After “No Muslim Allowed” Ad Furore, Property Listing Portal 99Acres Promises Strict Checks

Property listing site 99Acres said that it is putting in place “rigorous checks,” and processes, to prevent listings that are discriminatory in nature.

“We are deeply embarrassed that our site was misused in this manner,” the Info Edge owned company said in a statement.

On Monday, the site was notified of a user advertisement seeking tenants which said “no Muslim allowed.” The discriminatory ad sparked a debate, following which it was modified and later removed.

“We remove listings when they are reported to us and deemed offensive and discriminatory,” said the company. However, it also clarified that being a platform powered by user generated content, advertisers have the capability to list property on their own through the site’s interface.

The company said it will take reasonable steps to moderate such postings. While explicitly discriminatory listings are easy to identify, it might be tough to figure out posts that discriminate in a more subtle manner. For instance, the term “Vegetarians Only,” is a prevalent way of saying “Only Hindus.”