Dissemination of misinformation and disinformation in India shows no sign of abating, especially during key phases the 2019 election cycle.

As voters took to the polls in the crucial fourth and fifth phases of the election in bellwether states such as Uttar Pradesh (UP) and Maharashtra, social media platforms such as Twitter and Facebook continue to see doctored photos and videos widely shared across the platform as a means of political persuasion or attack. Many of these photos and videos have gone viral, shared and liked by tens of thousands of Indian social media users.

The timing and frequency of release of the doctored photos and videos during polling in key states, in particular, suggested that social media influencers sought to leverage their large followings on the social media platforms for political gain. The amplification of doctored content at this crucial juncture in the election appears to be for the express purpose of manipulating Indian social media users’ political opinions prior to voting.

India’s six-week long (April 11 to May 19) “festival of democracy” is divided into seven phases of voting — with each phase comprising different regions around the country — and constitutes the single largest exercise of political will on the globe. With 900 million voters participating, the ongoing election will see roughly one in eight people on Earth deciding which political party will rule over the sub-continent for the next five years. The election will determine control of the Lok Sabha, India’s house of representatives, which is responsible for nominating and confirming the prime minister.

In the lead up to and during the 2019 cycle to date, mainstream political personalities with large social media followings from many of the competing parties — including Smriti Irani, a serving cabinet minister for the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), and Divya Spandana, director of social media and communications for the opposition Indian Congress Party (INC) — have amplified manipulated content.

The DFRLab and various fact-checking organizations have issued prior warnings on the nature and scope of the manipulated content circulating ahead of the elections, and international and domestic media outlets have devoted ample coverage to the problem. The use of doctored photos and videos on social media to manipulate public opinion, however, continues unabated. That prominent political figures on both ends of the political spectrum are amplifying the content exacerbates the problem.

Within this context, amplification of such doctored content by mainstream political figures in the build-up to polling in key battleground states, such as UP and Mahrashtra, is cause for great concern — UP and Maharashtra combined account for the most seats (128) in the Lok Sabha, the lower house in India’s bicameral parliamentary system.