Nine social media accounts are facing legal action for allegedly sharing old videos to malign the reputation of the Lathmar Holi festival in Mathura, sparking concerns about misinformation and the festival's portrayal.
Key Points
- The videos reportedly depicted instances of misbehavior with women during the Lathmar Holi celebrations.
- Police have booked several X and Instagram handles under the BNS and IT Act for spreading misinformation and seeking cheap publicity.
- Authorities have stated that there is no evidence of harassment of women and no complaints have been received, with extensive surveillance in place during the festival.
- The police are urging the public to verify the authenticity of videos before sharing them online to prevent the spread of misinformation about Lathmar Holi.
A case was registered against nine social media accounts for posting "old videos" to allegedly malign the reputation of Lathmar Holi, an official said.
The annual festival is celebrated in the twin towns of Barsana and Nandgaon in Braj region, and lasts for over a week, ending a few days before the Holi festival.
The police said in a statement that the case was registered under Sections 196(2) and 353(2) of the BNS and under the IT Act at the Barsana police station.
The videos posted apparently showed instances of misbehaviour with women at the celebrations, according to sources.
The police have booked X handles -- Piyush Rai, IMayankofficial, VishalJyotiDev Agrawal, extra2ab, Mamta Rajgarh, Kavish Aziz -- and Instagram handles prayagraj.Vibes, r_nagar_vlogs, and KotaFoodexplorerr.
SP (Rural) Suresh Chandra Rawat said, "After an analysis, we found that some old videos were shared by these handles on social media, claiming to be associated with this year's Holi celebration, to get cheap publicity and to spread misinformation."
The police also made an appeal to public not to share any videos without verifying their authenticity.
The SP also said that there was no evidence of harassment of women, and not a single complaint was received.
"As many as 230 cameras were used for surveillance at different places in the district. An Anti-Romeo Squad was deployed along with the police force. We are keeping an eye on every activity," Rawat said, adding that in case of problems, any tourist or devotee may register their complaint with 112 or with any policeman.
The Lathmar Holi celebrates the unique tradition in which women from Barsana playfully chase and hit men from Nandgaon with sticks, with no real intent to harm them.
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