Cricketer Amit Mishra, who has not shied away from expressing his opinions on social media, criticised Tiranga detractors on Friday saying that those who changed their profile pictures to Palestine and Ukraine are questioning the wisdom of changing their display pictures with Tricolour.
“Those who were changing their profile picture to Palestine and Ukraine are now asking what will happen if we change our display pictures to Tiranga,” Mishra tweeted while extending support to the Centre’s ‘Har Ghar Tiranga’ campaign. “It’s our right and a way to show our love and respect for our Tiranga.”
Those who were changing their profile picture to Palestine and Ukraine are now asking what will happen if we change our display pictures to Tiranga.
It’s our right and a way to show our love and respect for our Tiranga. #HarGharTiranga
Mishra’s tweet was directed to naysayers who attacked PM Modi for appealing to the masses to change their display pictures with the Tricolour as a mark of tribute to the country in its 75th independence year.
Even as they mock the Centre over the Har Ghar Tiranga campaign, raising questions on what it will achieve, they have been at the vanguard of changing their display pictures and profile pictures in the past to extend their solidarity for Palestine or more recently, Ukraine, after Russia invaded it.
Mishra called out the hypocrisy of the detractors who have been protesting against changing their display pictures to Tiranga while having no reservations in doing the same when it came to the issue of Palestine or Ukraine.
Centre launches ‘Har Ghar Tiranga’ campaign to celebrate the 75th year of India’s Independence
The central government launched ’Har Ghar Tiranga’ is a campaign under the aegis of Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav to encourage people to bring the Tiranga home and to hoist it to mark the 75th year of India’s independence.
“Our relationship with the flag has always been more formal and institutional than personal. Bringing the flag home collectively as a nation in the 75th year of independence thus becomes symbolic of not only an act of personal connection to the Tiranga but also an embodiment of our commitment to nation-building,” the Centre said while launching the campaign.
It said the idea behind the initiative is to invoke the feeling of patriotism in the hearts of the people and to promote awareness about the Indian National Flag. PM Modi changed his display picture with Tiranga and urged fellow citizens to follow the suit and take part in the ’Har Ghar Tiranga’ campaign.
Days after US House of Representative Speaker Nancy Pelosi visited Taiwan, the Chinese government has decided to impose sanctions on her and her family. A Chinese ministry spokesperson said that the sanction is in response to her “vicious” and “provocative” actions.
“Despite China’s serious concerns and firm opposition, Pelosi insisted on visiting Taiwan, seriously interfering in China’s internal affairs, undermining China’s sovereignty and territorial integrity, trampling on the one-China policy, and threatening the peace and stability of the Taiwan Strait,” a ministry spokesperson said in a statement, reported Reuters.
However, the types of sanctions were not specified in the foreign ministry statement.
Earlier, the ministry had said that the Taiwan trip of Nancy Pelosi was a serious violation of China’s sovereignty and territorial integrity. It was also said that the visit seriously violated the one-China principle.
It is notable that China or the People’s Republic of China considers Taiwan or the Republic of China as its territory.
Ending weeks of speculation, Pelosi arrived in Taiwan on Tuesday, and met several officials including Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen.
On Thursday (August 4), Amnesty International stirred the hornet’s nest by accusing the Ukrainian army of violating humanitarian laws and turning civilian objects into military targets.
In a tweet, the international NGO stated, “Ukrainian forces have put civilians in harm’s way by establishing bases and operating weapon systems in populated residential areas.” The archived version of the tweet can be accessed here.
Amnesty International also published a detailed article about how Ukraine’s military was jeopardising the lives of its civilians. Secretary General Agnès Callamard pointed out, “We have documented a pattern of Ukrainian forces putting civilians at risk and violating the laws of war when they operate in populated areas.”
Screengrab of the tweet by Amnesty International
In its article, Amnesty International allege that it has evidence of the Ukrainian military setting up their bases in civilian buildings in 19 towns and villages. It further added that strikes were launched by the Ukrainian forces toward Russia from densely populated residential areas.
“Most residential areas where soldiers located themselves were kilometres away from front lines. Viable alternatives were available that would not endanger civilians – such as military bases or densely wooded areas nearby, or other structures further away from residential areas,” the report emphasised.
Amnesty International outlined survivor testimonials to conclude that the Ukrainian military had been exposing civilians to retaliatory strikes from the Russian forces. It also pointed out how schools and hospitals were being used as military launchpads by Ukraine.
“International humanitarian law requires all parties to a conflict to avoid locating, to the maximum extent feasible, military objectives within or near densely populated areas. Other obligations to protect civilians from the effects of attacks include removing civilians from the vicinity of military objectives and giving effective warning of attacks that may affect the civilian population,” the report emphasised.
Left-liberals cry foul, slam Amnesty International
The tweet triggered a meltdown from the cabal of left liberals, who took to the micro-blogging platform to accuse the NGO of bias and false reporting.
One Colin Darrah wrote, “Probably one of the most utterly ridiculous statements I’ve ever seen from an NGO!! Who signed off this statement?? Ukraine is fighting with all its might for its sovereignty, independence and people. Shameful statement”
Probably one of the most utterly ridiculous statements I’ve ever seen from an NGO!! Who signed off this statement?? Ukraine ?? is fighting with all its might for its sovereignty, independence and people. Shameful statement
“So, you claim, that the Russian invasion doesn’t violate any international law? Can you tell me, how tasty Ukrainian blood is? I’m sure, you drink a lot of it with Russians,” asked one user.
So, you claiming, that russian invasion doesn’t violate any international law? Can you tell me, how tasty Ukrainian blood? I’m sure, you drink a lot of it with russians.
One Jonathan Davies lamented, “I recently became a member to defend #HumanRights but seeing this post I am reconsidering that position. How can you condemn Ukraine when they are defending their nation from an aggressor who has constantly violated international laws and human rights.”
I recently became a member to defend #HumanRights but seeing this post I am reconsidering that position. How can you condemn Ukraine when they are defending there nation from an aggressor who has constantly violated international laws and human rights.
One left-liberal taught laws to Amnesty International by claiming, “Do some reading on what the law actually requires. It is for the invader to distinguish soldiers from civilians.”
Do some reading on what the law actually requires. It is for the invader to distinguish soldiers from civilians.
“You are not evil, you’re just a dumb piece of crap,” wrote one left-liberal, calling for the immediate sacking of the individual who posted the tweet.
— Fella Riana Digg / Carmen Bouchard / Кармен Бушар (@CarmencitaB) August 4, 2022
“Justifying Russia’s onslaught against Ukraine is about as far from your remit as it gets. Get your Russian apologists back in line,” wrote one Ian Gaston.
Justifying Russia’s onslaught against Ukraine is about as far from your remit as it gets. Get your Russian apologists back in line!
After being lambasted by the same cabal that has nurtured Amnesty International for all these years, the international NGO was quick to attack Russia to pacify the angry social media users.
In a tweet, it said, “Since Russia began its war against Ukraine we have been exposing violations of human rights & intl humanitarian law. From the devastation of Izium to the siege of Mariupol, shelling in Kyiv to displaced people in Lviv, Russia’s war is an act of aggression.”
Screengrab of the tweet by Amnesty International
The archived version of the tweet can be accessed here. Amnesty International even pinned the tweet on its profile in the hopes of undoing the damage it had caused through its article on Ukraine.
On 5th August 2022, the Congress party staged protests against inflation and unemployment in the country. Congress leaders including Rahul Gandhi, Shashi Tharoor, Sonia Gandhi, and Mallikarjun Kharge participated in these protests. The leaders wore black clothes to mark their dissent. Rahul Gandhi and other Congress leaders were detained by the Delhi police for violating section 144 of CrPC.
#WATCH | Congress MP Rahul Gandhi detained by police during a protest against the Central government on price rise and unemployment in Delhi pic.twitter.com/TxvJ8BCli9
During these protests, several Congress MPs observed a ‘dharna‘ at Vijay Chowk in Delhi. But the police stopped them at Vijay Chowk and several leaders, including Rahul Gandhi, were detained. The police did not allow Congress to hold the march. Section 144 is imposed in the area.
Chandigarh | Congress members protest against the Central govt
Inflation is rising. Taxes are being imposed. We’re apprehensive that we’re hurtling towards a Sri Lanka-like crisis. We’re staging a dharna to rouse govt from slumber: Amrinder Singh Raja Warring, Punjab Cong Chief pic.twitter.com/IIsEHL2aKV
Rahul Gandhi alleged, “All the MPs were on their way to Rashtrapati Bhavan to raise the issue of price rise. But we’re not being allowed to go any further. Our job is to raise public issues. Some MPs have been detained. Some were also beaten.”
#WATCH | Our job is to raise the issues of the people…Some Congress MPs detained, also beaten by police: Congress MP Rahul Gandhi during protest against price rise and unemployment at Vijay Chowk, Delhi pic.twitter.com/wWW7JojjjY
Congress leader Rajiv Shukla, however, said that it was Congress leaders themselves who insisted the police arrest them. He said, “We are trying to take out a march to Rashtrapati Bhavan. But the police stopped us. Police said section 144 was in force in the area. Protests are not allowed here. Congress MPs have demanded that they be arrested.”
#WATCH | Delhi: Congress MPs begin their march from Parliament to Rashtrapati Bhavan to register their protest over inflation and unemployment. Rahul Gandhi also joined the march. pic.twitter.com/f8JfYII2zZ
P Chidambaram further went on to add the Agnipath Scheme to the list of reasons cited for the march by Congress. He said, “This protest is about price rise and Agnipath. Price rise affects everybody. As a political party and as elected representatives we are bound to voice the grievances the burdens and the fears of the people. This is what we are doing”
This protest is about price rise and Agnipath. Price rise affects everybody. As a political party and as elected representatives we are bound to voice the grievances the burdens and the fears of the people. This is what we are doing: Congress MP & senior leader P Chidambaram pic.twitter.com/RZl4gY3taa
Interestingly, the banner held by Congress MPs in the march read that it is a march against price rise and GST. It did not mention unemployment or the Agnipath Scheme.
Protests in Delhi and other states
The Congress’ protests started from the Congress headquarters in Delhi. Congress has also sought time to meet the President but is yet to get an appointment. Congress MPs dressed in black took out a march from Parliament. Sonia Gandhi was also present during this time. Congress protests were also seen in various states including Bihar, Telangana, Andhra Pradesh, Uttarakhand, and Rajasthan. Congress workers continued to protest on the road despite rain in Delhi.
#WATCH | Congress interim president & MP Sonia Gandhi leads protest of party MPs against inflation and unemployment, in Parliament pic.twitter.com/ceCIbQ4aLv
Congress leaders, led by Priyanka Gandhi, were prepared to take out a march from the party office. In view of the Congress protests, a heavy police force was deployed outside the Congress headquarters. As soon as Priyanka Gandhi initiated the march, the police detained her from outside AICC HQ in Delhi where she had joined other leaders and workers of the party in the protest against unemployment and inflation.
#WATCH | Police detain Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi Vadra from outside AICC HQ in Delhi where she had joined other leaders and workers of the party in the protest against unemployment and inflation.
The Delhi Police has written to Congress saying that section 144 is in force in the entire New Delhi area, except Jantar Mantar. In such a situation, protest cannot be allowed. If section 144 is violated, legal action will be taken. The DCP of the New Delhi area has written this letter to Congress leader KC Venugopal on August 4 and August 2, i.e. twice, along with this information. In a way, a warning has been given by the police.
Facing ED action in his alleged role in a money laundering case related to National Herald, senior Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Friday launched a frontal attack against the centre, targeting it over democracy, unemployment, inflation and a host of other issues.
Significantly, the Congress party organised the press conference on Friday, two days after the Enforcement Directorate raided several locations linked to Congress mouthpiece National Herald in Delhi in connection with a money laundering case. Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi are prime accused in the National Herald case. The Mother-Son duo of Congress President Sonia Gandhi and her son Rahul, along with their aides – Oscar Fernandez, Motilal Vohra and Sam Pithroda are alleged to have been involved in a massive ‘cheating and breach of trust’ in the acquisition of Associated Journals Ltd (AJL) by Young Indian Pvt Ltd (YIL). Assets worth crores of rupees had been allegedly transferred for purposes other than originally intended for a paltry sum.
Here’s what the Congress leader spoke in his press conference held earlier today:
“Congress is fighting against the entire infrastructure of India”
Alleging that the Centre has taken over control of all the democratic institutions in the country, the Wayanad MP candidly admitted that his party is fighting the entire infrastructure of India. Gandhi said the Centre had deployed its people in various institutions and seized control of them.
In what appeared as an attempt to garner public sympathy over the Gandhi family’s alleged involvement in the National Herald money laundering case, Rahul Gandhi instead blamed the RSS for infiltrating every democratic institution in the country.
“The opposition fights in a democracy banking on institutions-legal, judicial, electoral structure and media. All those institutions are supporting the government because the government has appointed its own people inside institutions. Every institution in the country is not independent. Every institution in the country is controlled by RSS. One RSS leader is sitting in every institution. We are not fighting against a political party, but the entire infrastructure of the country. When our government was there, the infrastructure would remain neutral. We wouldn’t control the infrastructure,” Gandhi claimed.
Rare Confession by Congress leader #Pappu Rahul Gandhi
“Today there is no democracy in India, there is dictatorship of four people”
For years now, Rahul Gandhi and Congress have made false allegations against the Centre that it is the government of a few businessmen and is working toward enriching them.
Despite being proven otherwise, time and again, Rahul Gandhi keeps trotting out the same tropes in the hope that they will stick in the subconscious minds of the poor and spawn an anti-Modi wave among the masses. Even though those efforts have run into the ground thus far, the Wayanad MP has not given up on them, especially when he has no better alternative to offer to the public. And he did exactly that during the press conference on Friday.
“The idea is that people’s issues whether they are price rise, unemployment, and violence in society must not be raised. That is the sole agenda of the government. The government is being run to protect the interest of 4 or 5 people. This dictatorship is being run in the interest of 2 or 3 big businesspeople by two people,” Gandhi said.
In the wake of the Enforcement Directorate tightening its noose around the Gandhi family over their alleged involvement in the National Herald money laundering case, Gandhi seemed inclined to use every arrow in his quiver to deflect the public attention from his family’s purported role in the case and paint them as the victim of government repression.
While Gandhi attacked the Centre over the “death of democracy”, he did not elaborate on the reasons why the Congress party is referred to as a “dynasty party” and why the party has failed to appoint a non-Gandhi as the president of the party for a long time now.
“I enjoy when opponents attack me”: Rahul Gandhi fails to answer specifics of the National Herald Case
Interestingly, Gandhi skirted questions when asked about the specifics of the National Herald money laundering case and instead slammed the government for the ED action against the accused in the cheating case. Claiming victimhood that more such attacks will continue against him and Sonia Gandhi, the Wayanad MP said, “I get great joy when my political opponents attack me.” The Gandhi scion termed the ED action against his family a systematic attempt as it represents an ideology. He also warned of “devastating consequences” owing to the alleged democracy decline in India.
“If you get the chance, go and talk to the ED officers who interrogated me. They will tell you what happened in that room,” he said while talking about the National Herald case. “Question all you want. There’s absolutely nothing there. Everyone knows it. My job is to resist the idea of RSS. I am going to do it.”
Gandhi further added, “They attack the Gandhi family because we fight for an ideology. There are crores of people in the country like us. We fight for democracy, and communal harmony and have been fighting for many years. I am not the only one who has been fighting. My family has laid down their lives.”
Citizens in Germany will be able to alter their gender and first name once a year, every year, under a bill that is anticipated to prevail soon in the country. The ‘Self-Determination Act’ will allow anyone requesting a name and gender change to skip any type of surgical procedure, hormone therapy, or psychological consultation.
According to the reports, anyone who identifies as transgender, intersex, or non-binary will be allowed to alter their gender under the act by simply going to a register’s office and filling out a form. Individuals will no longer be required to submit a medical report or receive a court order to alter their name and gender under the bill, which is anticipated to pass in parliament before the summer recess.
“For the disabled, the law is humiliating. We will finally replace it with a modern law of self-determination. The Self-Determination Act will improve the lives of transgender people and recognize gender diversity. In many areas, society is further ahead of legislation. As a government, we have decided to create a legal framework for an open, diverse and modern society”, said Family Minister Lisa Paus.
This is almost a month after the German government announced plans to make it easier for transgender people to change their first name and gender officially, acknowledging that existing legislation was outdated and humiliating. On June 30, Paus while addressing a Berlin press conference said that the right to live a self-determined life is fundamental to everyone.
The proposed new regulation will replace Germany’s 40-year-old transsexual legislation, which requires persons to appear in court and produce two expert evaluations, primarily from psychotherapists, before they can legally recognize the name and gender they identify with. To note, Gender dysphoria, a mental disorder, will be formally codified as a basic right under the new Act. Reports mention that the condition, which was earlier known as a psychiatric disorder, will also be validated in the same way that same-sex desire is.
According to YouGov polls, 46 percent of Germans support the government’s proposals to recognize gender dysphoria as a valid identity. Only feminist organizations and the political party named Alternative for Germany (AfD) are opposing the measure, claiming that it would deprive women of their rights and safety.
AfD’s Stephan Brandner, a member of the German parliament spoke about the legislation to Summit News. “The legislation has nothing to do with freedom but is an expression of blatant denial of reality. In biology, laws cannot simply be ignored,” Brandner said. Meanwhile, the Christian Democratic Union (CDU) party of Germany has also spoken out against the proposal, claiming that it will lead to irrationality in how official papers identify people. According to the Free Democratic Party (FDP), the rule may make it easier for criminals to avoid police or creditors by altering their name and identity.
On August 4, Raja Uday Pratap Singh, the previous Raja of Bhadri estate and father of former Minister Raghuraj Pratap Singh, also known as Raja Bhaiya, began a protest against the establishment of a temporary Muharram gate in the Shekhpur Ashik region of Pratapgarh’s Kunda development block.
Uday Pratap Singh, father of politician Raja Bhaiya, sitting on dharna for removal of a gate which resembles a mosque structure in Shekhpura village in UP’s Pratapgarh district. pic.twitter.com/R0fYT9WRX8
“In Shekhpur village located at Kunda, Pratapgarh, Muslims have built a gate of the mosque across the road, on which many things are written in their language. They are forcing the Hindus to walk under it. We suggest that all Hindus complain to the chief minister that the gate should be removed immediately”, Uday Pratap Singh was quoted in a report.
According to the reports, demands put forth by the UP MLA’s father include the removal of the illegal Muharram gate and other establishments assembled by the Islamists in the region. “I will continue with the sit-in until the temporary gate is removed,” Uday Pratap Singh said on August 4. This is a day after his condition deteriorated due to no food and medicines. Immediately, a team from Kunda’s community health facility was dispatched for a medical check on Wednesday. The team reported that Uday Pratap Singh’s blood pressure readings were noted lower than normal.
Singh, whose father Raja Bajrang Bahadur Singh was the founder and vice-chancellor of Pant Nagar Agriculture University and later the second governor of Himachal Pradesh state, reiterated his demand for the removal of the Muharram gate. He stated that the religious sentiments of Hindus were being hurt and that rituals from other religions were forcefully being imposed upon Hindus. “The administration and the police are taking no action against them (Islamists). When they are asked to take action against Hindus, they (Police) are quick. We’ll protest until all our demands are met”, he said.
District Magistrate Nitin Bansal, Superintendent of Police Satpal Antil, and other top local officials also rushed to the spot on Wednesday night to appease Uday Pratap Singh. He however refused to move from his position. Later, though he ate his meal and took his medicine, he refused to stop protesting, which continued on Thursday with the assistance of the Vishwa Hindu Parishad, Bajrang Dal, Adhivakta Sangh, and several other shopkeepers.
Meanwhile, the All India Hindu Mahasabha (AIHM) has also extended its support to Raja Uday Pratap Singh. National spokesperson of Mahasabha Shishir Chaturvedi said that Raja Uday Pratap Singh has the full support of ‘All India Hindu Mahasabha’ and soon the delegation of Mahasabha will go to Pratapgarh. Chaturvedi also said that the district administration is doing Muslim appeasement. If the district administration does not stop this appeasement, Hindu Mahasabha would protest on the streets.
However, Kundra SDM Satish Chandra Tripathi said that the temporary gate is built every year during Muharram which is removed after the festival, and it is a part of the local custom. He said that both parties should talk to each other to resolve the dispute.
On Thursday, a single-judge bench of the Calcutta High Court suspended the West Bengal Correctional Services Department’s order to deport four Rohingya illegal immigrants to Myanmar with immediate effect. The court has asked the government not to deport the Rohingyas till their plea is heard on the 10th of August. The 4 illegal Rohingya Muslim women and their 13 children were arrested while trying to infiltrate India from Bangladesh. They were sentenced by the trial court in the same year.
The single-judge bench of Justice Moushumi Bhattacharya also ordered the state correctional services administration to provide the 4 Rohingya Muslim convicts with the necessary necessities.
According to the reports, the four Rohingyas are at present incarcerated at the Dum Dum Central Correctional Home in Kolkata’s northern suburbs. The 4 Rohingya women completed their sentence in 2019 and are now detained at the Correctional Home. The illegal Rohingya convicts had approached the court on the 31st of January. They had said that they do not want to be deported to Myanmar as they fear for their lives. Reportedly, they also said that their children are lodged in children’s homes across West Bengal.
The correctional home officials recently notified them that they would have to return to Myanmar on August 5th. In this regard, the Rohingya illegal immigrants on Thursday moved an urgent plea in front of Justice Bhattacharya’s bench. Justice Bhattacharya questioned the attorneys of both the Union and State governments if there was any explicit instruction on this matter.
Both Dhiraj Trivedi, the Union government’s attorney, and Anirban Roy, the state government’s counsel, stated that they were unaware of any such order. Following that, Justice Bhattacharya ruled that the four convicts could not be sent to Myanmar under the prevailing circumstances till their plea was heard. She further directed the Dum Dum Central Correctional Home administrators to provide for their basic living necessities until the issue of their repatriation is eventually resolved.
The case will be heard on August 10, 2022. Justice Bhattacharya directed the petitioners’ counsel to submit all relevant documents in the form of an affidavit by that date.
Amidst calls to boycott the movie ‘Lal Singh Chaddha’, Bollywood actor Aamir Khan has been forced to adopt a conciliatory tone.
The controversial actor, who now professes his love for India after witnessing the large-scale resentment among the public, had earlier mocked his audience. Following the release of his 2014 movie ‘PK’, Aamir Khan had snubbed his fans for objecting to the Hinduphobic nature of the film.
While speaking about the matter, he snobbishly remarked, “Mujhe lagta hai ki ya ek democracy hai aur haar aadmi ko apna vichar samne rakhna ka adhikaar hai (This is a democracy and everyone should have the right to express their opinion).
“Agar kisiko film nahin pasand aayi toh usko nahin dekhni chahiye (If someone does not like the movie, then, he should not watch it),” Aamir Khan had said then.
He had brushed off the criticism over PK by saying, “For every film, there will be a group that will protest.”
From telling his audience to not bother watching his film if they didn’t like to lamenting over boycott calls, life has come to a full circle for the Bollywood actor.
The sudden change of heart comes after several Hinduphobic films and movies made by such actors have tanked at the box office. Khan’s upcoming movie ‘Lal Singh Chaddha’ is set for theatrical release on August 11 this year.
It is notable here that Bollywood as a whole is reeling under a crisis, big budget movies have been biting dust one after another.
Netizens call for the boycott of Lal Singh Chaddha
Earlier, Hindus had called for the boycott of the actor’s movie over his comments about India. Lal Singh Chaddha is a remake of the Hollywood classic Forrest Gump. The actor, who is hailed by most of Bollywood and the mainstream media as a ‘perfectionist’, is also facing criticism for lacking original ideas and making movies that are copied from old Hollywood classics.
It may be recalled that while speaking at an award function in 2015, Aamir Khan said, “When I chat with Kiran at home, she says ‘Should we move out of India?’ That’s a disastrous and big statement for Kiran to make. She fears for her child (son Azad). She fears what the atmosphere around us will be. She feels scared to open the newspapers every day.”
— Sanjjaey Karamcheti ?? (@ksanjay28904199) July 27, 2022
Popular Twitter user Shefali Vaidya had asked, “When you can watch the original classic (Forrest Gump) for free, why waste money watching a trashy remake by a Hindu bashing actor? #BoycottLalSinghChaddha.”
When you can watch the original classic for free, why waste money watching a trashy remake by a Hindu bashing actor? #BoycottLalSinghChaddha
This is not the first time that #BoycottLaalSinghChaddha is trending on social media. The uproar began soon after the trailer of Khan’s movie was released in May this year. At that time, netizens had raked up Khan’s 2015 controversial statement and called him anti-Hindu and anti-India.
In April 2022, Elon Musk made a bid to buy Twitter offering USD 54.20 a share and vowing to loosen the company’s policing of content and root out fake accounts. Since then, however, the social media giant and the world’s richest man have been locked in a legal battle, as Musk claimed that Twitter breached several provisions of the acquisition and therefore, he would want to back out of the deal. Amidst the claims and counterclaims, Twitter filed its response on Thursday in Delaware Chancery Court, attempting to debunk the claims made by Elon Musk, explaining how Twitter failed to live up to acquisition terms.
While most of the filing by Elon Musk and the response by Twitter focussed on Musk’s foremost reason to back out from the deal – Musk saying that Twitter failed to disclose the number of spam accounts and bots that infest Twitter – there was a portion where Elon Musk had also taken umbrage to the big-tech company picking a battle with the Indian government.
On June 5, social media giant Twitter approached Karnataka High Court against the Government of India’s orders to take down some content and handles from its platform over violation of the law. Twitter cried abuse of power by the GoI officials in its plea to the court.
Twitter claimed in its plea that some of the removal orders did not fulfil the procedural requirements per the IT Act. It claimed that some of the orders were related to the content posted by the official handles of political parties, and blocking such content would amount to a violation of freedom of speech.
While Twitter made these claims, it is pertinent to note that some of the accounts that were withheld or some content of the accounts were withheld by GoI orders include alleged journalist Rana Ayyub, pro-Khalistani author Aman Bali, pro-Khalistani activist Ravi Singh who is also the founder of Khalsa Aid and more. In these cases, the Indian government had issued take-down notices because it affected national security and content that incited violence or terrorism within the country cannot be broadcast according to the laws of the land.
Elon Musk vs Twitter: Twitter’s battle with India finds mention in court filings
In his filing that Twitter has now responded to, Elon Musk said that Twitter had initiated risky litigation against the Indian government thereby placing its third largest market at risk.
Filing by Elon Musk and response by Twitter
In para 18, Elon Musk says, “These obfuscations and misrepresentations are not Twitter’s only sins. Since the Merger Agreement was signed, Twitter has also made significant changes to its business without obtaining the consent required by the Merger Agreement. Twitter has terminated its product lead and another key executive, retained a board member whose reelection was rejected by stockholders, instituted a hiring freeze, and disobeyed orders from and initiated risky litigation against the Indian government—thereby placing Twitter’s third largest market at risk”.
In its response, Twitter responds to the allegations of termination of employees and making significant changes to the business without taking the consent required by the merger acquisition. The social media giant admitted that it terminated certain employees, and declined the accept the resignation by board members but rejects the allegation that it initiated a hiring freeze. In its response, it also accepts that it initiated litigation against the Indian government, however, says that it did not need Elon Musk’s permission to initiate any of these decisions. In a generic response, Twitter simply “denied allegations in Paragraph 18”.
Further, in para 181, Elon Musk asserted that Twitter failed to disclose the litigation against and the investigation into Twitter by the Indian government, saying, “In 2021, India’s information technology ministry imposed certain rules allowing the government to probe social media posts, demand identifying information, and prosecute companies that refused to comply. While Musk is a proponent of free speech, he believes that moderation on Twitter should “hew close to the laws of countries in which Twitter operates.””
Filing by Elon Musk and response by Twitter
Twitter in its response claimed, “The first sentence of Paragraph 181 purports to characterize rules promulgated by the Indian government, to which Twitter respectfully refers the Court for their complete and accurate contents. Twitter lacks knowledge or information sufficient to form a belief as to the truth of the allegations in the second sentence of Paragraph 181 and therefore denies them on that basis”.
In what appears to be an attempt to willfully obfuscate, Twitter claims that the first part of the assertions in para 181 (which talks about the rules promulgated by India), “characterises rules promulgated by the Indian government” and therefore, it merely asked the court to refer to the documents for the “accurate contents”. In this part of its response, Twitter almost tries to mislead the court by insinuating that the characterisation of the laws promulgated by India are somehow untrue by Elon Musk, however, that is untrue. In the second part of its response, it merely says that Twitter “lacks knowledge or information sufficient to form a belief as to the truth of the allegations and therefore denies them on that basis”. The claim is that Elon Musk believes that while free speech is important, Twitter must adhere to the laws of the lands in which it operates. From this response, it is unclear what assertion Twitter is rejecting in the first place. Perhaps, it is saying that it does not believe in following the laws of the land in which it operates, which becomes an issue that the Indian government then must look into.
In para 182, Elon Musk says that Twitter has faced various investigations by the Indian government.
Filing by Elon Musk and response by Twitter
Twitter, in response, says that all their interaction with the Indian government has been reported widely by the media and has also been documented in Twitter’s own transparency disclosures. What is telling, however, is that Twitter characterises the laws of India to be “restrictive” in its response, which is patently false. Indian laws do not restrict free speech in any manner, however, when India’s national security, integrity and law and order are at stake, India is bound to ask Twitter to take down such content. In fact, these are the very reasons cited by Twitter when it banned sitting President Donald Trump from its platform for life. The responses by Twitter only go to show that it has little respect for the laws of India and in the filing, Elon Musk seems to point that out repeatedly.
Twitter in its response has also rejected the claim that India is the third largest market for the social media giant, in an attempt to discredit the serious lapse that was pointed out by Elon Musk in the preceding paras. In para 183, Elon Musk asserts that the investigation by India could disrupt services in the Indian market, an assertion that Twitter rejected.
Filing by Elon Musk and response by Twitter
In para 184 and 185, Elon Musk goes further and claims that Twitter did not disclose the investigation by the Indian government to him, as per the requirements of the acquisition agreement. Musk further said that Twitter filed a case against India on or around the 6th of July 2022, which would mean that Twitter was under investigation when the merger agreement was signed, and therefore, it failed to disclose required information to Musk at that time.
Filing by Elon Musk and response by Twitter
Twitter, in its response, seems to cite a technicality saying that Section 4.11 of the agreement did not require it to disclose the company’s interaction with the Indian government to Elon Musk while admitting that it did not disclose the investigation to Musk. Interestingly, if the merger agreement required Twitter to disclose any litigation and investigation against the company to Musk, citing a technicality that it specifically did not require it to disclose interaction with the Indian government might not fly in the court of law.
For para 185, Twitter responded, “Twitter admits that it brought a legal challenge against the Indian government and respectfully refers the Court to its July 5, 2022 petition to the Karnataka High Court. Twitter avers that it has challenged certain blocking orders issued by the Indian government under Section 69A of the Information Technology Act, directing Twitter to remove certain content from its platform, including content from politicians, activists, and journalists, and that Twitter’s legal challenge is contemplated by the law itself, which allows companies or persons to challenge government blocking orders. Twitter further avers that its legal challenge is consistent with its global practice of challenging government requests or laws where such requests are not authorized or properly scoped under local law, are procedurally deficient, or as necessary to defend its users’ rights, including freedom of expression. Twitter otherwise denies the allegations of Paragraph 185, including the allegation that its legal challenge is related to any “investigation” by the Indian government”.
Twitter in this response seems to hide under the garb of “global practises” and “freedom of expression”. Interestingly, it fails to mention that in its own transparency report, there are several countries ahead of India in its legal demands. India constituted only 8% of total legal demands against Twitter. As far as the request for information on Twitter users is concerned, the USA topped the list with 20% request. As far as a request to remove content from Twitter is concerned, Japan topped the list with 30% of total demands and India came 5th with only 8%. In most of these responses, Twitter makes it seem as if India is the top contributor and is enforcing “restrictive laws”, however, their own transparency report does not verify that claim. Twitter and the media in this case have been reductionist at best trying to interpret the data transparency report by Twitter and the misplaced conclusions have been used to launch a tirade against India.
In fact, this is the very fact pointed out by Elon Musk in the next para.
In para 190, Elon Musk points out that its combative stance with the Indian government was a “departure from the ordinary course” since it had followed obligations from Russia, including blocking pro-Ukraine accounts. It is pertinent to note here that Russia is ahead of India in takedown requests according to Twitter’s own transparency report.
Filing by Elon Musk and response by Twitter
Twitter responded, “Twitter admits that it filed suit to challenge certain blocking orders by the Indian government. Twitter further avers that, in its continuing effort to make its services available to people everywhere, if it receives a valid and appropriately scoped request from an authorized entity, it may withhold access to certain content in the specific jurisdiction that has issued the valid legal demand or where the content has been found to violate local laws, but that it routinely pushes for limitations on, objects to, or otherwise challenges government requests or laws where such requests are not authorized or properly scoped under local law, are procedurally deficient, or as necessary to defend its users’ rights. Twitter otherwise denies the allegations in the first and second sentences of Paragraph 190. Twitter denies the allegations in the third sentence of Paragraph 190. Twitter lacks knowledge or information sufficient to form a belief as to the truth of the allegations in the fourth sentence of Paragraph 190 and therefore denies them on that basis. Twitter denies the allegations in the fifth sentence of Paragraph 190”.
Twitter clearly skirted the important point raised by Elon Musk – if it agreed to politically motivated requests to remove pro-Ukraine accounts, that clearly had an impact on their freedom of speech, why did it pick a legal battle with India and was it not out of the ordinary for it to do so.
In two other paras, Elon Musk asserts that Twitter’s course of action with the Indian government was incorrect and out of the ordinary.
Filing by Elon Musk and response by Twitter
In para 195, Elon Musk clearly indicates that action against the Indian government was “out of the ordinary course” for Twitter and his permission should have been sought.
Next, in para 221, Musk says that Twitter breached the provisions of the acquisition by not taking the consent of the buyer before initiating litigation in India and refusing the orders of the Indian government (apart from other considerations like firing 30% of the workforce, instituting hiring freeze etc).
Filing by Elon Musk and response by Twitter
Twitter, in its inimitably evasive style, simply responded with “denied”.
In the filing by Elon Musk and the responses given by Twitter, it is evident that information is being selectively by Twitter to tarnish the image of India, however, it is also apparent that while Musk supports free speech, he considers Twitter’s conduct with India “out of the ordinary” since it conceded to demands by Russia to block pro-Ukraine accounts as well, clearly, not adhering to their espoused principle of upholding free speech. It is pertinent to note that Twitter has not initiated any litigation against Japan or Russia, which score higher than India in their take-down requests. Elon Musk has repeatedly asserted that Twitter’s action against India risks its stakes in the country. This viral information that emerges from the filing could clearly be used by the Indian government to assert how Twitter has conceded to far more problematic requests by other nations like Russia, however, is grandstanding and trying to undermine Indian national interest by rejecting the laws of India.
Indian government and the new IT guidelines
In February 2020, The central government issued fresh guidelines for social media and OTT platforms. The government said that these guidelines were being introduced to “establish a soft touch progressive institutional mechanism with a level playing field featuring a Code of Ethics and a three-tier grievance redressal framework for news publishers and OTT platforms on the digital media”.
The guidelines that were issued by the central government had several provisions and a code of ethics for the functioning of OTT platforms, Digital News websites and Social Media behemoths like Twitter, Facebook etc.
One of the most significant provisions of these guidelines is that if the social media platforms don’t comply with the provisions prescribed in the guidelines, this will attract penal provisions as per the Information Technology Act. The new guidelines say that the social media intermediaries must follow the due diligence mentioned in it, and if any intermediary does not follow the due diligence, the safe harbour provisions will not apply to them.
The section 79 of the Information Technology Act defines this safe harbour, which basically makes them not liable for any content posted by users on their platforms. It says that an intermediary shall not be liable for any third-party information, data, or communication link made available or hosted by them, provided they themselves didn’t initiate such communication, and observes due diligence under the IT act.
Now, this due diligence to be observed by the social media companies have been defined in the new guidelines. It includes various measures they have to perform, like identifying the first originator of any information that appears on social media, not allowing content that is defamatory, obscene, pornographic, paedophilic, inciting violence, against national integrity, misleading, false etc. The platforms also have to remove any such content within 36 hours of receiving a court order or a government direction to remove such content.
According to the guidelines, if the social media sites allow such objectionable content to be hosted on their platforms, and don’t remove them even after receiving such orders from courts or the government, it will mean that they are not observing due diligence. As a consequence, they will lose the safe harbour in the IT Act that isolates them from content posted on their platforms.
This means, if the social media companies do not comply with the guidelines, they will be held responsible for any content which is not allowed as per the guidelines. And, the officials of the social media companies will be liable to be prosecuted for such content. This implies that the social media officials will also be punished according to the nature of the offence, which is defined in the IT Act for various kinds of offences. The punishment defined in the act includes imprisonment for three years for most offences, but life imprisonment for some like cyber terrorism, and also includes fines of various amounts.
When the IT guidelines were issued, one of the most important compliance requirements imposed on social media companies was the grievance redressal mechanism that they had to put in place.
Following are the guidelines related to the appointment of grievance officer and the redressal mechanism they were required to put in place:
Social media intermediaries shall register the grievance within 24 hours and dispose of the complaint within 15 days.
The Intermediaries will have to publish a compliance report once a month where they detail the complaints they received and how they redressed the complaint.
The resident grievance officer shall perform all functions under the grievance redressal mechanism.
All grievance officers should have a physical address and that address should be published on the website and the mobile app.
The person appointed as the chief compliance officer shall be a resident of India.
The nodal contact person will be responsible for 24×7 coordination with Indian law enforcement agencies.
It is pertinent to note that Twitter has breached almost all of the provisions in the IT guidelines that were enforced by the Indian government. One can read a primer on how social media behemoths were rampantly breaching the law to institute a grievance redressal system here.
With Twitter locked in a battle with India, the points raised by Elon Musk could be significant and it remains to be seen if Twitter’s policy with regard to India sees a shift after the court case in the US.
