An animated video released by Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s party was taken down from Instagram after it sparked a backlash for demeaning Muslims. The removal put a spotlight on what has been called a war of animated videos between the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the opposition Congress party, notes FRANCE 24’s Leela Jacinto.
Barely a day after it was released, an animated video posted on the official account of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) was taken down from Instagram.
It was removed after many Instagram users flagged it over hate speech concerns.
But although the video is not available on Instagram, the animated clip is still circulating widely on WhatsApp and other messenger platforms. Policing hate speech these days is a challenge that security experts liken to a game of whack-a-mole.
While the video is certainly incendiary, it drew particular attention since it was not created by some overenthusiastic BJP supporter. That can happen on the campaign trail in many democracies, and such incidents typically see the political party issuing a statement clarifying that it was not an official campaign video. This signals the party’s disapproval of the messaging.
In sharp contrast, the script of the latest BJP video was in fact much a point-by-point reiteration of a speech Modi himself delivered on the campaign trail last month in the western state of Rajasthan.
Read more‘Ugly speech’ but not a surprise: Modi accused of anti-Muslim rhetoric on campaign trail
This video is a case study of what some experts call “content complementarity”, which is defined as a two-way relationship between old-style campaign rallies and online content.
Indian campaign rallies are a valuable source of online content, and the demand for online content also shapes how political parties conduct mass campaign rallies: it’s a two-way process.
The widespread use in India of online platforms, primarily on mobile phones, is not a new phenomenon. More than two-thirds of India's billion-strong population have smartphones.
The last general election five years ago was called the "WhatsApp election". The messaging app still reigns supreme and the spread of the latest BJP animated video explains why: it may be scrapped from Instagram, but the video is still circulating on WhatsApp.
So, content on messaging apps is more difficult to police and that's alarming, since the content of the BJP video is quite incendiary.
Why is the BJP video so contentious?
The video basically extends Modi’s use of pejorative stereotypes of Muslims to demean India's main opposition Congress party. So in a way, it kills two birds with one stone.
This message is very clearly and simply conveyed by an animated Rahul Gandhi, from the opposition party, holding up the Congress 2024 election manifesto which morphs into the crescent moon-and-star symbol of the pre-independence Muslim League, which led the creation of Pakistan.
For the BJP’s Hindu nationalist base, the emblem and colours of the Pakistani flag are clear; the symbolism situates the Congress as a Muslim-appeasing party. That’s the standard BJP narrative. It’s not based on facts, but that hardly matters.
In his campaign speech last month, Modi claimed, incorrectly, that the Congress manifesto promises to go into the homes of Hindus, confiscate the gold jewellery of Hindu women and redistribute it to Muslims.
The depictions of Hindus and Muslims also follow familiar tropes. In his speech, Modi refers to Indian Muslims as “infiltrators”, not fellow citizens. The video complements the rhetoric and takes it further: Muslims are portrayed as invading soldiers in medieval armour, eyes flashing, screaming into battle and looting conquered kingdoms.
Hindus are the victims in this narrative, a peculiar claim for a majority comprising 80% of the population in a democracy.
The model victim is the Hindu woman. Now the video does not feature a modern Hindu woman, but a sort of ancient princess dressed in the classical garb of the Hindu mythological comic books depicting epics such as the "Mahabharata" and "Ramayana", which are familiar to Indians since childhood.
Does the opposition also use animated videos?
Oh yes, it does. A particularly popular animated video from the Congress party is called “Washing Machine”.
It’s focused on what the opposition calls “tax terrorism” or the targeting of opposition politicians with corruption and tax evasion accusations by the country’s powerful Enforcement Directorate.
Read moreThe taxman cometh for India’s weakened opposition
Bascially, the “Washing Machine” phenomenon, as the opposition dubs it, is what happens when opposition politicians who were under corruption and tax evasion investigations leave their already weakened parties to join Modi’s party.
Once they join the BJP, the corruption and tax investigations magically end. Indian news sites have listed dozens of these cases.
The video features a familiar tune from the Bollywood film "Satte Pe Satta", a 1980s Hindi film remake of Hollywood's "Seven Brides for Seven Brothers". The chorus line can be translated from the Hindi as, "Corruption brought them into the BJP/ Now there will be no ED raids or CBI enquiries". The ED is the Enforcement Directorate and the CBI (Central Bureau of Investigation) is India's FBI.
The use of these animated clips have led newspapers to dub it a war of cartoon politics.
India has a code of conduct to monitor hate speech during elections. It must be said that India's Election Commission issued a notice to the BJP for Modi’s Rajasthan speech, as well as the Congress party.
But other BJP politicians are repeating the same claims at their rallies and it's likely that online videos will continue to take the messages forward.
