Twitter ‘withholds’ multiple accounts linked to farmers’ protest

The development comes in the wake of violence in Delhi on Republic Day on January 26 during a tractor parade of farmers protesting the new agriculture laws.

New Delhi: Twitter on Monday “withheld” multiple accounts on its social media platform including those linked with the ongoing farmers’ protest at Delhi borders against the new contentious central farm laws.

Among the accounts withheld are Kisan Ekta Morcha (@Kisanektamorcha) and BKU Ekta Urgahan (@Bkuektaugrahan), both having followers in thousands.

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Besides these, several other individual and organisational accounts, including one of a media outlet, were also withheld, even as debates started on social media over the development.

According to Twitter, when an account is “withheld” it means the social media platform “was compelled to withhold the entire account specified (e.g, @username) in response to a valid legal demand, such as a court order”.

The development comes in the wake of violence in Delhi on Republic Day on January 26 during a tractor parade of farmers protesting the new agriculture laws which resulted in the death of one person and injuries to over a hundred people, including police personnel.

The Delhi Police is currently probing the Republic Day violence wherein it has lodged multiple FIRs and booked, among others, several farmer leaders leading the protests at the national capital’s borders since November-end.