Wed Jan 15 16:42:45 UTC 2025: ## Meta Apologizes for Zuckerberg’s False Claim About Indian Election Results
**NEW DELHI** – Meta India has issued an apology for CEO Mark Zuckerberg’s inaccurate statement regarding the 2024 Indian general election. Zuckerberg, in a recent podcast, claimed that incumbent governments globally, including India’s, lost their respective elections. This assertion was swiftly refuted by Union Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw, who highlighted the BJP-led NDA’s decisive victory and the strong public mandate for Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
Following Vaishnaw’s fact-check and threats of parliamentary action from BJP MP Nishikant Dubey, Meta India’s vice president of public policy, Shivnath Thukral, issued a formal apology. Thukral acknowledged that Zuckerberg’s statement, while true for several other countries, was incorrect regarding India. He emphasized Meta’s commitment to India and its importance to the company.
Zuckerberg’s original comment attributed the alleged global trend of incumbent losses to factors such as inflation and government handling of the COVID-19 pandemic. However, India’s 2024 election saw a record voter turnout exceeding 640 million, overwhelmingly reaffirming support for the current government. The apology comes amid growing concerns about the spread of misinformation on social media platforms.
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