New Delhi (dpa) – Twitter said on Thursday that it was concerned about the safety of its staff in India and the potential threat to the freedom of expression of its users in connection with new government rules for large social media platforms.
The statement came days after Delhi police visited Twitter’s offices to serve a notice in connection with a tweet from a ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) spokesman that it had labelled as «manipulated.»
Twitter’s comments come as the Indian government is engaged in a tense stand-off with global digital companies over the new regulatory rules effective from Wednesday.
«Right now, we are concerned by recent events regarding our employees in India and the potential threat to freedom of expression for the people we serve,» a Twitter spokesman said.
«We, alongside many in civil society in India and around the world, have concerns with regards to the use of intimidation tactics by the police in response to enforcement of our global Terms of Service, as well as with core elements of the new IT rules,» he added.
Twitter said it will continue a constructive dialogue with the government while advocating for changes to those elements of the regulations that «inhibit free and open public conversation.»
The Indian government in February issued fresh guidelines that require internet-based platforms like Facebook, Google and Twitter to follow several new regulatory measures. These include appointing a compliance officer in India, identifying the first originator of specified content and setting up a grievance response mechanism.
Twitter has requested an extension of at least three months to implement the new rules.
