Inadvertent error’: Meta India apologises for Mark Zuckerberg’s remark on 2024 elections
Meta India has issued an apology for an incorrect statement made by CEO Mark Zuckerberg regarding the outcome of India’s 2024 general elections. During a podcast with Joe Rogan, Zuckerberg claimed that in 2024, many incumbent governments worldwide, including India, were voted out of power, attributing this trend to factors like inflation and responses to the COVID-19 pandemic.
In response, Union Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw refuted Zuckerberg’s assertion, emphasizing that over 640 million Indian voters participated in the 2024 elections, reaffirming their trust in the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Vaishnaw labeled Zuckerberg’s claim as “factually incorrect” and expressed disappointment over the spread of misinformation.
Following this, Shivnath Thukral, Meta India’s Vice President of Public Policy, issued an apology on social media, acknowledging the error and reaffirming India’s significance to Meta. Thukral stated, “Mark’s observation that many incumbent parties were not re-elected in 2024 elections holds true for several countries, BUT not India. We would like to apologise for this inadvertent error. India remains an incredibly important country for Meta, and we look forward to being at the heart of its innovative future.”
Additionally, BJP MP Nishikant Dubey, who chairs the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Communications and Information Technology, announced plans to summon Meta representatives to address this misinformation. Dubey emphasized that incorrect information about a democratic country tarnishes its image and that Meta should apologize to the Indian Parliament and its citizens.
This incident underscores the importance of accuracy in public statements by global tech leaders, especially concerning sensitive topics like election outcomes in democratic nations.
By – Kartik
