The method of election campaign in Delhi is changing rapidly, and due to the increasing number of mobile phone users, political parties are now insisting on social media along with street-street publicity. Three major political parties, who participated in the Delhi Assembly elections, had sought permission to broadcast 519 advertisements on social media forums like Facebook, X and YouTube by 23 January. After investigation by the Chief Electoral Officer’s office, 350 advertisements were approved, while 166 advertisements were rejected due to not being in line with fact standards.
The BJP has been at the forefront of taking permission to broadcast advertisements on social media. The BJP had sent 49 applications seeking permission to broadcast 293 advertisements. According to the data till 23 January, the Media Certification and Monitoring Committee (MCMC) of the Chief Electoral Officer Office approved 207 advertisements, while 86 advertisements were rejected.
The Aam Aadmi Party sent 28 applications seeking permission for 200 advertisements, out of which 121 got approval. The Congress sent 9 applications seeking permission to broadcast 24 advertisements, out of which 22 were approved, while 2 were rejected if 2 were not in line with advertising standards.
According to TRAI data, the number of mobile connections in Delhi is more than the population. Delhi has more than 5 crore mobile connections, which means that on an average each person has two mobile connections. In such a situation, it has become easy to send a message to the public through social media.
The facts are tested on these parameters
According to the office of the Chief Electoral Officer, it is necessary to follow several rules while making advertisements for election campaign on social media. These include the use of army uniforms and people, statements related to the President, and pictures or statements affecting the integrity of the country. The advertisements that do not meet these parameters are not approved. There is now less than a week left for election campaign, and all political parties will put all their strength in publicity. Promotions on social media are likely to increase in the last week.
Was spent in 2020 elections
In the 2020 Delhi assembly elections, political parties had spent a lot on social media. According to the data, Rs 1.99 crore was spent on election campaign on Facebook in a month. The maximum cost was spent by the BJP Rs 31.61 lakh, after which the Congress spent Rs 13.67 lakh, on a page called Mai Delhi-My Pride Rs 14.73 lakh and ‘AAP’ supported Rs 11.92 lakh on another page. 78 lakh rupees were spent on Facebook in the last week of election campaign.
