Twitter has terminated a bogus account under Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s name that was validated with a blue tick. When the fictitious but confirmed Twitter account @Sheikh HasinaBD was uncovered on Friday, it sparked outrage on social media. Hundreds of users tweeted a screenshot and link to Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s ‘verified’ Twitter account, news agency IANS reported.
After that, the Bangladesh government released a statement denying that Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina had an account on Twitter or any other social media site.
#Twitter has suspended an account in the name of Bangladesh Prime Minister #SheikhHasina which was fake but verified with a blue tick. The fake but verified twitter account @Sheikh_HasinaBD created an uproar on social media when it was reported on Friday. pic.twitter.com/Owdcsb2SG0
— IANS (@ians_india) February 19, 2023
M M Emrul Kayas, Prime Minister Hasina’s Assistant Press Secretary, informed the official news agency BSS that the aforementioned Twitter account does not belong to Prime Minister Hasina, nor does she have an account on any other social media site.
The introduction to the impersonated account, which obtained Twitter’s verified blue tick, reads: “Current Prime Minister of Bangladesh and daughter of the founding father and first President of Bangladesh, Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman.”
Previously, in 2019, the Rapid Action Battalion (RAB) detained many persons for establishing false Facebook pages of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and her family members. They were accused with disseminating rumours and false propaganda through the use of bogus accounts, as well as extorting money through fraudulent ways.
Twitter’s new policy grants a state leader or head of government the grey checkmark, which shows over his or her name on the microblogging network, which was recently bought by business mogul and serial entrepreneur Elon Musk.
On Twitter, a grey tick represents a government official, institution, or international organisation.
(With Inputs From Agencies)
