#Dogfilter: Shashi Tharoor starts campaign to protest against FIR on AIB’s Modi tweet

The defamation case against comedy group All India Bakchod rocked the Twitter on Saturday after senior Congress leader Shashi Tharoor started the #Dogfilter campaign to protest against the FIR.

The AIB group fell into legal trouble again, when an FIR was registered against them on Friday for sharing a controversial picture of Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Twitter. 

AIB had on Thursday tweeted a picture of a Modi look-alike peering into his mobile phone at a railway station alongside an actual photograph of the PM, with props superimposed with the help of Snapchat’s dog filter, an app.To protest against the FIR, Tharoor shared his own picture with the Dog Filter and called out trolls for a challenge. 

The dog filter is a special effect application which allows users to add a dog’s nose, ears and tongue over their faces while taking a selfie or on other photographs.

Attn all trolls: I took the #DogFilter challenge! @AllIndiaBakchod pic.twitter.com/0lmClCS7CF

— Shashi Tharoor (@ShashiTharoor) July 15, 2017

Tharoor’s campaign found several supporters, including Congress leader Sanjay Jha: 

I love dogs; and you? #DogFilter @AllIndiaBakchod pic.twitter.com/nKl7vupl2q

— Sanjay Jha (@JhaSanjay) July 15, 2017

Twitter followed suit

But I love the #DogFilter. It makes everyone look better! 😅 pic.twitter.com/BJHVdy20hz

— Prateeka (@PrateekaKamath) July 15, 2017

O' my my! Dog filter is now offensive, sigh! #dogfilter @AllIndiaBakchod pic.twitter.com/oldGZdeZO6

— Preeti Singh (@Singhpreeti_17) July 15, 2017

If it's offensive, then this is mandatory.#DogFilter pic.twitter.com/BabgdKhB1O

— Esha Mittal (@esha24mittal) July 15, 2017

Well hello there#dogfilter pic.twitter.com/UgikSx5BED

— Jasmine Ruth Baluja (@Jazz1008) July 15, 2017

While u get arrested for the #DogFilter .. If have the #CowFilter u are safe!!!! pic.twitter.com/UL3FuHNg3w

— Tehseen Poonawalla (@tehseenp) July 15, 2017

The campaign also attracted several haters, who challenged Congress to share pictures of party icons, including India’s first prime minister Jawahar Lal Nehru and other members of his family with dog filter.

FIR against AIB

A Twitter user, Reetesh Maheshwari, drew the Mumbai Police’s attention towards it and demanded action.

The police forwarded his tweet to the Cyber Police Station, which registered an FIR.

“After legal consultations, an offence was registered against AIB and a further probe is on,” said Mumbai police spokesperson DCP Rashmi Karandikar.

DCP Cyber Crime Akbar Pathan said a case has been registered against AIB on charges of “defamation” and “publishing/transmitting obscene material in electronic form”.

Text messages and phone calls to AIB co-founder Tanmay Bhat and Rohan Joshi, who is a key member of the group, went unanswered.

After the post came under fire from Twiterrati, Bhat had yesterday posted a screenshot of what seemed to be an old tweet by Modi which said “we surely need more humour in public life”.

AIB, known for its comedy sketches broadcast through online platforms, had in 2015 landed in trouble over a “roast” programme featuring some Bollywood celebrities, and over Snapchat filter pictures of Lata Mangeshkar and Sachin Tendulkar last year.

(With Inputs from PTI)