Cartoonist Manjul receives Twitter notice saying central govt seeks action against his handle

Social media giant Twitter has informed popular political cartoonist Manjul that it has received a legal request from Indian law enforcement to take action against his social media profile. Manjul shared on his handle an email he has received from Twitter.

“We have not taken any action on the reported content [@Manjultoons] at this time as a result of this request,” Twitter said.

It is important to note here that the Indian government has sought action against Manjul’s profile instead of a specific tweet, claiming it “violates the law(s) of India”.

Twitter suggested that the cartoonist can seek legal counsel and challenge the government’s request in court, contact civil society organisations for finding a resolution or voluntarily delete the content.

“Jai ho Modi ji ki sarkaar ki [Hail the Modi government],” Manjul wrote on Twitter as he shared the mail. He also said it would have been good if the government mentioned which tweet of his had caused a problem.

Manjul has been constantly highlighting the grim reality of the devastating second wave of the pandemic in India and the slow pace of the vaccination drive through his cartoons.

This development also comes at a time when tension has been brewing between Twitter and the Modi government due to an alleged Congress document or “tookit” and new information technology rules.

A news set of rules were issued on February 25 to regulate social media companies, streaming and digital news content. The new rules virtually bring these platforms, for the first time, under the ambit of government supervision.

Among other things, the “Information Technology (Guidelines for Intermediaries and Digital Media Ethics Code) Rules, 2021” regulations require these platforms to appoint chief compliance officers, in order to make sure the rules are followed, nodal officers, to coordinate with law enforcement agencies, and grievance officers. It also requires social media platforms with over 50 lakh users to help in identifying the “originator” of messages upon the government’s request.