Twitter has blocked access to over 80 links on the social media platform in response to legal notices from the government through 2021 regarding content related to the farmers’ protests. Pakistani government accounts and a report by a non-profit organization that claimed internet freedom in India was declining. These links are primarily specific posts but also include a large number of accounts.
Among the accounts taken down were Kisan Ekta Morcha and Tractor 2 Twitter and 80 links, two that were active during the farm protests and with over 500,000 followers in all.
Some of these limitations, which Twitter refers to as “Country Withheld” geo-blocks since they merely restrict access in a specific geographic region as opposed to eliminating all material, were imposed over the weekend.
According to information submitted by Twitter to the Lumen database, a repository for internet openness, the move was conducted in accordance with twenty-four legal directions issued by the government in 2021.
The government referenced the Information Technology Act, according to the Lumen revelation. A Twitter employee who requested anonymity stated that the decision was consistent with the company’s Country Withheld policy, since it may be required to restrict access to some information in response to a valid court order.
The employee further mentioned that the deductions are only done in the nation or jurisdiction where the material has been determined to be prohibited.
Kisan Ekta Morcha, which last year posted a hashtag that appeared to accuse the administration of intending to murder farmers, and Tractor 2 Twitter, two active accounts with a combined following of more than 500,000, were among the accounts banned.
Additionally, five tweets were removed from the account of the American NGO Freedom House. These articles examined the organization’s Freedom on the Net, 2020 study, which discussed the diminishing freedoms of internet access for citizens worldwide. The survey indicates that India has had the most internet interruptions.
A tweet by journalist Rana Ayyub, in which she made a statement on a court order mandating a study of the Gyanvapi mosque, was among the other notable content pieces that were removed.
Later, the Kisan Ekta Morcha tweeted on its Instagram account, “Another attack on the rights of farmers and workers by the Indian government.”
Experts encouraged the administration to clarify the reasoning behind the legal petitions.
Citizens have the right to contest the restriction of internet information, but they are unable to do so without access to these orders, as stated by the Internet Freedom Foundation in a tweet. Therefore, we have always supported such disclosures, since they are essential for ensuring government accountability.”
