New Delhi: As protests by the Cockroach Janata Party (CJP) over the alleged NEET-UG paper leak continue across the country, intelligence agencies have warned of a possible large-scale disinformation campaign aimed at exploiting the unrest.
Officials say hostile elements may circulate fake and AI-generated content on social media to provoke violence and fuel public unrest. The alert comes after several misleading videos surfaced online, including clips showing people in uniform making political remarks. Agencies suspect many of these videos are fabricated or manipulated.
An Intelligence Bureau official said anti-social elements are trying to take advantage of the protests to spread misinformation and incite violence. Security agencies have begun identifying and flagging fake posts and manipulated content on social media.
Another official stressed the need for quick action, saying misleading content can cause serious damage if it remains online for long. Officials believe some groups are deliberately using deepfake and AI-generated videos falsely portraying police or Army personnel to mislead the public. According to intelligence agencies, the larger aim is to weaken public trust in key institutions, particularly the Indian Army, which enjoys high credibility among citizens.
Officials pointed to a similar pattern seen after Operation Sindoor, when several social media accounts allegedly linked to Pakistan’s Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) spread false claims about the Indian armed forces to undermine public confidence.
Security agencies have not ruled out the involvement of foreign actors in the current campaign. Officials said repeated attempts have been made in recent months to target the Army’s image, and such efforts may intensify as the protests continue.
Since the protests began, agencies have identified around 20 videos showing alleged Army personnel criticising the government. These videos are under investigation, but identifying those featured has proved difficult as they lack name tags, insignia or other identifying details.
Officials also observed that many misleading videos are uploaded, widely shared for a few hours and then deleted, making it harder to trace their origin while allowing false narratives to spread quickly. (IANS)
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