"the content will be removed from the service."
Twitter has banned the account of music artist Jazzy B and three others in India.
It is believed it is due to tweeting about the country’s farmers’ protest.
Jazzy B took to Instagram to tell his fans about the ban but stated that he will always stand for what he believes in.
The ban is said to have come following a legal request made by the Indian Government.
It came under the country’s technology laws under which they reserve the power to “impose reasonable restrictions on accounts that pose a threat to national security.”
The four accounts were ‘geo-restricted’, meaning they can still be accessed outside of India.
In a statement, Twitter said: “When we receive a valid legal request, we review it under both 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 India only.
“In all cases, we notify the account holder directly so they’re aware that we’ve received a legal order pertaining to the account.
“We notify the user(s) by sending a message to the email address associated with the account(s), if available.”
Techcrunch reported that the four accounts posted content that was critical of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government or in support of the farmers’ protest.
Jazzy B has actively supported the farmers’ protest on social media and has provided updates on the situation.
In December 2020, the singer joined thousands at the Singhu border.
This is not the first time Twitter has been told to block accounts that tweet about the farmers’ protest.
In February 2021, around 250 accounts were blocked for several hours after a “legal demand” from the government.
It was reported that the request came from the Home Ministry and law enforcement agencies.
The blocking of further accounts comes amid pressure on Twitter to comply with new rules for social media firms.
Twitter flagged the rules as “a potential threat to freedom of expression”.
On June 7, 2021, the company said it needed more time to comply with the rules.
This was after a brief threat in May 2021. The government told Twitter to “stop beating around the bush and comply” instead of “dictating terms” to India.
People have criticised the rules as an example of the Modi government working to silence criticism and freedom of speech.
On the other hand, the government criticised Twitter for trying to undermine India’s legal system by its actions and deliberate defiance.
Non-compliance with the new IT rules could result in Twitter becoming liable for criminal action in case of complaints.
Besides Twitter, the new rules have also spurred a legal challenge from Facebook-owned WhatsApp, which has said the government is exceeding its legal powers by enacting rules that will force the messaging app to break end-to-end message encryption.
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