Mumbai: Mumbai Police and Maharashtra Cyber Cell have initiated stern action against the rumour mongers who have been spreading fake news and old videos of lockdown reinforcements in the state.
Maharashtra CM Uddhav Thackeray clarified in a social media post that lockdown has not been reimposed and appealed people to refrain from crowding.
An official said, since the last few days, a number of messages were being circulated on WhatsApp and other social media claiming that the state government will reinforce an absolute lockdown in Maharashtra from June 15. "Along with this message, a video of a news bulletin recorded last month was forwarded, justifying the claim that the reinforcement of lockdown is true. One should be careful while forwarding such misleading and fake news items as it will lead to panic among the citizens," a senior police official said.
In a crackdown on such posts, the city cyber police have set up a dedicated team to monitor the social media and take cognisance on any fake social media post, which could cause unrest, panic in the society.
An official said, "The team keeps an eye on social media platforms and follows trends to identify the pattern. Platforms like Facebook, WhatsApp, Twitter and YouTube have been at the highest receiving end of such inflammatory content."
Among other forwarded messages, one had a screenshot of the news article that read there will complete lockdown in the country from June 15, and the Home Ministry has given signals that there will be a break on train and air transport. However, when checked with police, this message was classified as fake. According to a social media analyst, rumours on instant messaging applications spread like wildfire and could potentially lead to trouble for the public who fall for fake information.
