Twitter risks penal action for defying govt's legal orders under IT Act

Microblogging platform asked to remove tweets and content about a farmer protest-related hashtag with the word 'genocide' in it; defiance could lead to seven years in jail

The government has said Twitter may face action for not complying with its orders to remove content on farmer protests and attacking it (the government) with the word “genocide” in it.

The protests in New Delhi have got international attention after pop star Rihanna and climate change activist Greta Thunberg tweeted on Tuesday about the internet shutdowns taking place in New Delhi because of the protests.

In a communication sent to the microblogging platform on Tuesday, the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology said Twitter “unilaterally” unblocked tweets and accounts that were using the hashtag #ModiPlanningFarmerGenocide, beginning Saturday.

According to sources, the ministry told Twitter in a written communication: “It may be noted that the impracticability or disproportionality of the said measure cannot be decided at the instance of Twitter, which is an intermediary bound by the orders of the Central Government.”

In response to an email from Business Standard, Twitter said it did not have any comment to offer on the ministry’s communication.

Twitter erupts

Voices against and for Thunberg and Rihanna dominated Twitter chatter Wednesday, with actors Kangana Ranaut and Diljit Dosanjh continuing their sparring over farmer issues with renewed zest. Akshay Kumar, Ajay Devgn, and other Indian actors also tweeted about the protests. However, despite the government’s investment in the Indian diaspora, it was this that pushed their governments to get answers from New Delhi on the way India treated its farmers, eliciting a firm pushback from the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA).