India tells X to block over 8,000 accounts
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X said it disagreed with the demands, but it had begun the process to withhold the specified accounts in India.
PHOTO: AFP
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WASHINGTON - India has ordered X to block more than 8,000 accounts, the platform said May 8, adding that it was reluctantly complying with what it described as government-imposed “censorship.”
The move appears to be part of India’s sweeping crackdown targeting social media accounts of Pakistani politicians, celebrities and media organisations amid heightened tensions and deadly confrontations between the nuclear-armed neighbours.
The order, which X said includes demands to block international news organisations and other prominent users, comes a day after Meta banned a prominent Muslim news page
“X has received executive orders from the Indian government requiring X to block over 8,000 accounts in India, subject to potential penalties including significant fines and imprisonment of the company’s local employees,” the site’s global government affairs team said in a statement.
It added that in most cases, the government had not specified which posts from the accounts violated Indian laws, and in many others, it provided no evidence or justification for the blocks.
The Mr Elon Musk-owned platform said it disagreed with the demands, but it had begun the process to withhold the specified accounts in India.
“Blocking entire accounts is not only unnecessary, it amounts to censorship of existing and future content, and is contrary to the fundamental right of free speech,” the statement said.
“This is not an easy decision, however keeping the platform accessible in India is vital to Indians’ ability to access information.”
The move comes amid fierce fighting between India and Pakistan
Pakistan rejects the charge.
At least 48 people have been killed on both sides of the border in escalating violence since India launched air strikes on May 7 that it said targeted “terrorist camps.”
Both countries accused each other on May 8 of carrying out waves of drone attacks.
X said it could not make the Indian executive orders public due to legal restrictions, but it encouraged the impacted users to seek “appropriate relief from the courts.”
It did not name the affected users, but in recent days the Indian media has reported that the country has blocked the X accounts of Pakistani politician Bilawal Bhutto Zardari and Pakistan’s former prime minister and cricket captain Imran Khan.
India has also banned more than a dozen Pakistani YouTube channels for allegedly spreading “provocative” content, including Pakistani news outlets.
Pakistani Bollywood movie regulars Fawad Khan and Atif Aslam were also off limits in India, as well as a wide range of cricketers – including star batters Babar Azam and Mohammad Rizwan and retired players Shahid Afridi and Wasim Akram.
Rising hostilities between the South Asian neighbours have unleashed an avalanche of online misinformation
