emphasized the public’s trust in Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

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In response, Meta India’s Vice President of Public Policy, Shivnath Thukral, apologized on X (formerly Twitter). He clarified that Zuckerberg’s remarks were correct for some countries, but not for India. “India remains an incredibly important country for Meta,” Thukral added, expressing regret over the mistake.

The controversy has sparked a debate on the role of global tech giants in representing political events. BJP MP Nishikant Dubey, who leads the parliamentary committee on communications, criticized Zuckerberg’s statement as misinformation, calling it an attack on India’s democratic process. He vowed to summon Meta for the misinformation, arguing that incorrect information damages the image of any democracy.

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Following Meta’s apology, Dubey acknowledged the company’s response as a victory for Indian citizens, emphasizing that India’s government enjoys the trust of over 1.4 billion people. He stated, “The Indian Parliament and Government have the blessings and public trust of 140 crore people.”

This incident has highlighted the importance of international companies being accurate and sensitive in their public comments, especially when it comes to the politics of sovereign nations like India.