Cambridge Analytica: Cong likens Ravi Shankar Prasad to Goebbels; 10 points

Bharatiya Janata Party and Congress have blamed each other for using the services of Cambridge Analytica, a data analytics firm that has allegedly exploited Facebook users' data to influence elections

The BJP and the Congress on Wednesday accused each other of using the services of embattled data consultancy firm Cambridge Analytica (CA), which along with Facebook is at the centre of a global row over the alleged unauthorised use of personal data from the social media giant. Responding to the allegations against his party, Congress President Rahul Gandhi said that BJP had brought up the data theft issue as a distraction from its handling of the death of 39 Indians in Iraq.  

As the firestorm over the issue hit India, the government warned Facebook, which is being probed by US and British lawmakers over a potential breach of user confidentiality, of stringent action if any attempt was made to influence the country's electoral process through "undesirable means".

However, the company's India partner Oveleno Business Intelligence (OBI) lists the BJP, the Congress and the JD-U as its clients. The India partner is run by Amrish Tyagi, son of senior JD-U leader K C Tyagi. In media interviews, the junior Tyagi admitted that the Youth Congress in Jharkhand, the BJP and the JD-U had used its services to conduct research.

BJP leader and Union Law and IT and Telecom Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad cited media reports to allege that the Congress was using the services of the London-based political data analytics firm for the 2019 Lok Sabha elections and to boost its President Rahul Gandhi's social media profile and its outreach.

"The Congress must explain if it has engaged in data trade with Cambridge Analytica," the minister said.

He said the number of Gandhi's followers on Twitter had risen recently and wondered if the Congress had used the services of Cambridge Analytica for this "fake popularity".

"Will the Congress now depend on data manipulation and theft to woo voters," Prasad asked.

"These days, there is a lot of news about CA and how it has been involved in data theft, psychometric analysis, data manipulation and subversion of democratic processes. Can the Congress deny that?" he asked.

The Congress returned fire and accused the BJP of having availed of the firm's services in 2010.

"The Congress or its President have never used or hired the services of Cambridge Analytica," Congress spokesperson Randeep Singh Surjewala said.

"This is fake agenda, a white lie being dished out on fake facts by the Law Minister. And this has become a daily order with Prasad," added Surjewala. 

Surjewala alleged it was the BJP and its ally Janata Dal-United which used the services of Cambridge Analytica.

"I think the BJP and Ravi Shankar Prasadji have the maximum experience of Cambridge Analytica, the company they say has indulged in manipulation," added Surjewala.  

Here are the top 10 developments in the Congress vs BJP row over the Facebook and Cambridge Analytica scandal:

1) Rahul Gandhi says Cambridge Analytica row a BJP coverup: Responding to allegations around his party's links with Cambridge Analytica, Congress President Rahul Gandhi launched a stinging attack against the government and said that it invented a story on data theft by the Congress to divert attention from the death of 39 Indians in Iraq.  The Congress president also accused the government of baiting the media.  

Problem: 39 Indians dead; Government on the mat, caught lying. Solution: Invent story on Congress and Data Theft. Result: Media networks bite bait; 39 Indians vanish from radar. Problem solved, he said on Twitter.   


2) Congress likens Prasad to Goebbels: In a multi-pronged attack on the government over the issue, Congress communications in-charge Randeep Surjewala likened Law Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad to Hitler's propaganda minister Joseph Goebbels.

"Hitler had a commander named Goebbels and now Narendra Modi has a minister named Ravi Shankar Prasad," Surjewala said.

He further said Prasad was spreading "lies and falsehood" so it could avoid giving answers in Parliament.
 

2) Cambridge Analytica behind success of Modi's 'Mission 272-plus', claims Congress: Hitting back at the BJP for linking data mining firm Cambridge Analytica with it, the Congress party on Wednesday said it was in fact the BJP that had hired the services of the controversial firm during a number of Assembly elections, as well as for its 'Mission 272-plus' campaign in the 2014 general elections that saw Narendra Modi coming to power at the Centre. 

Congress' Randeep Surjewala claimed that Cambridge Analytica's local partner OBI talked of having achieved "target 272+", providing constituency-wise database to BJP candidates and extending support to it in national elections and the state elections of Haryana, Maharashtra, Jharkhand, and Delhi. 

"It is not me who is saying so; it is Cambridge Analytica which is saying so. And they have partners in India whose businesses complement each other. They have done 272+ campaign and campaign for four states," he said. 

Surjewala also alleged that OBI's services were used by Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh in 2009.

3) We have nothing to hide, says BJP: Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) spokesperson Sambit Patra on Wednesday said his party had nothing to hide regarding Cambridge Analytica. Addressing a press conference in New Delhi, Patra said the allegations that BJP colluded with data analytics firm Cambridge Analytica during the 2014 general elections were false.

"BJP has nothing to hide. Let me say that as far as 2014 BJP campaign is concerned, 1,000 websites and 10,000 individuals had sought credit for the same and we have seen the named company has downed its website after the allegations that it was carrying the name of BJP," Patra said.   

4) Congress lying about its link to data firm, says Poonawalla: Former Congress member Shehzad Poonawalla has said the Congress party was lying about its links with Cambridge Analytica. Poonawalla's statement came after Congress spokesperson Surjewala said that the Congress had never used the services of Cambridge Analytica, accused of stealing the data of Facebook users to influence elections. 

Talking to news agency ANI, Poonawala said: "Mr Surjewala has said that Congress has no relation with Cambridge Analytica and its Indian partner, Ovleno Business Intelligence (OBI). This is the firm which is now in question for allegedly manipulating Facebook and taking data without authorisation. His (Surjewala's) claim is absolutely false."

He also said that there was concrete proof that Amrish Tyagi of Ovleno was in touch with Rahul Gandhi and team. "There was nothing till now, but today when Law Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad has raised the point, some kind of whitewashing is being attempted," Poonawala said.

5) Zuckerberg admits mistakes over Cambridge Analytica scandal: As Facebook got mired in its biggest-ever controversy in the Cambridge Analytica scandal, CEO Mark Zuckerberg on Wednesday admitted that the social media giant "made mistakes" and a "breach of trust" had occurred between it and its users. "I want to share an update on the Cambridge Analytica situation – including the steps we have already taken and our next steps to address this important issue. I've been working to understand exactly what happened and how to make sure this doesn't happen again," the CEO wrote on Facebook, adding: "The good news is that the most important actions to prevent this from happening again today we had already taken years ago. But we also made mistakes, there's more to do, and we need to step up and do it." 

6) Congress says Ravi Shankar Prasad spreading fake agenda and lies: "The Congress or its President have never used or hired the services of Cambridge Analytica," said Congress communications incharge Randeep Singh Surjewala, hours after Law Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad accused the party of compromising national security by roping in the firm to run its 2019 election campaign. 

"This is fake agenda, a white lie being dished out on fake facts by the Law Minister. And this has become a daily order with Prasad," he added.

Surjewala alleged it was the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and its ally Janata Dal-United which used the services of Cambridge Analytica in 2010.

"I think the BJP and Ravi Shankar Prasadji have the maximum experience of Cambridge Analytica, the company they say has indulged in manipulation," he said, citing from the firm's website that it "was contracted to undertake an indepth electoral analysis for Bihar assembly elections in 2010".

"If the company does manipulation, why were the BJP and the JD-U using it. But in his pack of lies, he forgot to tell the truth," the Congress leader said. 

7) BJP questions Congress' links with Cambridge Analytica for 2019 LS polls: BJP leader Ravi Shankar Prasad cited media reports about the Opposition party's plan to use the firm's services for the next Lok Sabha elections and to boost its president Rahul Gandhi's profile. He asked Gandhi to explain the company's role in his social media outreach.

The firm, the Union minister said, has been accused of using "sex, sleaze and fake news" to influence elections and asked if the Congress, too, plans to walk the same path. "The Congress must explain if it has engaged in data trade with Cambridge Analytica," he said, questioning the Opposition party's "silence" despite numerous reports of its link with the company.

8) Ravi Shankar Prasad warns Mark Zuckerberg: Prasad said that it was not a question of a liaison between the Congress and a data firm but about attempts to influence democratic processes, which his government would not allow. He warned Facebook founder and CEO Mark Zuckerberg against any abuse of data of Indians on its platform. 

"Mr Mark Zuckerberg you better note the observation of the IT Minister of India. We welcome the FB profile in India, but if any data theft of Indians is done through the collusion of FB system, it shall not be tolerated. We have got stringent power in the IT Act, we shall use it, including summoning you in India," Prasad warned. 

9) Congress social media head denies BJP accusations: Divya Spandana, the social media head of Congress, said, "I have never engaged with these people, have never met anyone from Cambridge Analytica. We have never hired any external agency, our Social Media team is run in-house."

10) Cambridge Analytica scandal explained: Reports had alleged that Cambridge Analytica used data mined from Facebook in the voter research it conducted for President Donald Trump during the 2016 US presidential elections campaign. 

Alongside social media giant Facebook, Cambridge Analytica is at the center of an ongoing dispute over the alleged harvesting and use of personal data. Both companies deny any wrongdoing. 

Britain's Channel 4 News on Monday filmed senior executives at Cambridge Analytica, including its CEO Alexander Nix, suggesting the firm could use sex workers, bribes, and misinformation in order to try and help political candidates win votes around the world.

The saga is significant because of the way the harvested data might have been used. It was allegedly utilised to direct messages for political campaigns supported by Cambridge Analytica, most notably Trump's election victory and the Brexit vote.

Watch BJP's Sambit Patra give his party's side in the Cambridge Analytica controversy: