Written by: Manvi Vikram (Intern)
Edited by: Anubhav Yadav (Content Head & Developer)
Social media platforms and media publications, among others, were asked to comply with the new IT Rules constituted in February this year by May 26 and Twitter was among the list of social media platforms that failed to finish the compliance method. It described the new social media guidelines as a “capability risk to freedom of expression”. The governments has strongly condemned twitter’s reaction declaring that it is baseless, fake and tried to defame India.
The America-based social media company has been at loggerheads with the Indian government recently, about its new Intermediary Rules for Internet platforms. The government has sent more than one notices to Twitter and threatened to revoke the intermediary protection presented via Section 79 of India’s IT Act, which protects platforms from being sued for acts by way of their users. The Centre on Saturday issued a notice to twitter asking it to comply with the new IT rules, which were to be implemented by May 26. The government said this is the last chance to Twitter in addition to which the social media giant was told that it is “welcome to do business in India”, but it would have to follow the laws of the country “irrespective of the company own rules and guidelines”. According to Twitter, concerning the new IT regulations, it is especially worried about the requirement to make an individual (the compliance officer) criminally chargeable for content material at the platform, the requirements for proactive monitoring, and the blanket authority to seek information of its customers.
In the meantime, the Government said that the new regulations empower regular users who get prone to be the victims of defamation, morphed photographs, sexual abuse, and the complete range of different abusive content material in blatant violation of regulation. It also reiterated that these guidelines had been finalized after the widest possible consultations, including with representatives of social media systems. The Ministry of Electronics & Information Technology (MeITY) fired a strongly-worded missive directed at Twitter, saying “protecting free speech in India is not the prerogative of a for-profit foreign entity like Twitter”.
FREEDOM OF EXPRESSION
Twitter responded that it would not block accounts that belonged to media companies, journalists, activists, and politicians because that would “violate their fundamental right to free expression under the Indian law”. Talking about the recent incident it flagged some posts of BJP leaders as “manipulated media”. The Delhi police Special cell took immediate action and visited the office of Twitter regarding the incident. In its statement, Twitter termed the visit by Delhi Police officials to its Delhi office as a “use of intimidation tactics by the police in response to enforcement of our global terms of service”. The agency additionally flagged issues approximately the protection of its personnel and the “ability threat to freedom of expression for the human beings we serve”. In regards to this action, Twitter has said in concerned with the safety of its staff working in India. It also questioned the freedom of expression for the people.