Centre wants action against your handle: Twitter tells cartoonist Manjul

Twitter said it had not taken any action on the reported content at this time

Don't spare me, Shankar, India's first Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru had told the legendary cartoonist in the 1950s. But now, well-known cartoonist Manjul is facing trouble with the Indian authorities approaching Twitter about the content on his handle.

Manjul received a communication from Twitter informing him that the Indian authorities have flagged his social media account as posting content that violates laws. He has drawn a series of cartoons, which questioned the Modi government on its handling of Covid-19 pandemic.

In an email to Manjul, which he shared on Twitter handle @MANJULtoons with a follower base of 1.73 lakh, the social media giant said the Indian law enforcement has sought action on the matter.

Read | Centre issues final notice to Twitter over IT rules compliance

The email said Twitter has not taken any action on the reported content at this time as a result of this request.

"As Twitter strongly believes in defending and respecting the voice of our users, it is our policy to notify our users if we receive a legal request from an authorised entity (such as law enforcement or a government agency) to remove content from their account. We provide notice whether or not the user lives in the country where the request originated," it said.

The email said Twitter understands that receiving this type of notice can be an "unsettling experience" and that it cannot provide legal advice.

However, Twitter said it wants Manjul to have an opportunity to evaluate the request and if he wishes take "appropriate action to protect" his interests.

It suggested that Manjul could take legal counsel and challenge the request in court, contacting relevant civil society organisations, voluntarily deleting the account (if applicable), or finding some other resolution.

Posting the letter, he tweeted, "Jai ho, Modiji ki sarkaar ki (Hail the Modi government)." He also tweeted, "Thankfully, the Modi government has not asked for taking down the handle. This cartoonist is irreligious and atheist. He does not consider Modi his God."

"By the way, if the government had told which tweet was the problem, it would have been better. The same thing could be done again. And people would also be benefited," Manjul, who has posted around 50,400 tweets since 2009 when he joined the platform, said.

The latest action comes even as Twitter is at loggerheads with the government over the intermediary rules. The government has shot off a letter to Twitter for not complying fully with the new rules.

Earlier in February, Twitter had withheld around 250 accounts, including those of Kisan Ekta Morcha, Caravan magazine, journalists and activists, posting updates on farmers' protest on government request. However, the accounts were restored soon.

Last month, around 50 tweets, including those of Congress leader Pawan Khera, questioning the government on its Covid-19 handling were taken down.

In the second half of May, Twitter tagged senior BJP leader Sambit Patra's post on a 'toolkit' which he claimed is that of Congress as "manipulated media'' while the government wanted it to remove the classification. Twitter did not accede to the demand even as Delhi Police personnel "visited" its offices for serving notices asking its officials to join the probe.