New Delhi, April 19 (NationPress) In anticipation of the Assembly elections in West Bengal and Tamil Nadu, the Election Commission of India (ECI) issued a warning on Sunday to candidates and political parties regarding the misuse of AI-generated or altered content. The body disclosed that since March 15, 11,000 illegal social media posts have been removed.

“All involved parties must ensure the responsible and ethical use of social media and digital platforms, adhering to existing legal frameworks such as the Information Technology Act, 2000, IT Rules, 2021, and the Model Code of Conduct,” stated the ECI.

The poll panel emphasized that political parties, candidates, and their campaign representatives must clearly label any synthetically created or AI-modified content used for campaigning as “AI-Generated”, “Digitally Enhanced”, or “Synthetic Content”, along with the identification of the source entity, to foster transparency and maintain voter trust.

“Posts on social media that violate the Model Code of Conduct, disturb law and order, or propagate false narratives about the voting process are being closely monitored and acted upon by designated State IT Nodal Officers as per the IT Act,” the ECI mentioned.

The Commission mandated that any misleading or unlawful AI-generated or altered content should be addressed within three hours of being reported to social media platforms.

“Since the election announcement on March 15, over 11,000 such social media posts/URLs have been identified and addressed, resulting in the removal of content, filing of FIRs, as well as issuing clarifications and rebuttals during the ongoing elections,” added the ECI.

The Commission reiterated the stipulations of Section 126 of the Representation of the People Act, 1951, which prohibits displaying any election-related material in polling areas during the 48-hour silence period leading up to the end of voting.

Media outlets, including television, radio, print, and social media, are also required to comply with these regulations, the ECI stated.

Furthermore, the ECI urged citizens, political parties, and candidates to report MCC violations through the C-Vigil Module available on ECINET.

“From March 15 to April 19, 323,099 complaints were filed via the C-Vigil App in connection with these elections. Of these, 310,393 complaints, or 96.01%, were resolved within the specified time frame of 100 minutes,” the official announcement noted.

Kerala, Assam, and Puducherry conducted elections on April 9. West Bengal will hold voting in two phases on April 23 and April 29, while Tamil Nadu is scheduled for a one-phase poll on April 23. Vote counting for all four states and the union territory is set for May 4.