Congress lodges complaints over doctored image of KC Venugopal

Thiruvananthapuram: Congress has lodged complaints with Election Commission (EC) and police, alleging that a defamatory and doctored image of AICC general secretary K C Venugopal was circulated by a news channel.AICC legal cell chairman Abhishek Singhvi has approached EC, accusing the channel of streaming a digitally manipulated image designed to falsely suggest that Venugopal was accepting money. Complaint states that the image was deliberately edited using digital tools and further altered by adding a green circle to mislead viewers.According to Congress, circulation of the image is part of a planned attempt to tarnish Venugopal's public image and mislead voters ahead of assembly elections. The party also alleged that the image has been widely shared across social media platforms, including WhatsApp, Facebook and X, in a coordinated manner.Citing a violation of model code of conduct, Singhvi has sought urgent intervention from EC. He has requested an immediate investigation into the incident and directed that the image be removed from all social media platforms as well as from the channel.Meanwhile, KPCC vice-president A A Shukoor has filed a separate complaint at Alappuzha North police station, seeking legal action against the news channel and those responsible. Complaint invokes provisions of Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023, including Sections 336(4) (forgery), 353(2) (spreading hatred in public) and 61 (criminal conspiracy), along with Section 66 of IT Act.Shukoor stated that such attempts to defame opposition leaders and undermine democratic process would be strongly resisted.