Chennai: The Congress on Sunday alleged that Instagram had “blocked” a reel and photo post shared by Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi featuring him alongside Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Vijay during the latter’s oath-taking ceremony in Chennai.
The Centre, however, denied any involvement in the matter and stated that the issue was caused by a technical error within the platform’s internal moderation system.
Rahul Gandhi had travelled to Chennai to attend Vijay’s swearing-in ceremony after the Congress extended support to the Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK) in forming the government in Tamil Nadu.
Following the ceremony, Gandhi shared several photographs and a reel capturing moments from the event across his social media platforms.
Congress alleges social media suppression
Congress leader and Rahul Gandhi aide Srivatsa claimed on social media platform X that Instagram had restricted access to Gandhi’s reel and photo post featuring him and Vijay.
According to Srivatsa, the reel had garnered nearly 1.2 crore views within an hour, while the accompanying photo post had reportedly reached around 4.6 crore users before access was allegedly blocked.
“Meta cites no reason as to why his account has become inaccessible. The ‘glitch’ is because of MeitY rules. Rahul Gandhi’s social media accounts have been suppressed for a long time,” Srivatsa alleged in his post.
He further claimed that Gandhi’s reach on X, YouTube views, and Instagram followers had allegedly faced suppression over time.
Congress leaders question Meta
AICC national secretary in charge of communication and publicity Ruchira Chaturvedi also raised concerns over the issue.
She alleged that Meta had initially blocked the viral video featuring Rahul Gandhi and Vijay from the oath-taking ceremony and later restricted an Instagram story shared by Gandhi in which he highlighted the issue.
The allegations triggered political debate online, with Congress supporters questioning the platform’s moderation practices and seeking clarification from Meta.
Centre denies involvement
Responding to the allegations, government sources from the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) denied any role in restricting the content.
According to officials, the issue was caused due to Instagram’s internal moderation system mistakenly flagging the post.
“It is clarified that MeitY had nothing to do with this action. It was because of the platform’s own internal system mistakenly flagging the post for blocking, which has now been restored,” a ministry source reportedly said.
Government sources maintained that no direction or order had been issued by the ministry regarding the removal or restriction of the content.
The blocked video and related content were later restored on the platform.
Social media moderation under scrutiny
The controversy has once again brought attention to concerns surrounding automated moderation systems used by social media platforms.
Political parties and public figures have frequently alleged bias, suppression, or unexplained restrictions on digital content, particularly during major political events and campaigns.
Technology platforms, meanwhile, often attribute such incidents to automated moderation tools, algorithmic errors, or temporary technical glitches.
The latest controversy gained additional attention due to the high-profile nature of Vijay’s swearing-in ceremony and the growing political significance of his alliance with the Congress in Tamil Nadu.
Ceremony draws national attention
Vijay’s oath-taking ceremony witnessed the presence of several political leaders, celebrities, and supporters from across the country.
Rahul Gandhi’s participation in the event and the viral social media posts generated significant online engagement, especially among supporters of both Congress and TVK.
With the issue now resolved and the content restored, political reactions surrounding the alleged blocking continue to circulate widely across social media platforms.