UP: Twitter India MD booked over distorted map of India
What's the story
An FIR has been filed against Twitter India Managing Director (MD) Manish Maheshwari in Uttar Pradesh over a distorted Indian map showing Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh as a separate country. The development comes amid an ever-worsening tiff between the microblogging platform and India. Last year, Twitter had drawn ire as it showed Leh, a city in Ladakh, as a part of China.
Details
Case filed against Maheshwari in Bulandshahr
Reportedly, Maheshwari has been booked on the basis of a complaint filed by a Bajrang Dal leader in Bulandshahr, UP. The case has been registered under Section 505 (2) of the Indian Penal Code (statements conducing to public mischief) and Section 74 of the IT (Amendment) Act, 2008. One Chitra Singh has also been named in the FIR.
Map
Twitter's career section earlier displayed distorted Indian map
Earlier, the career section of Twitter under the header 'Tweep Life' had shown the union territories of J&K and Ladakh as a separate country. The matter came to light over the weekend and drew heavy criticism from the public. Late Monday night, Twitter got rid of the controversial map, however, calls for action against the social media platform continued.
Background
Maheshwari was summoned in Loni case
Twitter has had several run-ins with Indian authorities over the past few months. In February, the company had refused to remove tweets supporting the farmers' protest, as directed. It had also flagged content shared by politicians of the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) at the Centre as "manipulated media." Maheshwari was also summoned by the UP Police in the Loni case.
Loni case
What was the Loni case?
The case pertained to the alleged assault of an elderly Muslim man in the Loni area of the Ghaziabad district and a viral video depicting the assault. It was alleged that the case was given a communal color to incite religious disharmony. Maheshwari was summoned for failing to stop the video's spread. Notably, the BJP is also the ruling party in UP.
Courts
UP Police challenges Karnataka HC relief to Maheshwari in SC
Maheshwari had filed a caveat in the Supreme Court, anticipating an appeal by the UP Police challenging relief granted to him by the Karnataka High Court. The HC had granted Maheshwari—a Bengaluru resident—interim protection from arrest in the Loni case. It also said Maheshwari did not have to travel to UP for now. On Tuesday, the UP Police approached the SC against the relief.
Information
Twitter's grievance officer recently quit
Twitter is also facing backlash for its non-compliance with India's new IT Rules. Recently, Twitter's interim grievance officer Dharmendra Chatur also stepped down and California-based Jeremy Kessel was appointed in his place. The rules state that the grievance officer must be an Indian resident.