Twitter has commenced a legal challenge against content takedown orders issue by the Indian government.
The Economic Times reported that Twitter’s pursuit of a judicial review of the orders is part of a wider pushback against the government’s regulation of online content that it deems objectionable. The social media firm’s challenge alleges abuse of power by government officials.
Within the past year, Twitter has been ordered by India’s authorities to remove Tweets criticising the government’s Covid-19 response and to take action against accounts supportive of policies including the creation of an independent Sikh state.
The Indian IT Ministry has warned Twitter that it could face criminal proceedings if it fails to comply with such directives, although the ET noted that the ministry did not respond to a request for comment on Twitter’s legal challenge.
