‘Comply or Face Consequences’: Centre last time asks Twitter to comply with New IT Rules, warns of action

New Delhi, June 06: The Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology has sent a final notice to Twitter and asked the company to 'immediately' comply with the new IT rules. The govt further warned that failure to adhere to the norms will lead to the platform losing exemption from liability under the IT Act.

"However, 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with the rules, failing which the exemption from liability available under section 79 of the IT Act, 2000 shall stand withdrawn and Twitter shall be liable for consequences as per the IT Act and other penal laws of India," it said. The new IT rules came into force on 26 May and it has been more than a week but Twitter has refused to comply with, stated govt.

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In the notice, the IT ministry has slammed Twitter for nominating non-employees as Resident Grievance Officer and Nodal Contact Person. The new IT rules prescribe the appointment of employees as the aforementioned officials by the social media companies.

'Despite being operational in India for more than a decade, it is beyond belief that Twitter Inc has doggedly refused to create a mechanism that will enable the people of India to resolve their issues on the platform in a timely and transparent manner and through fair processes, by India based, clearly identified resources,' the IT ministry said.

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The ministry also noted that Twitter's earlier response to its previous notices had left it "dismayed" as they neither address the clarifications sought by the MeITY nor indicated the full compliance with the IT rules.

This notice come after, Twitter withdrew the blue verified badge from Vice President Venkaiah Naidu's personal handle, claiming that his personal handle was inactive for a long time, before restoring it later.

Earlier on Wednesday, the Delhi high court had said that social media platforms, including Twitter, have "no choice" but to comply with India’s new IT rules for digital media. Twitter assured the court it had complied with the rules and already appointed a resident grievance officer, adding it would file its response to the plea. But the Centre disputed the claim.