Samajwadi Party (SP) has alleged that the official Facebook account of its president, Akhilesh Yadav, was suspended Friday evening, sparking a fierce political backlash.

The account, which had over eight million followers, reportedly went offline around 6 pm.  Party leaders assert that the suspension is a deliberate attempt by the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) to suppress dissenting voices and stifle opposition outreach.

SP spokesperson Fakhrul Hasan Chaand condemned the act as “an attack on democracy,” stating that the BJP regime is imposing what amounts to an “undeclared emergency” by muzzling opposition voices.  Rajeev Rai, the party’s national secretary, described the suspension as a blow to India’s democratic system and called for corrective action.