Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday expressed delight over an animated video of him dancing at a concert. Modi was responding to a social media user known for his humorous edits of photographs and videos. In the video, based on the viral concert meme template, the animated character of Prime Minister Modi can be seen dancing on the stage.
“Posting this video cuz I know that ‘THE DICTATOR’ is not going to get me arrested for this,” X user @Atheist_Krishna wrote on the micro-blogging platform.
Prime Minister Modi replied,“Like all of you, I also enjoyed seeing myself dance. 😀😀😀”
“Such creativity in peak poll season is truly a delight! #PollHumour” he added.
Like all of you, I also enjoyed seeing myself dance. 😀😀😀
Such creativity in peak poll season is truly a delight! #PollHumour https://t.co/QNxB6KUQ3R
— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) May 6, 2024
Modi’s response came amid a brewing controversy over deep fakes and doctored videos of politicians and celebrities during the ongoing Lok Sabha polls. Recently, deepfake videos featuring Union Home Minister Amit Shah, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi and actors Aamir Khan and Ranveer Singh posted on certain social media handles were taken down and criminal complaints filed.
On Monday, the Election Commission directed political parties to remove fake content from their social media platforms within three hours of such content being brought to their notice.
In the directives for responsible and ethical use of social media, the commission also asked the parties not to impersonate another person or post content that is derogatory towards women or publish or circulate deepfake videos.
“Whenever such deepfake audios/videos come to the notice of political parties, they shall immediately take down the post but maximum within a period of three hours and also identify and warn the responsible person within the party,” the poll body said.
The commission also warned the parties against the misuse of artificial intelligence-based tools to create deepfakes that distort information or propagate misinformation and emphasised the need to uphold the integrity of the electoral process.