The new social media rules introduced by the government have kicked up quite a bit of a storm with social media platforms, Whatsapp, Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter.
Except for Twitter, all the other social media platforms have accepted the new digital media rules.
Read on to find out more about Twitter’s stand on the new social media rules!
All Big Social Media Firms Except Twitter Accept New Social Media Rules
As we all know, the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeITY) has now introduced the new draft of Information Technology (Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media Ethics Code) Rules, 2021, for social media platforms, OTT players & digital media. These include asking the social media companies to reveal the originator of a message or tweet.
As per MeITY minister Ravi Shankar Prasad,
“We have not framed any new law. We have framed these rules under the existing IT Act. We are trusting the platforms to follow these regulations.” he also clarified that the focus of this guideline is on self-regulation.
And now, as per the newest reports coming in, all the big social media platforms have accepted the new rules. These include Facebook, Google, Linked In, WhatsApp, Koo, ShareChat, and Telegram.
They have also shared details with the IT ministry that are required under the new social media rules. This information includes the names of their chief compliance officer, nodal contact persons, and grievance officers.
Twitter And Government Argue Over New Social Media Rules
As per the sources close to the development, “Twitter is still not following the rules. Twitter has not yet sent the details of the chief compliance officer to the Ministry.”
There has been a significant exchange of verbal blows between the Government and Twitter. Twitter has accused the government of “dangerous overreach that is inconsistent with open, democratic principles.”
Twitter also stated that it has been forced to “withhold” (block tweets in India) portions of “legitimate free speech” on its platform due to the fear of the safety of its employees and the threats of financial penalties.
This was immediately retaliated to by the IT Ministry. As per the Ministry, Twitter has been using “opaque policies” to “arbitrarily” suspend user accounts and delete tweets. The Ministry has also accused Twitter of deliberately subverting the land law and trying to “dictate” its terms.
