Govt denies role as Reuters’ X account gets withheld in India

New Delhi: The X account of international news agency Reuters has been withheld in India ‘in response to a legal demand,’ according to a notice displayed by the platform.

However, a government spokesperson clarified that no such legal directive was issued and said it is working with X to resolve the matter.

Reuters’ X account is likely to be restored soon.

“There is no requirement from the Government of India to withhold Reuters and we are continuously working with X to resolve the problem,” the spokesperson said.

Sources said a demand for the blocking of Reuters’ X account alongside several hundreds of other accounts was made during Operation Sindoor in May.

While several accounts were blocked from accessing in India, the Reuters handle wasn’t.

Elon Musk-owned X seems to have now acted on that request and blocked Reuters’ X handle in India.

And since the issue isn’t relevant now, the government has asked X to explain the blocking and lift the embargo.

“An order was issued on May 7 (during Operation Sindoor) but it was not enforced. X seems to have enforced that order now which is a mistake on their part. Government has reached out to X for resolving it at the earliest,” an official source said

An email sent to Reuters seeking comments did not elicit a response.

While affiliated X handles such as Reuters Tech News, Reuters Fact Check, Reuters Asia, and Reuters China are accessible in India, both official X accounts of the global news agency as well as Reuters World handles are inaccessible.

X users attempting to access the main account can see a message that reads: “Account withheld. @ Reuters has been withheld in IN in response to a legal demand.”

On its help centre page, X explains such messages “about country withheld content” means X was compelled to withhold the entire account specified or posts in response to a valid legal demand, such as a court order or local laws.

PTI

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