Bhopal, April 21 (IANS) A political row erupted in Madhya Pradesh after three Congress IT cell workers were arrested by the Cyber Police in Bhopal on Tuesday for allegedly circulating a controversial letter on social media, purportedly linked to former Rajasthan Chief Minister Vasundhara Raje.

The arrests have led to a sharp exchange between the Congress and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), with both sides levelling serious allegations over the police action, the authenticity of the letter, and the role of social media in spreading such content.

The controversy began after the police acted against the Congress workers for sharing the alleged letter on the social media, which had already circulated widely across social media platforms and had been discussed in sections of the media.

Congress leaders described the arrests as “selective” and “politically motivated”, while the BJP accused the “Opposition of spreading fabricated content to mislead the public”.

Madhya Pradesh Congress President Jitu Patwari criticised the arrests, saying that the matter had been in circulation for several days before any clarification was issued.

He noted that the letter was later described as incorrect by Raje.

“This issue has been circulating for days and people across the country are discussing it. These are questions being raised in the public domain,” Patwari said while addressing the media in Bhopal on Tuesday.

Rajya Sabha MP Vivek Tankha also questioned the police action, calling the detention unjustified.

He said the three Congress workers had been held for nearly 27 hours and asked why only a few individuals were targeted when the same content had been widely shared before being declared fake on April 18.

“If the content is fake, then action should be taken against all those who shared it. Why single out only a few?” Tankha said, adding that the matter would be challenged in the Madhya Pradesh High Court.

He also sought the immediate release of the detained Congress workers.

Congress leaders also alleged that the arrests were meant to curb dissent and indicated that legal steps would follow if the party workers were not released.

Responding to the allegations, State BJP Media In-charge Ashish Agarwal defended the police action and accused the Congress of circulating misleading content through its social media channels.

He said a fabricated letter had been used to create confusion among the public.

Agarwal alleged that the Congress was running a “coordinated misinformation campaign” and said such actions reflected a decline in political standards.

He also demanded that the Congress remove the post and issue an unconditional apology, calling it a “deliberate attempt to distort facts”.

The BJP said that the police action was lawful, while the Congress continued to allege political vendetta and misuse of authority.

— IANS

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