Thiruvananthapuram: The Congress has strongly condemned right-wing social media profiles and a section of online media for spreading alleged fake news about AICC general secretary K C Venugopal.

The reports claimed that Venugopal attended a programme organised by a bank employees' union in his constituency, Alappuzha, on July 27, where the name of former Pakistan President Pervez Musharraf was allegedly included in the list of prominent personalities to be paid tributes.

In a post on 'X' on Sunday, the Congress in Kerala alleged a "larger conspiracy" behind the propaganda.
The party clarified that Venugopal did not attend the programme, warning of legal action against those who spread fake news about him.

"The Bank of India Staff Union had invited K C Venugopal, along with a few other prominent personalities, to a program in his constituency, Alappuzha. However, K C Venugopal did not attend the event after being alerted about unwanted additions to the agenda. This is the truth," the Congress said in the post.

The party said that it has credible information about a larger conspiracy behind this motivated propaganda. "Those who spread fake news that Venugopal attended this event will face legal consequences," it warned. The Congress said that it will not allow vested interests to pollute society for their narrow political agenda and defame its leaders. "We reiterate our commitment to fighting the fake news menace by the right-wing ecosystem. Satyameva Jayate!" the party said.

When the controversy erupted, the union had reportedly attributed it to a printing mistake and swiftly corrected it by dropping Musharraf's name from the programme. The BJP had held a protest march to the conference venue in Alappuzha on Saturday, alleging that the Bank of India employees' union's act of remembering Musharraf was "treasonous."