Social media giant Meta has claimed that a report in the Wire – which suggested BJP IT cell chief Amit Malviya was part of the firm’s controversial XCheck programme – was “inaccurate” and appeared to be based on “fabricated” documentation. However, the news portal reported that Meta’s claims were in stark contrast to an internal email asking its employees “how the hell” the same document had been “leaked”.
On Monday, the Wire reported that Meta had allegedly granted Malviya an unchecked ability to remove content from its platforms as part of the XCheck programme – a privilege granted to VIP users that was first reported on by the Wall Street Journal in September last year. The Wire report is the first time that the programme's India deployment has been suggested, with the allegation that Instagram posts critical of BJP leader Yogi Adityanath were removed without the page administrator being granted audience.
