Prasad slams Twitter for not complying with new IT rules

New IT rules are aimed at regulating content on social media, making it more accountable

New 16: IT minister Ravi Shankar Prasad on Wednesday slammed Twitter for deliberate defiance and failure to comply with the country’s new IT rules, which has led to the US giant losing its intermediary status in India and becoming liable for users posting any unlawful content.

Twitter has allegedly not fully complied with the new rules, called Intermediary Guidelines that call for setting up grievance redressal mechanism and appointing officers to coordinate with law enforcement.

The rules became effective from May 26 and Twitter even after the expiry of the additional time has not appointed the requisite officers, leading to it losing the ‘safe harbour’ immunity, sources in the government said.

Prasad said Twitter has “deliberately chosen the path of non-compliance.” The minister also mentioned that if any foreign entity believes that it can portray itself as flag bearer of free speech in India to excuse itself from complying with the law of the land, “such attempts are misplaced”.

“There are numerous queries arising as to whether Twitter is entitled to safe harbour provision. However, the simple fact of the matter is that Twitter has failed to comply with the Intermediary

Guidelines that came into effect from the 26th of May,” he said in social media posts.

He posted a series of messages on Koo — Twitter’s homegrown replica — and then on Twitter itself, saying the US social media giant “was given multiple opportunities to comply with the same, however, it has deliberately chosen the path of non-compliance.”

Loss of intermediary status in India implies that in the event of any charge against the microblogging site for alleged unlawful content, it would be treated as a publisher and would be liable for punishment under penal laws.

The new IT rules, originally announced in February, are aimed at regulating content on social media firms and making likes of Facebook, WhatsApp and Twitter more accountable to legal requests for swift removal of posts and sharing details on the originators of messages.

Prasad’s ministry on June 5 had written to Twitter warning it of “unintended consequences” if it did not comply with the rules. Twitter did not immediately comment on Prasad’s tweets but it on Tuesday stated that it was keeping IT ministry apprised of progress of every step of the process.

“An interim Chief Compliance Officer has been retained and details will be shared with the Ministry directly soon,” it had said.

“Twitter continues to make every effort to comply with the new guidelines.”

The government’s relationship with social media platforms has been tense for the past few months and with Twitter, it got enunciated when posts by BJP leaders on an alleged strategy document of the opposition Congress party to target the Modi government’s handling of the second wave of Covid infections, was tagged as ‘manipulated media’.

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