Meta Apologises for Mark Zuckerberg's remark on India's 2024 election outcome
New Delhi: Meta has issued an apology after a remark made by its CEO, Mark Zuckerberg, regarding India's 2024 general election sparked widespread criticism. In a statement, Meta India's Vice President for Public Policy, Shivanand Thukral, addressed the controversy, describing the remark as an "inadvertent error."
"Dear Honourable Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw, Mark's observation that many incumbent parties were not re-elected in 2024 elections holds true for several countries, but not India. We would like to apologise for this inadvertent error. India remains an incredibly important country for Meta and we look forward to being at the heart of its innovative future," Thukral stated.
The apology follows strong reactions from Union Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw and BJP MP Nishikant Dubey. Minister Vaishnaw fact-checked Zuckerberg's claim that incumbents worldwide, including India, lost power during the 2024 elections. He pointed out that the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) under Prime Minister Narendra Modi secured a decisive third term in office.
"As the world's largest democracy, India conducted the 2024 elections with over 640 million voters. People of India reaffirmed their trust in NDA led by PM @narendramodi Ji's leadership," Vaishnaw posted on X (formerly Twitter). He further criticised Zuckerberg's comment, stating it was "factually incorrect."
Zuckerberg, during a podcast on January 10, claimed that the COVID-19 pandemic eroded trust in incumbent governments globally, citing India's elections as an example. He said, "2024 was a very big election year around the world and all these countries, India, had elections. The incumbents basically lost every single one."
BJP MP Nishikant Dubey, chairperson of the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Communication and Information Technology, called for Meta to be summoned for spreading misinformation. He also demanded an apology from the organisation to Parliament and the Indian public.
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Rahul Gandhi joins Haryana Congress leader's 'Sadbhav Yatra' in Gurugram
Gurugram (PTI): Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Friday joined the 'Sadbhav Yatra' of Haryana Congress leader Brijendra Singh here.
Gandhi, who is the Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha, reached Gurugram in the evening and joined the yatra. He also walked some distance with Brijendra, state Congress chief Rao Narender Singh and other leaders.
Huge crowds had turned up for the occasion.
Later, Gandhi proceeded to the venue where he addressed a public gathering.
Leader of Opposition in Haryana Bhupinder Singh Hooda and other Congress leaders, including Randeep Singh Surjewala, B K Hariprasad, state Congress chief Rao Narender Singh, were also present.
Brijendra Singh had on Thursday said it is a matter of joy for them that Gandhi was joining the 'Sadbhav Yatra' in Gurugram-Badshahpur, "thereby strengthening the Indian National Congress' campaign for brotherhood and harmony".
The 'Sadbhav Yatra' began from Danoda village at Narwana in Jind on October 5, 2025, and has covered 85 of the 90 assembly segments in the state.
The foot march was started by Brijendra Singh, son of Congress veteran Birender Singh, to highlight several national and regional issues.
State Congress chief Rao Narender Singh had asked all party leaders to take part in Friday's event.
Days before his yatra began in October, Brijendra Singh, who narrowly lost the 2024 assembly polls from Jind's Uchana Kalan, accused the ruling BJP of playing "divisive politics" and said that "sadbhav" (harmony) has come under stress in the last decade.
Brijendra Singh was a sitting MP from Hisar for the BJP when he resigned ahead of the 2024 general election and switched over to the Congress. He also alleged that the saffron party creates a wedge in society to achieve its political purpose.
The 'padyatra' has so far covered 85 assembly constituencies in Haryana, traversing more than 2,700 kilometres.
Addressing the public gathering, Brijendra Singh said the yatra is inspired by Rahul Gandhi's Bharat Jodo Yatra, where he took the party's vision and values directly to the people of the country.
Singh said the yatra has highlighted issues like "Vote Chori" (vote theft), unemployment, poor law and order situation, agrarian distress, and issues related to government employees, labourers and traders.
"Sadbhav (harmony) and bhaichara (brotherhood), which the BJP is attempting to weaken, are the messages of this yatra," he said, adding that its slogan is "Congress ka haath bhaichara ka saath".
"This yatra is a natural extension of the Bharat Jodo Yatra," Brijendra Singh said.
