New Delhi: A parliamentary committee on Wednesday came down heavily on Twitter for showing Ladakh as part of China, saying it amounted to treason and an explanation must be tendered by the US-based parent of the social media platform in form of an affidavit, sources in the panel said.
Appearing before the joint committee of parliament on Data Protection Bill, chaired by BJP MP Meenakshi Lekhi, representatives of Twitter India “begged apology”, but they were told by the members that it was a criminal offence that questioned the sovereignty of the country and an affidavit must be submitted by Twitter Inc, not by its ‘marketing arm’ Twitter India, sources added.
They were questioned for more than two hours by the panel members, mainly on Ladakh being shown as part of China on the Twitter app. “The committee was of the unanimous opinion that Twitter’s explanation on showing Ladakh as part of China was inadequate,” Lekhi told PTI after the meeting.
The Twitter representatives told the panel that the social media company respects the sensitivities of India, she said.
The Indian government on October 22 had warned Twitter about its location setting that showed Leh in China, saying any disrespect towards the country’s sovereignty and integrity is totally unacceptable.
In a strongly-worded letter, Ajay Sawhney, Secretary in the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY), asked Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey to respect the country’s sensitivities, sources in the ministry had said. (PTI)
