Modi’s 2014 social media strategist put in charge of shaping govt image for 2019

New Delhi: The man credited with Narendra Modi’s successful social media campaign in 2014 for the Lok Sabha polls, Arvind Gupta, will be shaping the image of his government in its final year ahead of the 2019 general election.

Sources said Mr Gupta, who was the BJP’s information technology cell in-charge for the Lok Sabha campaign, is now expected to shape the Narendra Modi government’s presence on the social media, which includes the human resources handling its top online accounts. It is learnt that the decision came after a go-ahead from the Prime Minister’s Office.

The tech entrepreneur also held a strategy session with information and broadcasting minister Smriti Irani last week to finalise the government’s gameplan regarding its outreach on various social media platforms.

It is understood Mr Gupta enjoys the total confidence of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, and he appears to have been given a free hand to decide on what strategy to adopt to reach out to a wide spectrum of citizens with the message of the government’s “people-centric” policies. It is learnt the social media strategist is expected to devise strategy and guide the handles, pages and Internet presence of various ministries and their ministers.

Mr Gupta is often given credit for his political acumen in gauging the pulse of social media users on political, governance and social issues. The move to appoint Mr Gupta to this important position and his involvement in the social media strategy is being considered significant ahead of the 2019 Lok Sabha elections.

Sources said at the first such high-level meeting, various officials dealing with social media platforms of various government departments and units were also present. Mr Gupta was last month appointed the CEO of MyGovIndia, a platform that aims to build a partnership between citizens and the government with the help of technology.