Amit Malviya, the head of the Bharatiya Janata Party’s (BJP) IT department, launched a scathing attack on former Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey, accusing the social media platform of violating laws during Dorsey’s tenure from 2020 to 2022. Malviya’s response came after Dorsey claimed that the Indian government had threatened raids on Twitter employees and even a shutdown if the company did not comply with requests to remove posts critical of the government during the farmers’ protest against new agricultural laws in 2020 and 2021.
In a lengthy Twitter post, Malviya accused Twitter, under Dorsey’s leadership, of behaving recklessly and disregarding the laws of the countries it operated in. He alleged that the platform had actively suppressed freedom of speech by engaging in practices such as shadow banning ideologically differing voices. Malviya further claimed that Twitter had promoted secessionist voices and individuals who sought to exacerbate social fault lines, including some Twitter employees. He did not shy away from directly accusing Dorsey himself of being guilty of these actions.
Malviya referenced the release of the “Twitter Files,” which he claimed were made public after Elon Musk took action to remove “toxic people” from Twitter. According to Malviya, these files served as a testimony to Twitter’s wrongful conduct during Dorsey’s tenure. The specific details of the Twitter Files were not elaborated upon in Malviya’s post.
The clash between Twitter and the Indian government escalated during the farmers’ protest when the platform was asked to remove certain tweets and accounts that allegedly spread misinformation and incited violence. Twitter’s initial reluctance to comply with these requests drew criticism from the Indian authorities, who accused the company of not following Indian laws. The Indian government then enacted new rules for social media platforms in February 2021, which required them to appoint compliance officers and establish a grievance redressal mechanism.
Malviya’s accusations against Dorsey and Twitter reflect the ongoing tensions between the Indian government and social media platforms, with allegations of bias and failure to comply with local laws. It is important to note that this is a one-sided account from a prominent BJP member, and Twitter or Dorsey have not yet responded to these specific allegations.
The power struggle between governments and social media platforms continues to evolve as both sides grapple with the challenges posed by the rapid dissemination of information and the responsibility of these platforms to maintain a safe and inclusive digital environment. The outcome of this clash between the Indian government and Twitter may have broader implications for the regulation of social media platforms and the balance between freedom of speech and the need to combat misinformation and hate speech.
