Case filed over fake Facebook posts claiming former Kerala MLA Shanimol Usman will quit Congress

A case has been registered against certain Facebook pages, which allegedly engaged in “false propaganda” that former Aroor MLA Shanimol Usman would quit the Congress in Kerala and join the CPI(M), the police said on Saturday.

The case was registered by the Alappuzha South Police, based on a complaint filed by the senior Congress leader, against the pages named ‘Communist Kerala’ and ‘John Brittas Fans Group’ for allegedly spreading false and misleading content, they added.

The complaint was filed after widespread posts appeared on social media suggesting that the woman leader would leave the party.

The posts also falsely claimed that Ms. Usman was quitting the Congress following differences with the leadership over the issue of the party’s expelled MLA Rahul Mamkootathil, and that she had held talks with Industries Minister P. Rajeevw, and even contacted the Chief Minister over the phone in this regard.

According to the FIR, the case was registered against unknown persons under Section 356 (2) (defamation) of BNS, and Section 120 (o) of the Kerala Police Act (causing nuisance or annoyance to the public through communication).

It is alleged that the accused posted the photo of the complainant and the misleading content against her on the said Facebook pages and circulated it with an intention to defame her, the FIR said.