A Lucknow court has registered a case against ANI Editor Smita Prakash over false news attributed to the Election Commission of India. The complaint said ANI circulated statements not released on ECI’s official website or verified platforms.
A court in Lucknow initiated a case against ANI Editor Smita Prakash following a complaint that claims the agency published misleading news attributed to the Election Commission of India (ECI).
During the hearing of the complaint filed by former IPS officer Amitabh Thakur, the court stated,
“Heard and perused the complaint and written submissions. At this stage, without entering into the merits of territorial jurisdiction or sufficiency of grounds, the complaint is found to be in order procedurally. In view of the provisions of Chapter XV BNSS, the complaint is liable to be registered as a complaint case…Let this case be registered as a Complaint Case. The Complainant is directed to appear on 26.09.2025 for recording of his statement under oath.”
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Thakur alleged that ANI frequently attributed statements to the ECI that were not published on its official website or shared on its verified social media accounts. He argued that this constituted the dissemination of false news in the name of the Commission without any official support.
The complaint highlights several instances from August 2025, including ANI’s posts on X and news articles published either before or without any official confirmation from the Election Commission.
Thakur specifically referenced an ANI post from August 1, 2025, at 3:08 PM, which contained a statement purportedly from the ECI that contested Rahul Gandhi’s claims of vote theft.
“Best of the applicant’s knowledge, many news have been relayed by ANI, being run by the OP Ms Smita Prakash, as being that of the ECI, without any official fact or evidence to back it up, completely on its own. Thus, there are many news relayed by ANI, which are neither on the official website of the Commission, nor on their social sites, nor presented through any official Press Conference or Press interaction etc, which have only ANI’s word to back up the given news. Here, ECI seems to be relaying arbitrary and self-assumed, self-professed and false information/news in the name of the Commission.”
Thakur also expressed concern that, while he could have approached the police to request the registration of an FIR, there was a significant risk of police influence due to various factors.
Therefore, he deemed it more appropriate to file a direct complaint with the court.
He urged the court to acknowledge his complaint and initiate appropriate legal action against Prakash for alleged criminal misconduct.