Ravi Shankar Prasad, India’s Minister of Communications, Electronics and Information Technology, on Friday blasted Twitter for temporarily blocking his account, saying the platform was not “The harbinger of freedom of expression” that he claimed to be.
In a series of messages on Twitter, sent after regaining access, the minister mentionned that the decision to block it for almost an hour was proof that Twitter only cares about its own agenda and will arbitrarily remove users from its platform if you don’t “Tow the line they draw”.
Sharing screenshots showing his account had been locked, he said Twitter blocked him on the grounds that he violated the United States’ Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA).
Friends! Something very special happened today. Twitter denied access to my account for almost an hour on the grounds that there had been a violation of the US Digital Millennium Copyright Act and subsequently allowed me to access the account. pic.twitter.com/WspPmor9Su
— Ravi Shankar Prasad (@rsprasad) June 25, 2021
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It is not known which of Prasad’s messages allegedly violated the DMCA, but Twitter confirmed to reporters that access is temporarily restricted due to a DMCA notice. The American firm also noted that a tweet had been withheld.
“In accordance with our copyright policy, we respond to valid copyright complaints sent to us by a copyright owner or their authorized representatives.” a Twitter spokesperson said.
Double previous comments, Prasad declared that Twitter, and any social media platform, will have to comply with India’s new IT rules, which have proven to be controversial among tech companies.
In recent months, India and Twitter have been embroiled in an ongoing row over the company’s non-compliance with the new IT rules. Under the rules, in effect since May, social media companies operating in India are responsible for legal requests for prompt removal of posts on their platforms and are also required to share details of the origin of posts.
The regulations specify that the platform must delete the messages in question within 36 hours of the issuance of an administrative or judicial order.
“If a foreign entity thinks it can present itself as the flag bearer of free speech in India to apologize for complying with the law of the land, such attempts are misplaced,” Prasad previously said in a series of tweets.
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