Maharashtra’s cyber police have registered a case against YouTuber Dhruv Rathee following a fake message posted by a parody account on X, claiming that Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla’s daughter cleared the Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) exam without appearing for it.
The account in question, @dhruvrahtee, described itself as a fan and parody account not affiliated with Rathee’s official account.
The bio of the parody account clearly states, “This is a fan and parody account and not affiliated with the original account of @dhruv_rathee. Not impersonating anyone. This account is Parody.”
Despite this clarification, a complaint by a relative of Birla led to the police booking Rathee under sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) for defamation, intentional insult with intent to provoke breach of peace, and statement leading to mischief, as well as provisions of the IT Act.
An official from the state cyber department confirmed, “We are investigating the matter,” when it was pointed out that the fake message originated from a parody account and not Rathee’s verified handle.
In response to the controversy, the parody account issued an apology, stating, “As directed by @MahaCyber1, I have deleted all my posts and comments on Anjali Birla. I apologise as I was unaware about the facts and copied someone else's tweets and shared them.”
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