Away from scrutiny, millions of Indians are organising themselves on these apps without the fear of being flagged.

Run by political strategists and Indian entrepreneurs, these social networking platforms are largely free from restraints, creating a powerful, insulated digital world where political content—often steeped in propaganda and hate—can spread unchecked.

These apps are among the string of political and community apps that emerged as alternative platforms for political organising and networking, operating beyond the scrutiny of the Election Commission and civil watchdogs. 

They are the desi alternatives for those Indians who are tired of being told to watch their mouth while being on Silicon Valley networking apps such as where content moderation policies are relatively more stringent and posts are actively scrutinised by civil watchdogs and regulators.

You can post comments in these groups without the fear of being challenged by fact-checkers or those with opposing politics, free from the rules and guidelines imposed by Silicon Valley giants.

Even under the best of circumstances, social media platforms in India operate without any oversight from the Election Commission of India (ECI), despite growing evidence of their role in shaping voter behaviour through political ads and content. Major tech companies, at least superficially, attempt to follow self-established norms and disclosure requirements for political messaging.

A deep scrutiny of these desi apps shows, with ECI playing blind, online hate and disinformation during elections has proliferated beyond the large social media platforms. These apps are indicative that Indian entrepreneurs are capitalising on the rising appetite for digital campaigning across the political spectrum, and desire for anarchy.

The lack of oversight becomes glaring when users on the platform create hundreds of posts violating community guidelines on hate speech and discrimination. The closed groups in these apps have made such instances rampant and undetectable.

Read the deep-dive on the new homes for hate here.