Indian Government Orders Social Media Platform to Block Accounts Amid Censorship Concerns
Government Directives on Account Blocking
Earlier this month, the Indian government instructed the social media platform X to block 2,355 accounts, which included two accounts belonging to the news agency Reuters, as reported by the platform on Tuesday.
The directive was issued by the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology on July 3, demanding that action be taken within one hour, warning that failure to comply could lead to criminal charges.
X proceeded to block the Reuters accounts on the evening of July 5.
Following public backlash, the government requested X to restore access to @Reuters and @ReutersWorld, according to the platform's Global Government Affairs account.
They expressed concern over the ongoing press censorship in India resulting from these blocking orders and mentioned that X is considering all available legal options.
This statement followed a comment from an unnamed government spokesperson who claimed that the Centre had not instructed X to block the Reuters accounts.
"We are actively collaborating with X to address the issue," the spokesperson was quoted as saying.
Legal Challenges and Censorship Issues
On July 3, 2025, the Indian government ordered X to block 2,355 accounts in India, including international news outlets like @Reuters and @ReutersWorld, under Section 69A of the IT Act. Non-compliance risked criminal liability. The Ministry of Electronics and Information…
— Global Government Affairs (@GlobalAffairs) July 8, 2025
The social media platform, led by billionaire Elon Musk, stated on Tuesday that its ability to legally contest the account-blocking orders is constrained by Indian law.
They encouraged affected users to seek legal recourse through the judicial system.
On May 9, a post from the Global Government Affairs account indicated that X had begun blocking over 8,000 accounts in India following directives from the Union government, which was subsequently “withheld” in the country.
This action occurred amid rising tensions between India and Pakistan following a terror attack in Jammu and Kashmir’s Pahalgam on April 22.
X clarified that the specified accounts would only be withheld in India to comply with the orders.
However, they expressed disagreement with the Indian government's demands, stating that blocking entire accounts is excessive and infringes on the fundamental right to free speech.