Facebook representatives have been summoned by the Parliamentary Committee on Information Technology, per an agenda notice issued on Thursday. The hearing, scheduled for September 2, comes in light of allegations that Facebook refused to take down hateful content by Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) members, fearing harm to its commercial interests in India. Headed by veteran Congress MP Shashi Tharoor, the Committee will hear from Facebook representatives on the subject: "Safeguarding citizens’ rights and prevention of misuse of social/online news media platforms including special emphasis on women security in the digital space". Later in the day, the Committee will hear oral evidence on the subject from representatives of the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MEITY). The Wall Street Journal had reported that Facebook India's public policy team, headed by Ankhi Das, had refused to take down posts by T Raja Singh, a BJP MLA from Telangana, although they were flagged as "hate speech". Das reportedly opposed applying hate-speech rules to posts by Singh and other other "Hindu nationalist individuals" as punishing violations by leaders from the BJP would damage Facebook's business prospects in India. The report suggested that Facebook might be taking into account political considerations when applying hate-speech rules to prominent Hindu nationalists in India. The ruling BJP and opposition Congress have been involved in a political tussle, over Tharoor's initial announcement that the Committee would convene a meeting to hear Facebook's alleged misconduct. Congress party wrote to Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg, asking for an probe into the company's…
