Twitter says it blocked accounts flagged by govt for misinformation on farmers’ protest

Social media giant Twitter on Wednesday said that it has taken action against more than 500 accounts and withheld some of them within India after the government flagged those handles for sharing misinformation and provocative content around the ongoing farmers’ agitation, reported PTI.

Twitter has not blocked accounts of civil society activists, politicians and media as “it would violate their fundamental right to free expression” guaranteed under the country’s constitution.

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“We took enforcement actions including permanent suspension in certain cases against more than 500 accounts escalated across all MeitY (Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology, India) orders for clear violations of Twitter’s Rules,” the company said in a statement.

The microblogging platform has emphasised that it will continue to advocate for the right of free expression of its users and that it is “actively exploring options under Indian law — both for Twitter and for the accounts that have been impacted”.

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Twitter had been asked by the central government to take down several accounts and warned of penal action for non-compliance.

Seeking to clarify its stance, the social media giant said in a blog post that it had taken steps to reduce the visibility of the hashtags containing malicious content that included prohibiting them from trending on Twitter and appearing as recommended search terms.