Şunun için etiket arşivi: Indian IT ministry

X (formerly Twitter) has accused the Indian government of ordering the platform to block over 2,000 accounts, including two belonging to Reuters News, as part of what it calls “ongoing press censorship” in the country. The order was allegedly issued on July 3, 2025, under Section 69A of India’s Information Technology Act, which allows blocking content to protect national security and public order.

The accounts @Reuters and @ReutersWorld were inaccessible to users in India from Saturday night, displaying the standard “withheld in India in response to a legal demand” message. Both accounts were restored late Sunday following what X said was “public outcry.”

In a post on Tuesday, X stated:

“On July 3, 2025, the Indian government ordered X to block 2,355 accounts in India, including international news outlets like @Reuters and @ReutersWorld… Non-compliance risked criminal liability.”

The company added that it is “deeply concerned” about the implications for press freedom and is exploring all legal options.

Conflicting Statements from Indian Authorities

X’s public disclosure contradicts remarks made earlier by India’s Press Information Bureau, which had denied issuing any directive regarding the Reuters accounts. On Tuesday, the Ministry of Electronics and IT (MeitY) said no fresh blocking order was issued on July 3, nor was there any intention to block major international news platforms.

The ministry also accused X of “unnecessarily exploiting technicalities” by delaying the unblocking of the Reuters accounts after being advised to restore them over the weekend.

Reuters’ Response and Legal Ambiguity

Reuters has not clarified what content may have triggered the block or received a detailed explanation from the Indian government. The news agency stated it worked with X to have access restored in India but declined further comment as of Tuesday.

Section 69A — the legal provision invoked — does not require the government to publicly disclose blocking orders, creating a lack of transparency around takedown demands, especially when involving international press outlets.

X’s History of Legal Clashes in India

This incident is the latest flashpoint in X’s contentious relationship with the Indian government. In March 2025, the company filed a lawsuit challenging a new government portal it claimed would grant “countless” officials enhanced powers to demand content removals. The Indian government has defended the portal, saying it is merely a notification mechanism for reporting harmful content.

The main Reuters account has over 25 million followers, while ReutersWorld has more than 700,000, making their brief suppression in India particularly visible.

X says it complied with the blocking order only under legal threat, and restored the Reuters accounts only after pressure from public and governmental sources.