Last week, the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MEiTY) served a final notice to Twitter Inc in India for failing to comply with the new IT rules. The ministry said that it is extending Twitter’s deadline to respond with required measures as an act of goodwill, failing which the latter is likely to suffer consequences. Twitter India has now responded with a request.
The social media company has now asked for more time to comply with the new rules. The company says that an overview of the process has been shared with the Indian Government and is staying in touch with them for constructive dialogue. Neither party has shared a deadline for implementing the new rules yet.
Twitter asks for more time
“We have assured the Government of India that Twitter is making every effort to comply with the new guidelines, and an overview of our progress has been duly shared. We will continue our constructive dialogue with the Indian Government,” a Twitter spokesperson told the media.
Twitter also goes on to say that it will stay committed to India and serve public conversations taking place on the platform. The government is yet to issue a formal statement on this front regarding the next move as well as the deadline.
As part of the new IT rules, every social media platform with an active member base of 50 lakhs and above is required to appoint a grievance officer, a nodal officer, and a chief compliance officer; all having Indian citizenship. Twitter currently enjoys the status of an intermediary, wherein it enjoys immunity from any liabilities over any third-party data hosted on the platform.
If Twitter decided against it, it would lose this status and would be liable for criminal action in case of a complaint. This is dictated by the Indian Penal code and the IT act.
Last week, the MEiTY made its letter to Twitter public, asking it to respond with appropriate measures. “As a gesture of goodwill, Twitter Inc is hereby given one last notice to immediately comply with the rules, failing which the exemption from liability available… shall stand withdrawn and Twitter shall be liable for consequences as per the IT Act and other penal laws of India,” said the letter.
