New Delhi: A growing trend of orchestrated social media campaigns—both in favour of and against military procurements planned by the Indian defence establishment—has raised red flags in some quarters, ThePrint has learnt.
Officials believe the fake narratives—often gaining traction through both organic and inorganic means—are not merely the work of interested companies. However, in some cases, the narratives are pushed by foreign governments, aiming to influence India’s procurement decisions.
Sources in the defence and security establishment said that such campaigns aim to muddy the waters, often prompting decision-makers to exercise excessive caution, which can even delay the issue of tenders.
Certain defence-focused websites and social media handles—found repeatedly publishing outright false stories or misleading ones—were earlier flagged. Many a time, no ownership or contact information is available on these sites.
One such website has drawn particular scrutiny for spreading fake stories that have upset not only the Indian but also foreign defence firms by falsely attributing the misinformation published.
From raising the alarm over the source code of a particular aircraft to targeting ongoing procurement processes, sources said the website, they suspected, was advancing some foreign agenda.
“Their ownership is unclear, and they seem to be running a sustained campaign on behalf of inimical elements,” a senior official said. “The aim appears to be to throw enough mud into the process, either to delay procurement or to promote platforms that do not align with Service requirements,” a source explained.
Officials said the crux of one such campaign was a fabricated narrative of the Indian Air Force’s push for the American F-35 fifth-generation fighter planes over the Russian Su-57.
“There is no formal US proposal for the F-35. So, the IAF cannot possibly recommend it. Yet the article triggered a wave of commentary online, with personal allegations levelled against senior officers,” a source said.
Officials added that even respected, bona fide analysts often end up amplifying such disinformation, unknowingly giving it legitimacy.
Interestingly, the trend is not limited to foreign products. In some cases, coordinated “troll armies” have been unleashed to defend state-run enterprises through selective leaks and arguments that shape public opinion.
“Even senior retired personnel who critique a public sector organisation on valid grounds are hounded online and branded as ‘import bahadurs’. Or, at worst, their kith and kin are targeted. The aim is to discourage open and informed debate,” an official said.
Sources pointed out instances of certain social media users posting documents and internal slides, which indicate that firms selectively leaked the material to aid their narrative-building campaign.
Interestingly, even some private companies have expressed surprise at the stories or information on defence matters that certain groups—suspected to be sponsored by a third party—put out.
Pakistan and China have, for long, been engaging in such disinformation efforts in political and economic spheres, sources said. “Now, the same tactics are spilling over into the defence sector,” one of them added.
(Edited by Madhurita Goswami)