After row,Rajasthan CM Ashok Gehlot’s ‘Likes’ fall,fewer ‘Talking’ about it

Controversy erupted after The Indian Express reported on July 10 that the Rajasthan BJP was accusing Gehlot of “buying” Facebook ‘Likes’. It said the ‘Likes’ for Gehlot had increased dramatically from 1.69 lakh on June 1 to 2.15 lakh on June 30,and ‘The Most Popular City’ — the one in which the most people talking about the page lived — was,bizarrely,Istanbul in Turkey.

The BJP Thursday said the fall in the numbers reflected attempts at “corrective measures” by a rattled Congress. “Maybe the Supreme Court judgment pulling up truant politicians has affected the CM’s stand,” BJP spokesperson Jyoti Kiran said.

Congress spokesperson Archana Sharma accused the BJP of “manipulating” the page “to defame the CM”.

Earlier in the day,Gehlot had said,“I was myself very surprised to learn about my popularity in Istanbul. I have never been to Turkey. But who created the controversy is a matter of probe.”