Facebook 'transparent, non-partisan', says India head amid political controversy

Denouncing "hate and bigotry", Facebook India on Friday said the platform is "open, transparent and non-partisan" where people are allowed to "express themselves freely".

The statement from Facebook India chief Ajit Mohan comes amid a massive controversy in the country, post a Wall Street Journal report that claimed that the social media giant's content policies favoured India's ruling party.

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"Facebook is and always has been an open, transparent and non-partisan platform where people can express themselves freely. Over the last few days, we have been accused of bias in the way we enforce our policies," Facebook India Vice President and Managing Director Ajit Mohan said in a blog post. 

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"We take allegations of bias incredibly seriously, and want to make it clear that we denounce hate and bigotry in any form." 

Mohan also said that Facebook follows an impartial approach in dealing with content and is strongly dictated by Community Standards that outline what is allowed in the platform. 

"Our Community Standards define what stays on our platform and are enforced globally... We enforce these policies globally without regard to anyone's political position, party affiliation or religious and cultural belief. We have removed and will continue to remove content posted by public figures in India when it violates our Community Standards," he wrote.

Mohan also stressed Facebook's commitment to India is unwavering, adding that the platform aims to be an ally for "India" where it can preserve the "pluralistic character of a democracy by offering the freedom for people to express themselves and for entrepreneurs to build new things while also protecting society from broader harm".