Lok Sabha Elections 2024: Another deepfake? Police says Congress' West Bengal chief Adhir's 'vote for BJP' video manipulated

Kolkata: West Bengal Police on Friday said a video clip purportedly showing Congress' West Bengal president Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury urging people to 'vote for the BJP' was manipulated.

In this connection, a separate case has been lodged at Jangipur police station which includes relevant sections of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) such as 499/500 (criminal defamation) and Section 66D of the Information Technology (IT) Act 2000, a police officer said.

''Our cyber team found that a portion of the video was cropped and circulated. This was probably done to gain some political advantage during the elections. We have lodged a separate complaint with Jangipur police station,' the officer added.

Police are looking to trace the source of the video by locating its IP address, he added.

The Congress condemned the incident, thanking the CEO's office and the Election Commission for promptly addressing the complaint and initiating a thorough investigation.

"We especially thank the Election Commission for understanding the magnitude of this case and thus taking immediate action. We have complete faith in the Constitution of India and we know that we will get the desired justice as we always follow the path of truth," the party posted on X handle.

On Monday, the Congress had filed a complaint with the EC after a video clip purportedly showing Chowdhury seeking votes for the BJP during a public meeting in Baharampur had gone viral.