For the past four or five days, a troubling wave of misinformation has been washing over Kerala, and at its center is a scheme that means a great deal to thousands of women and transgender persons across the state. Fake posters, carefully designed to look like official government communications, have been circulating rapidly on Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp, claiming that the Priyadarshini free bus travel scheme is about to be changed. According to these viral posts, government employees will be completely removed from the scheme, and a special Priyadarshini card will be introduced, apparently to restrict travel based on income. The rumors have spread like wildfire, creating confusion, anxiety, and anger among those who use KSRTC ordinary buses every day. For a woman who works as a teacher or a nurse, for a transgender person who depends on public transport to travel to a doctor’s appointment, for a daily-wage worker who cannot afford private buses, the Priyadarshini scheme is more than just a policy on paper. It is a guarantee that they can move freely, without having to worry about the fare. The sudden appearance of these posters, claiming that this guarantee is being taken away or curtailed, is not just misleading—it is cruel. The state government quickly recognized the seriousness of the situation, and the office of the Transport Minister realized that silence would only allow the falsehood to grow. Something had to be done, and it had to be done quickly, before the lie became accepted as truth.
So it was from Thiruvananthapuram, the political heart of the state, that the official response came. The office of Transport Minister C P John lodged a formal police complaint regarding the false news spread on social media. The complaint was submitted by M P Saju, the Minister’s private secretary, directly to State Police Chief Rawada Azad Chandrasekhar, which shows how seriously the matter is being treated at the highest levels of government. This was not a casual clarification posted online; it was a legal move designed to protect the integrity of a public welfare scheme. The complaint lays out in detail what the fake posters claim: that government employees will no longer receive free travel, and that a special Priyadarshini card will be introduced, perhaps as a way to monitor or restrict who can use the benefit. The minister’s office also provided the police with the account details of the people responsible for creating and spreading these posters. This is a crucial step. Anyone can share a rumor, but identifying the original accounts helps law enforcement trace the individuals behind the lies. The complaint makes it clear that this is not an innocent mistake or a harmless joke. It is a deliberate attempt to mislead the public, to create distrust in a welfare measure, and to provoke anger against the elected government.
To fully understand why these falsehoods matter, one must remember what the Priyadarshini scheme actually represents. Kerala has long been proud of its social welfare systems, and the free bus travel scheme is one of its most visible and beloved initiatives. It allows women and transgender persons to travel for free on KSRTC ordinary buses, removing a significant financial barrier to mobility. For many women, this scheme is the difference between being able to work and staying home, between reaching a hospital on time and delaying care, between attending a class and missing an opportunity. It is a policy that quietly transforms lives every single day. The rumor that government employees are being excluded is especially troublesome because it tries to divide the community of women into separate classes—those who work for the government and those who do not. This division would be unfair, unnecessary, and counterproductive. The scheme was designed with the understanding that every woman deserves the freedom to travel without paying, whether she earns a salary from the state or works in a private shop. The fake posters, by suggesting that this is changing, undermine the very spirit of the scheme. They plant a seed of doubt in the minds of ordinary people: Is the government going back on its promise? Will I have to pay tomorrow? Such doubts can lead to real-world consequences, such as women avoiding buses or facing harassment from bus staff who may have also seen the false posts.
The police complaint reveals that there is more to this than just a few stray posters. According to the complaint, the accounts spreading the misinformation have been conducting what appear to be opinion polls on social media, using the fake narrative to measure public reaction and perhaps to test how easily people will believe false news. These same accounts have also posted vulgar and insulting remarks about the UDF government, the Chief Minister, and the Transport Minister. This turns the issue into something far more serious than a misunderstanding. It becomes a coordinated attack on the democratic process, on the dignity of public servants, and on the stability of public institutions. The complaint asks for strict action under sections 353, 356, and 336 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, which are legal provisions designed to punish acts that create public mischief, disrupt order, or undermine the authority of the state. By invoking these sections, the government is signaling that it will not allow itself to be bullied or mocked through fabricated content. Equally important, it is protecting the welfare scheme from being poisoned by association with lies. The request to the Police Chief is not just about punishing the guilty; it is about preventing further damage and making an example that falsehoods about welfare schemes will have legal consequences.
Amid all this, Transport Minister C P John has taken a direct and personal approach to reassure the public. He has appealed to citizens to refute these false claims and to share only the truth. His message is simple: the Priyadarshini scheme has not changed. Women and transgender persons will continue to receive free travel in KSRTC ordinary buses, exactly as before. No special card is being introduced, no income-based restriction is being implemented, and government employees are not being removed from eligibility. In a media landscape where falsehoods spread faster than facts, the Minister’s appeal is a reminder that ordinary people have a responsibility too. When a message arrives on WhatsApp with a dramatic poster, the instinct may be to forward it immediately. But the better instinct is to pause, to check official sources, and to refuse to be part of the misinformation chain. The Minister’s office has already done its part by going to the police, but the larger battle takes place in millions of conversations across Kerala. Families, friends, colleagues, and neighbors all need to tell each other the truth: that the scheme is safe, that the buses are still free, and that these posters are nothing but lies. That kind of grassroots vigilance is the most powerful counter to fake news.
In the end, this episode is not just about one bus scheme or one viral rumor. It is about the fragility of trust and the power of misinformation. Welfare programs like Priyadarshini depend heavily on public confidence. People need to believe that the government is on their side and that the promises made to them will be kept. Every fake poster chips away at that confidence, making it harder for the state to function and easier for malcontents to divide society. The police complaint is necessary, but it is not sufficient. What is needed is a broader awareness, a digital literacy that helps people separate fact from fiction, and a collective commitment to protect the truth. This story should remind everyone that behind every policy is a human being. Behind the Priyadarshini scheme is a woman in a crowded bus, a transgender person on the way to a new job, a mother taking her child to a clinic. These are real lives, and the schemes that support them are not optional extras—they are lifelines. The KSRTC ordinary buses will keep running, the doors will remain open, and no matter how many fake posters appear, the promise of free travel will continue. But the battle against misinformation must go on, not only in police stations and government offices, but in every home, every social media group, and every heart that cares about fairness and truth.