According to Jack Dorsey, co-founder of Twitter, India, despite being the world’s largest democracy, frequently made requests to the social media platform for removing specific posts and accounts. These requests were often accompanied by threats of legal consequences if Twitter did not comply.
The executive said:
India is one of the countries which had many requests around farmers protests, around particular journalists which were critical of the government.
In early 2021, the Indian government ordered Twitter to suspend numerous accounts and restrict the visibility of certain hashtags within the country. This action was prompted by threats of legal action against the US-based social media company.
It is worth noting that a significant portion of the accounts flagged for suspension had expressed support for the farmers’ protests against the recently proposed legislation.
During an interview with Breaking Points, Jack Dorsey highlighted the intense pressure faced by Twitter from the Indian government, with threats that included shutting down the platform in India, conducting raids on employees’ homes, and closing down Twitter offices if their demands were not met.
These actions were surprising considering India’s democratic status.
Previously, Twitter had shown strong resistance to government directives demanding the removal of posts or suspension of accounts. The company even took legal action by suing the Indian government to challenge various block orders imposed on tweets and accounts.
On the other hand, the Indian government argued that the country’s laws equally applied to Twitter as well.
It behaved as if the laws of India did not apply to it. India as a sovereign nation has the right to ensure that its laws are followed by all companies operating in India.
