Twitter India Officials May Face Arrest For Non-Compliance With Govt’s Notice To Block Accounts

New Delhi: The Centre may arrest Twitter’s top executives in India stating that its list of accounts sought to be censured over “inflammatory content” was not negotiable.

The government added that its “patience is running out” over the company’s refusal to follow the earlier notice given under Section 69A of the IT Act, Times of India (TOI) reported.

On Wednesday, the Indian government had warned the social media giant against disobeying local laws.

Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology, in a statement, said, “Secretary expressed his deep disappointment to Twitter leadership about the manner in which Twitter has unwillingly, grudgingly and with great delay complied with the substantial parts of the order. He took this opportunity to remind Twitter that in India, its Constitution and laws are supreme. It is expected that responsible entities not only reaffirm but remain committed to compliance to the law of land.”

Twitter, which partially followed the order by taking down around half of the accounts sought to be blocked by the government, may now approach the courts as it holds ground in the defence of “right of free expression on behalf of the people we serve,” the report added.

India has ordered Twitter to remove more than 1,100 accounts and posts that it alleges are spreading misinformation about the widespread protests by Indian farmers against new agricultural laws.