"If You Invoke US Copyright Act, Then...": Ravi Shankar Prasad On Twitter Row

Speaking at the India Global Forum, Union Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad said Twitter last week blocked his account for an hour on a complaint made four years ago under the Digital Millennium Copyright Act of the US.

Calling for accountability of big social media companies, Union Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad on Wednesday said Twitter invoked a US copyright act to block his account but it should also be cognisant of the law in India where it is operating and earning money. Speaking at the India Global Forum, the minister said Twitter last week blocked his account for an hour on a complaint made four years ago under the Digital Millennium Copyright Act of the US. "If you are going to invoke the... digital copyright act of America then you have to also be cognisant of the copyright rules of India. That is the point. You cannot say my whole stand will be regulated by an ex-parte assessment of the US law. For a happy blending of the role of big tech and democracy, a solution has to be found," Mr Prasad said. He said social media companies are free to do business in India but they have to be accountable to the Indian Constitution and laws.