Bollywood actress and activist Kangana Ranaut has spoken up after US-based microblogging website Twitter suspended her account for violation of terms of service. She has said that this partisan and unfair action by Twitter should not change the focus, and people should continue to demand an end to the violence in West Bengal.
“I want to request everyone keep the focus on Bengal violence and pressurise the government to stop the genocide. Whole focus has gone to the suspension (of my Twitter account). It does not matter I can come via many platforms, let’s not make it about that,” she told OpIndia requesting that her message be relayed to people.
While Twitter claims that her account was suspended for hateful behaviour, Kangana has made it clear that all she was asking for is justice for people in Bengal, who were being killed after Mamata Banerjee’s TMC scored a massive victory in the just-concluded assembly elections.
Though media reports claimed that Kangana’s Twitter account was suspended for a tweet that could be seen as a demand for retributive violence, Kangana told OpIndia that she has not received any communication from Twitter with specifics about her account suspension.
She reiterated that she was not asking for any violence but imposition of President’s rule in Bengal in wake of widespread violence happening in the state, in which many people, mostly BJP supporters have been killed. Even local leaders of parties like the CPM and Congress have claimed that their officers and workers have been attacked by goons supporting Mamata’s Banerjee’s TMC.
Kangana further revealed that her account was suspended within minutes of she putting up a video message where she asked for imposition of President’ rule in Bengal. She also asked why the media is not bothered or why the union government is afraid of imposing President’s rule. In the video, which is embedded below in this article, one can see her in distress and crying:
“When I posted this (the above video), within 15-20 mins, (my Twitter) account was gone,” she revealed, “Also, there are many FIRs against me in Bengal.”
However, she again added that she does not want this issue to be made about her. “Let us not change the narrative from the people who need us now to someone like me, who is privileged enough to come via prime-time shows or best-selling dailies,” she said.