India has asked Twitter to remove 1,178 accounts allegedly related to farmer rallies recently held in New Delhi and suspected to be linked to the Khalistan separatist movement, national media reported on Monday
NEW DELHI (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 08th February, 2021) India has asked Twitter to remove 1,178 accounts allegedly related to farmer rallies recently held in New Delhi and suspected to be linked to the Khalistan separatist movement, national media reported on Monday.
Last week, sources told Sputnik that security measures had been stepped up at government and diplomatic buildings in New Delhi in light of intelligence suggesting that the Khalistan movement might be behind the violence during the January 26 protests.
"The Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) has shared a list of 1,178 Twitter accounts that were flagged by security agencies as belonging to Khalistan sympathisers or backed by Pakistan and operating from foreign territories and causing threat to public order in view of the ongoing farmers' protests in some parts of India," a government source told The Hindu newspaper.
The source added that many of the accounts were automated bots and that Twitter had not responded to any of India's requests.
According to a Twitter spokesperson, the company is guided by principles of transparency and empowering the public conversation.
"If we receive a valid legal request about potentially illegal content on Twitter, we review it under the Twitter Rules and local law. If the content violates Twitter's Rules, the content will be removed from the service. If it is determined to be illegal in a particular jurisdiction but not in violation of the Twitter Rules, we may withhold access to the content in the location only. In all cases, we notify the account holder directly so they're aware we've received a legal order pertaining to the account. Our goal is to respect local law while protecting our foundational principles of free expression," the spokesperson said, as cited by the media outlet.
Indian farmers have been protesting since November 2020 against three agriculture laws adopted in September 2020, which they see as a threat to their revenues as it canceled state-assured pricing safeguards. On January 26, farmers attempted to storm New Delhi during the celebrations marking the 72nd Republic Day. The move eventually turned into violent clashes with law enforcement officers, killing at least one farmer and injuring several security troops.
The Khalistan movement, which, according to the intelligence, organized the protest on Republic Day, seeks to create a separate homeland for Sikhs by seceding the Punjab state, mainly populated by them, from the rest of India.
