@faketwitterhandle

Even as the West is gearing up to intervene in Syria over the use of chemical weapons, a virtual war has started on Twitter that has dragged India into the controversy. A fake account with a Twitter handle @IndiaMEA is going viral in the name of External Affairs Minister Salman Khurshid. The account has already produced four tweets, of which three say Khurshid has had telephone conversations with the Russian foreign minister, US secretary of state and British foreign minister expressing concern over action in Syria. The MEA spokesperson has had a tough time explaining that it is a fake account and does not belong to Khurshid. The MEA has also complained to Twitter but the incident does highlight one of the drawbacks of an ungoverned social media.