The Indian government has stated it did not request the withholding of the Reuters account on the social media platform X. A spokesperson from the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) clarified that there was no directive from the Government of India to restrict the Reuters handle. The statement emphasized ongoing efforts to resolve the issue with X. Currently, the Reuters account is inaccessible to users in India, displaying a message indicating that the account has been withheld ‘in response to a legal demand.’ Similar restrictions were noted for the X handles of Turkiye’s TRT and China’s Global Times. X’s help center explains that such messages indicate the platform has been compelled to withhold content due to legal requirements, such as court orders or local laws. The platform further clarifies that content is withheld based on local laws in response to reports filed through specific channels.
