With Coronavirus memes and jokes abound on Whatsapp, a fake circular promising police action against group admins and members of such groups has gone viral, scaring users of the social media platform. The circulated fake message warned admins to go off the radar by exiting from such groups for two days. The reach and spread of the message was so wide that a government agency had to intervene and categorically reject the issuance of any such circular.
The Press Information Bureau’s Fact Check team said in a statement on Twitter that a fake message is being shared on social media which is claiming that legal action will be taken against people who are sharing jokes on Coronavirus. It further said that no such order has been issued by the government and the message is completely fake.
In order to cover itself with a veil of authenticity, the fake circular went on to list multiple sections of the IPC under which police would take action for sharing jokes on Coronavirus.
Group admins and members should close the Whatsapp group for at least two days as police are taking action under section 68, 10 and 188, the fake message read. The message further warned that a Coronavirus joke shared even by mistake would invite harsh action from police.
The spread of the message comes in the wake of wide-spread rumours about Coronavirus on different social media platforms including Facebook and Instagram. Starting from fake videos about the origin of the virus with racial expletives, the reach and frequency of fake information about Coronavirus has exponentially increased in recent days. Home remedies to cure Coronavirus, blaming a set of people and community for the spread of the virus are some other areas which have found fertile ground on social media. Health bodies including the World Health Organisation and Indian Medical Association have also collaborated with various social media platforms to curb the spread of misinformation about the virus.
