Alexei Navalny Allies Accuse Telegram Of Censorship In Russian Election
NDTV
Telegram's founder Pavel Durov including one used by Navalny's allies to give voter recommendations.
Allies of jailed Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny accused Telegram of censorship on Saturday after the popular messaging app followed Google and Apple in restricting access to their voting campaign in Russia's parliamentary election.
The activists have already accused Alphabet's Google and Apple of buckling under Kremlin pressure after they removed an app from their stores that Navalny's allies had hoped to use against the ruling party at the election.
The app gives detailed recommendations on who to vote for in an effort to challenge the party that backs President Vladimir Putin. It is one of the few levers Navalny's allies have left after a sweeping crackdown this year.
Telegram's founder Pavel Durov, who has carved out a libertarian image and resisted past censorship, said the platform would block election campaign services, including one used by Navalny's allies to give voter recommendations.
