India to Twitter: Comply with IT rules or face 'unintended consequences'

Published June 5, 2021
India has told Twitter Inc it has one last chance to comply with new IT rules. — AFP/File
India has told Twitter Inc it has one last chance to comply with new IT rules. — AFP/File

India has told Twitter Inc it has one last chance to comply with new IT rules, or face “unintended consequences” according to a copy of an official letter seen by Reuters.

The new rules — which were announced in February and which became effective at the end of last month — are aimed at regulating content on social media and making firms such as Facebook, its WhatsApp messenger and Twitter more accountable to legal requests.

They also require big social media companies to set up grievance redressal mechanisms and appoint new executives to coordinate with law enforcement.

India's technology ministry wrote to Twitter on May 26 and May 28 on the new rules, but the company's responses “neither address the clarifications sought by this ministry nor indicate full compliance with the Rules,” said the June 5 letter from the technology ministry to Twitter deputy general counsel Jim Baker.

The letter, a copy of which was seen by Reuters, said that among other things, Twitter had yet to inform the ministry about its chief compliance officer, and its grievance officer and nodal contact person were not employees as mandated by rules.

It said such non-compliance would lead to “unintended consequences” including the possibility that Twitter could be held accountable for content posted on it, an exemption it currently largely enjoys.

It added, “However, as gesture of goodwill, Twitter Inc is hereby given one last notice to immediately comply with the rules.”

The technology ministry did not respond to a request for comment. Twitter declined to comment.

The new IT rules have spurred legal battles, including a lawsuit filed by Facebook-owned WhatsApp that accuses the government of exceeding its legal powers by enacting rules that will force the messaging

Opinion

Editorial

Brewing catastrophe
Updated 19 Jun, 2025

Brewing catastrophe

If Mr Trump makes the mistake of plunging into the fight on Israel’s behalf, the world will enter very dangerous territory.
Pension bill
19 Jun, 2025

Pension bill

IT is, indeed, a worrying conundrum. The federal government’s annual pension burden now exceeds its fiscal space...
Abandoned Karachi
19 Jun, 2025

Abandoned Karachi

THE explosive mix of decay, institutional apathy and corruption has, once again, placed Karachi among the bottom ...
Spread of hate
Updated 18 Jun, 2025

Spread of hate

HATE speech is not confined to words; in fact, there is a causal link between hateful rhetoric and real-world...
Big challenges
18 Jun, 2025

Big challenges

BALOCHISTAN’S Rs1.028tr budget, featuring a public development investment of Rs245bn and provincial surplus of...
Rampant disinformation
Updated 18 Jun, 2025

Rampant disinformation

WITH the arrival and proliferation of digital media, the creation of information is now a decentralised function,...