After Congress' poor show, Sonia Gandhi says 'end Facebook interference in India's democracy'

Congress president Sonia Gandhi on Wednesday urged the government to put an end to the alleged "systematic interference" of Facebook and other social media giants in India's electoral politics.

Making a Zero Hour submission in the Lok Sabha, Gandhi referred to a report published in Al Jazeera and The Reporters' Collective claiming that Facebook had offered BJP cheaper deals for election advertisements as compared to other political parties.

"I urge the government to put an end to the systematic interference and influence of Facebook and other social media giants in the electoral politics of the world's largest democracy. This is beyond partisan politics," she said.

"We need to protect democracy and social harmony regardless of who is in power," Gandhi added.