Himachal Congress sets up war room to monitor social media during civic polls

The Congress party in Himachal Pradesh has created a special election war room to closely watch political campaigns and social media activity before the upcoming municipal corporation elections. The party says the main aim is to stop the spread of false information and quickly respond to online propaganda against Congress leaders and candidates.

The elections for four municipal corporations — Solan, Mandi, Dharamshala and Palampur — will be held on May 17. As voting day comes closer, both the Congress and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) have increased their campaigning across the state. Political rallies, door-to-door campaigns and social media outreach have become more active in recent days.

The Congress war room has been set up at Rajiv Bhawan, the party headquarters in Shimla. Senior Congress leader Harikrishna Himral has been appointed in-charge of the war room. On Saturday, he held a meeting with party members and finalised how the war room will work during the election period.

Party leaders said the war room will act as the central communication and monitoring centre for the Congress campaign in all four municipal corporations. Workers and local leaders from different areas will regularly send reports about campaigning activities, public response and election developments. The war room team will then pass instructions from the Pradesh Congress Committee (PCC) to party workers in the field.

Congress leaders said social media monitoring will be one of the most important tasks of the war room. According to Himral, the team will keep a close watch on Facebook, WhatsApp, Instagram, X and other digital platforms to identify any false claims, fake news or misleading propaganda against the Congress party.

He said if any fake information is found online, the war room will immediately report the matter to the concerned department and the party’s legal cell. Legal action may then be started against those spreading false information. Congress leaders believe that misinformation on social media can influence voters and damage the party’s image during elections.

Himral said the war room will function round the clock during the election period. Teams will continuously monitor election activities and share updates with party workers. He also instructed members to stay alert and quickly respond to any issue that could affect the party’s campaign.

Apart from the four municipal corporation elections, the war room will also monitor elections in other urban local bodies and panchayati raj institutions across Himachal Pradesh. Congress leaders believe strong coordination between local workers and party leadership is necessary to improve election performance.

Congress focuses on digital monitoring

Congress leaders say social media has become a powerful political tool in modern elections. Political parties are now using digital campaigns to connect with voters, spread messages and attack opponents. Because of this, parties also fear the spread of fake news and edited content online.

The Congress war room has therefore been given the responsibility to verify information before responding publicly. Party leaders said workers must avoid reacting emotionally to rumours and instead follow official directions from the party headquarters.

The Congress also plans to use the war room to share campaign material, speeches, videos and updates with workers in different districts. Leaders say this will help maintain a common campaign message across all municipal corporation areas.

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Political observers believe social media may play a major role in these elections because local issues such as development, taxes, water supply, roads and civic services are being widely discussed online. Parties are trying to influence urban voters through both traditional campaigning and digital outreach.

The upcoming elections are important for both the ruling Congress government and the opposition BJP. The results are expected to show public mood in urban areas nearly midway through the state government’s term.

BJP attacks Congress government

While Congress leaders focused on election preparations, BJP leaders strongly criticised the state government during campaign events.

Former Himachal Pradesh chief minister and Leader of Opposition Jai Ram Thakur campaigned in Solan and attacked the Congress government led by Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu. He alleged that people in the state are unhappy with the government because many promises made during the Assembly elections have not been fulfilled.

Jai Ram claimed the Congress government slowed down development projects after coming to power. He also accused the government of increasing the financial burden on people living in newly merged urban areas.

According to him, the previous BJP government had promised a five-year tax exemption for residents in these areas. He alleged that the Congress government ignored that promise and imposed taxes on the public instead.

The BJP leader said people are prepared to give a “strong democratic response” to the Congress in the upcoming elections. He also claimed the ruling party has failed to meet public expectations.

Congress leaders, however, rejected the BJP’s criticism and said the state government is working honestly for development and better civic services. They accused the BJP of spreading misleading claims during the campaign.

As campaigning continues, political competition between the Congress and BJP is becoming sharper across Himachal Pradesh. Public meetings, social media campaigns and local outreach programmes are expected to intensify in the coming days before voting takes place on May 17.

Election officials are also preparing security and administrative arrangements to ensure peaceful polling in all four municipal corporations. The results will be closely watched because they could influence future political strategies of both major parties in the state.