New Delhi [India]: Social media platform X (formerly Twitter) has begun blocking over 8,000 accounts within India in compliance with executive orders from the Indian government, according to a statement released by the platform’s Global Government Affairs team on Thursday.
The orders—issued under threat of fines and imprisonment of local X employees—include directives to block access to accounts associated with international news organisations and prominent users, the statement said.
“In most cases, the Indian government has not specified which posts from an account have violated India’s local laws,” X noted, adding that many of the targeted accounts were not accompanied by evidence or justification.
While X has begun withholding access to the specified accounts only within India, the company strongly disagrees with the government’s demands, calling the blocking of entire accounts a form of censorship that violates free speech and transparency.
“Blocking entire accounts is not only unnecessary, it amounts to censorship of existing and future content, and is contrary to the fundamental right of free speech,” the statement added.
Despite concerns, X has chosen compliance to ensure continued platform accessibility in India, while exploring legal avenues to challenge the executive orders. However, under Indian law, X itself faces restrictions on initiating such legal action, and has encouraged impacted users to seek redress in court.
The platform said it had issued notices to affected users per company policy and encouraged them to contact the government directly via cyberlaw@meity.gov.in.
This crackdown follows heightened India-Pakistan tensions after the April 22 terrorist attack in Pahalgam, which killed 28 civilians. In this context, accounts of high-profile Pakistani political figures—Pakistan Peoples Party Chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari and former Prime Minister Imran Khan—have been suspended in India.
“We believe that making these executive orders public is essential for transparency. However, due to legal restrictions, we are unable to publish the executive orders at this time,” the company added.