Akhilesh Yadav did not visit the Ram temple. He wears an Islamic skullcap on iftaar. Akhilesh Yadav insults Dalits. He does not even shy away from disrespecting their hero Manyavar Kanshi Ram. 

These are some updates on social media video packages posted on a core WhatsApp group of Uttar Pradesh’s information and public relations department. The group has the department’s top officials and members of four private creative agencies hired by the government.

Officially, the department sells the government’s welfare and development efforts. But with the 2027 assembly election months away, the chats suggest the department and its contracted agencies are also doing political work: tracking, and in places appearing to steer, content that casts the opposition as anti-Hindu. People who have worked for the agencies claimed the department directs such content.

This is all part of huge taxpayer spending on government publicity. In fact, the Yogi Adityanath government has even outpaced the Narendra Modi government with nearly Rs 2.3 crore spent per day on publicity between 2017-18 and 2024-25. 

Though Brand Yogi may share with Brand Modi more than a taste for publicity. One of the four private agencies is linked to the same lobbying firm that was reported to have helped Modi remake his image after the 2002 Gujarat riots.

Famous Innovations was set up in 2013 with a Singapore subsidiary of APCO Worldwide among its founding promoters. The same Washington lobbying firm that marketed Modi’s Vibrant Gujarat summits from 2009 to 2013. APCO’s record elsewhere drew scrutiny too. It helped Philip Morris set up a coalition that cast doubt on the dangers of secondhand smoke. This year, British newspapers reported that it had looked into journalists’ private affairs for a Labour-aligned think tank and the UK’s PR industry body opened an investigation into the firm’s conduct. 

Though it is not clear whether APCO has any direct role in Famous’s work for Uttar Pradesh. What we do know, however, is that APCO Worldwide founder Margery Kraus sits on the board of Famous Innovations. 

Newslaundry reached out to officials at the Uttar Pradesh information and public relations department, as well as Auburn Digital Solutions, Famous Innovations, Value 360 Communications and Clanify Media for comment. Responses from Famous Innovations, Clanify Media and Value 360 Communications are at the end of this report. 

All in good humour

“Is ETV getting ads from us?”

“No.”

“Even if it is, stop them.”

The exchange played out in the director’s office. Vishal Singh swivelled in his chair, facing a row of visitors. Most were from news channels and magazines, there to get papers signed to release payments for government ads they had carried, or to get empanelled to carry such ads.

Singh gave no reason for cutting off ETV. 

Then a representative of a local magazine came up with his papers. Singh read the letterhead aloud: “Prachand Rashtravaad. You guys seem to be hindutvawaadis.”

“Yes, sir. From RSS,” the representative claimed. “It’s clear from the name of the magazine!” the director said, and the room laughed.

“Some basic requirement needs to be fulfilled, otherwise it’d be a problem,” he added.

The banter was light though it foregrounded a reality: that a publicly funded office was at ease with one party’s ideology.