Centre Orders X To Block Over 8,000 Accounts

The Centre has ordered social media platform X to block over 8,000 accounts in India.

In a post on the platform, X’s global government affairs team said that despite its disagreement with the orders, it will withhold the specified accounts in India and has begun the process for the same. 

“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 orders include demands to block access in India to accounts belonging to international news organizations and prominent X users,” the post said.

X said that in most cases, it was not told which specific posts broke the law. For several accounts, no explanation or proof was given at all, according to the social media major. 

“X is exploring all possible legal avenues available to the company. Unlike users located in India, X is restricted by Indian law in its ability to bring legal challenges against these executive orders. However, we encourage all users who are impacted by these blocking orders to seek appropriate relief from the courts,” the post added.

It added that the affected users have been notified.

While the social media platform didn’t specify the reasons cited by the Centre for blocking the accounts, the development comes at a time when the country is in a war-like situation with Pakistan.

The development came the same day when the Centre ordered a ban on content originating in Pakistan amid the ongoing conflict between the two countries following the terrorist attack in Jammu and Kashmir’s Pahalgam. The Union government today asked OTT platforms, media streaming services, and intermediaries operating in the country to stop hosting content originating from Pakistan.

However, this is not the first time when X has had disagreements with the Indian government and authorities. Earlier this year, the Elon Musk-led platform moved the Karnataka High Court  challenging the Centre’s use of Section 79(3)(b) of the Information Technology (IT) Act to block content.

Besides, it is also involved in a legal tussle with the Centre on the takedown orders issued by the latter during the farmer protests in the country in 2021.

Last year, the Election Commission of India ordered X to withhold some political posts during the Lok Sabha elections in the country. While the social media platform withheld the posts in question, it said it disagreed with the orders.