Twitter locks RS Prasad: What is the Government of India ready for? Twitter to droop PM Modi’s account?

The Twitter Inc. vs Modi authorities battle has escalated to an entire new stage. The America-based, liberal-friendly microblogging platform had beforehand invited fireplace upon itself in India after it de-verified Vice President Venkaiah Naidu’s account, aside from eradicating the blue ticks from the highest 5 RSS functionaries. Now, in a improvement, which has proven how the microblogging platform is refusing to conform totally with the Indian IT guidelines, Union IT and Law Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad was denied entry and locked out of his account for over an hour on Friday by the American firm.Twitter claims that the Minister’s account was locked due to an alleged Digital Millennium Copy Act (DMCA) violation by Ravi Shankar Prasad which dates again to 2017. Incidentally, DMCA is an American regulation – not relevant in India. The International Federation of the Phonographic Industry, on behalf of Sony Music Entertainment, had flagged a copyright violation grievance about AR Rahman’s ‘Maa Tujhe Salaam’ on May 24, 2021. Prasad had reportedly tweeted a URL, which contained the stated track, resulting in a copyright declare being filed now, a healthful 4 years after the “violation”.Twitter’s actions had been in gross violation of Rule 4(8) of the Information Technology (Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media Ethics Code) Rules 2021 the place they failed to supply me any prior discover earlier than denying me entry to my very own account.— Ravi Shankar Prasad (@rsprasad) June 25, 2021No matter what any platform does they must abide by the brand new IT Rules totally and there shall be no compromise on that.— Ravi Shankar Prasad (@rsprasad) June 25, 2021Twitter didn’t simply deny a sitting Union Minister of the Modi authorities entry to his account. In truth, upon restoration of his account, the platform additionally threatened Ravi Shankar Prasad, saying, “Twitter maintains a repeat copyright infringer policy under repeat infringer accounts will be suspended. Accruing multiple DMCA strikes may lead to suspension of your account.” Effectively, Ravi Shankar Prasad has been threatened with suspension from the platform.“It is apparent that my statements calling out the high handedness and arbitrary actions of Twitter, particularly sharing the clips of my interviews to TV channels and its powerful impact, have clearly ruffled its feathers,” the Minister stated in a sequence of posts on Koo – which is the place he first introduced that the microblogging platform had denied him entry to his account.Prasad added that Twitter’s actions had been in gross violation of Rule 4 (8) of the Information Technology (Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media Ethics Code) Rules, 2021, because it failed to supply him with any prior discover earlier than denying him entry.Now that the Union Minister has identified very particularly which clauses of the IT guidelines Twitter has flagrantly acted in defiance of, will the microblogging platform be taught a lesson so harsh that it doesn’t dare insulting Indian legal guidelines sooner or later? Frankly, Twitter has now began behaving obstinately. The Indian authorities has solely been sending letters to Twitter, and posturing in a sure method to by some means be sure that the platform behaves itself. As it seems, after preliminary restraint to such strikes, Twitter nonetheless resorts to its anti-democratic and illiberal shenanigans.It is now time to take strict measures towards Twitter. To start with, Twitter might be denied entry to Indian markets for a while. Better even, Twitter’s companies in India might be slowed down. Twitter executives should be picked up and jailed for not complying with Indian legal guidelines in order that the leftists at Twitter’s American headquarters realise that their actions have a direct bearing on the livelihoods of Twitter’s Indian executives.Read extra: Twitter loses the middleman standing in India. It will now face felony legal responsibility for illegal content material posted on the platformIndia should ship out a stable, seen and sudden message to Twitter. The American firm thinks that its actions could have no penalties and that it will probably proceed to disrespect Indian legal guidelines. It should be remembered that Twitter de-platformed a sitting US President – Donald Trump in January this 12 months. In India too, the microblogging website is sending out feelers that it has the authority to do because it deems match. Twitter might very properly take motion towards Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s account quickly. Who will then bear duty for the worldwide ridicule which might be brought on to India?Twitter can justify its actions utilizing a wide range of causes. Before it will get any extra concepts, the platform’s sovereign perspective should be nipped within the bud.