Facebook removed 687 pages and accounts linked to India's main opposition Congress party, just days before voting begins in a general election, because of "coordinated inauthentic behaviour" on the social media platform, BS reported.

 "When we remove one of these networks, the reason we remove them is because of their coordinated inauthentic behaviour, that they are using network of fake accounts to conceal their identity....to mislead who's behind them. That's the basic reason for removal," Nathaniel Gleicher, Head of Cybersecurity Policy at Facebook, told reporters.

"We are constantly working to detect and stop coordinated inauthentic behaviour because we don't want our services to be used to manipulate people. We're taking down these pages and accounts based on their behaviour, not the content they posted," he said.

Previously, Facebook, which was criticized due to user data leakage, agreed to ensure that its platforms (including WhatsApp and Instagram) would not be used to spread disinformation.

About 900 million people in India will take part in the upcoming Lok Sabha elections. India’s staggered election, scheduled to begin on April 11, will end on May 19. The final vote count should be completed by May 23.