Report on AI-weaponised disinformation and institutional failure in the 2026 Assam election

By A Representative

The Diaspora in Action for Human Rights and Democracy (DAHRD) has released a comprehensive monitoring report documenting what it describes as the most sophisticated AI-enabled disinformation and exclusion operation ever recorded in an Indian election. Ahead of the April 9, 2026, Assam Assembly elections, the monitoring body identified a coordinated architecture of digital propaganda, legislative action, and administrative machinery targeting the state’s Bengali-speaking Muslim community.

The report details a six-tier content ecosystem that produced 432 confirmed AI-generated posts, accumulating over 45.4 million views. This industrial-scale operation was designed to manufacture an altered reality in which an entire community is simultaneously dehumanized and disenfranchised.

A key finding of the investigation is the existence of a propaganda-to-policy pipeline, where synthetic content establishing narratives such as "Land Jihad" translated directly into enacted legislation, specifically a February 2026 property restriction law prohibiting land sales to Muslims in designated areas.

The report highlights a documented vocabulary shift by Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma, who allegedly rotated terms from "Miya" to "Bangladeshi" to "Encroachment" to evade legal and constitutional liability while maintaining identical targeting. Sarma reportedly confirmed this shift in a March 12 interview, stating that earlier content was "constitutionally and legally wrong" because it had not used the word "Bangladeshi".

Beyond rhetoric, the report monitors a systematic "exclusion architecture" consisting of four simultaneous operations: dehumanization through AI, the deletion of approximately 2.43 lakh names from voter rolls via the Special Intensive Revision process, the physical removal of residents through forced evictions celebrated on social media, and the cultural erasure of figures like the Sufi saint Azan Fakir from Assamese history.

High-level political figures were directly implicated in the dissemination of disinformation, according to DAHRD. The report documents 31 confirmed deepfakes targeting opposition candidate Gaurav Gogoi, including a video from a verified Cabinet Minister’s handle that fabricated Gogoi’s identity as a Pakistani agent. Furthermore, the campaign utilized unprecedented gendered disinformation, targeting Gogoi’s wife, Elizabeth Colburn, a private individual, with at least six AI-fabricated intimate and communal scenarios.

Despite 119 documented breaches of the Model Code of Conduct, including 84 classified as high severity, the report notes a total institutional failure, with the Election Commission of India taking no enforcement action and social media platforms executing zero content takedowns. DAHRD warns that Assam has served as a laboratory for these techniques, noting that a similar administrative architecture has already been used to suspend over 10 million voters in West Bengal.

The report concludes that without urgent intervention, the widening gap between AI propaganda production and democratic accountability will further compromise the integrity of the 2029 general elections.

Comments

The soundtrack of resistance: How 'Sada Sada Ya Nabi' is fueling the Iran war

By Syed Ali Mujtaba* The Persian track “ Sada Sada Ya Nabi ye ” by Hossein Sotoodeh has taken the world by storm. This viral media has cut across linguistic barriers to achieve cult status, reaching over 10 million views. The electrifying music and passionate rendition by the Iranian singer have resonated across the globe, particularly as the high-intensity military conflict involving Iran entered its second month in March 2026.

Kolkata dialogue flags policy and finance deficit in wetland sustainability

By A Representative Wetlands were the focus of India–Germany climate talks in Kolkata, where experts from government, business, and civil society stressed both their ecological importance and the urgent need for stronger conservation frameworks.

Beyond Lata: How Asha Bhosle redefined the female voice with her underrated versatility

By Vidya Bhushan Rawat* The news of iconic Asha Bhosle’s ‘untimely’ demise has shocked music lovers across the country. Asha Tai was 92 years young. Normally, people celebrate a passing at this age, but Asha Bhosle—much like another legend, Dev Anand—never made us feel she was growing old. She was perhaps the most versatile artist in Bombay cinema. Hailing from a family devoted to music, Asha’s journey to success and fame was not easy. Her elder sister, Lata Mangeshkar, had already become the voice of women in cinema, and most contemporaries like Shamshad Begum, Suraiya, and Noor Jehan had slowly faded into oblivion. Frankly, there was no second or third to Lata Mangeshkar; she became the first—and perhaps the only—choice for music directors and all those who mattered in filmmaking. Asha started her musical journey at age 10 with a Marathi film, but her first break in Hindustani cinema came with the film "Chunariya" (1948). Though she was not the first choice of ...

Lata Mangeshkar, a Dalit from Devdasi family, 'refused to sing a song' about Ambedkar

By Pramod Ranjan* An artist is known and respected for her art. But she is equally, or even more so known and respected for her social concerns. An artist's social concerns or in other words, her worldview, give a direction and purpose to her art. History remembers only such artists whose social concerns are deep, reasoned and of durable importance. Lata Mangeshkar (28 September 1929 – 6 February 2022) was a celebrated playback singer of the Hindi film industry. She was the uncrowned queen of Indian music for over seven decades. Her popularity was unmatched. Her songs were heard and admired not only in India but also in Pakistan, Bangladesh and many other South Asian countries. In this article, we will focus on her social concerns. Lata lived for 92 long years. Music ran in her blood. Her father also belonged to the world of music. Her two sisters, Asha Bhonsle and Usha Mangeshkar, are well-known singers. Lata might have been born in Indore but the blood of a famous Devdasi family...

Maoist activity in India: Weakening structures, 'shifts' in leadership, strategy and ideology

By Harsh Thakor* Recent statements by government representatives have suggested that Maoism in India has been effectively eliminated, citing the weakening of central leadership and intensified security operations. These claims follow sustained counterinsurgency efforts across key regions, including central and eastern India. However, available information from security agencies and independent observers indicates that while the organizational structure of the CPI (Maoist) has been significantly disrupted, elements of the movement remain active. Reports acknowledge the continued presence of cadres in certain forested regions such as Bastar and parts of Dandakaranya, alongside smaller, decentralized units adapting their operational strategies.

46% own nothing, 1% own 18%: The truth about India’s land inequality

By Vikas Meshram * “Agriculture is the backbone of India” — this is what we have been hearing for generations. But there is a pain hollowing out this backbone from within: the unequal distribution of land. On one hand, news of farmer suicides, indebtedness, and rural migration keeps coming; on the other, agricultural land across the country continues to concentrate in the hands of a few wealthy individuals.

US study links ultra-processed diets to preterm birth, sparks concern in India

By Jag Jivan A growing body of scientific evidence linking ultra-processed food (UPF) consumption during pregnancy to adverse maternal and neonatal outcomes has sparked fresh concern among public health experts, with Indian nutrition advocates warning of serious implications for the country’s already strained maternal health landscape.

From Manesar to Noida: Workers take to streets for bread, media looks away

By Sunil Kumar* Across several states in India, a workers’ movement is gathering momentum. This is not a movement born of luxury or ambition, nor a demand for power-sharing within the state. At its core lies a stark and basic plea: the right to survive with dignity—adequate food, and wages sufficient to afford it.

Midnight weeping: The sociology of tragic vision in Badri Narayan’s poetry

By Ravi Ranjan* Badri Narayan, a distinguished Hindi poet and social scientist, occupies a unique position in contemporary Indian intellectual life by bridging the worlds of creative literature and critical social inquiry. His poetic journey began significantly with the 1993 collection 'Saca Sune Hue Kaï Dina Hue' (Truth Heard Many Days Ago). As a social historian and cultural anthropologist, Narayan pioneered a methodological shift away from elite archives toward the oral traditions and folk myths of marginalized communities. He eventually legitimized "folk-ethnography" as a rigorous academic discipline during his tenure as Director of the G.B. Pant Social Science Institute.

Search This Blog