The data collection app at the heart of the BJP’s Indian election campaign

1/20/2024

Srishti Jaswal

For Rest of World, Digital Witness Lab’s Pulitzer AI Accountability Fellow, Srishti Jaswal investigated extensive voter tracking in India through custom apps developed by India’s ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). The app, Sangathan Reporting and Analysis (SARAL), was heavily promoted in the run-up to the 2024 national elections, with volunteers encouraged to get as many people as possible to register.

SARAL is promoted as keeping people up to date on BJP activities; however, it also collects voters’ names, addresses, and photos, as well as demographic indicators such as their religion, caste, and profession. The data collection scale and detail have raised concerns among experts regarding potential electoral advantages and privacy issues.

In addition to profiling, SAARL is used in conjunction with government outreach initiatives, such as Mann ki Baat, PrimeMinister Narendra Modi’s monthly radio talk show. In this context, voters are asked to post photos of themselves listening to the radio address which has raised concerns about the use of government resources for political advantage.

Depending on how active communities are on the app, the ruling party can categorize districts as “safe,” “favorable,” “battleground,” or “difficult,” aiding in the party's campaign strategy.

Electoral rolls or voter lists in India do not include personal identifiable data. Anjali Bhardwaj, a social activist working on issues of transparency and accountability states “This would be a huge violation of data privacy and legislation.” She said people must be informed about why their data is being collected, “generic”consent is not enough." While a data protection bill passed by the Indian parliament in 2023 talks about consent but has not yet been passed by Modi’s government.