Clarify stand on action against some accounts, NCP tells Twitter

NCP leader Nawab Malik. File Pic

The Nationalist Congress Party on Friday asked Twitter India to spell out its policy of blocking accounts and accused it of carrying out such acts "under pressure". NCP chief spokesperson and Maharashtra minister Nawab Malik told reporters that the microblogging and social networking firm's decision to block and suspend the "handles" of Congress leaders like Rahul Gandhi had raised several questions.

Gandhi's account was temporarily suspended by Twitter last week after the National Commission for Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR) issued a notice to Twitter asking it to act against the Congress leader's handle for tweeting pictures of the family of a minor victim of alleged rape and murder in Delhi last week. The NCPCR had cited the juvenile justice law that mandates the privacy of minor victims.

Twitter later locked Gandhi's account and several other handles belonging to party leaders as well as the official Congress handle for tweeting the same pictures as Gandhi.

"Recently, Twitter India and the Central government were involved in a stand off . Now opposition leaders' handles have been blocked. This is being done under pressure. Twitter India should reveal its policy regarding what kind of posts will be blocked and reasons handles will be blocked," Malik said.

He asked if the firm would block all accounts that violate rules, adding that lack of clarity on this would increase doubts that Twitter "functions under Central government pressure".

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