India Orders X to Block Over 2,000 Accounts Including Reuters; Platform Condemns Press Censorship

MUMBAI — India’s government last week directed social media platform X (formerly Twitter) to block more than 2,000 accounts, including two belonging to international news agency Reuters, according to a statement released by X on Tuesday. The platform publicly criticized the move as part of “ongoing press censorship” in India and said it is exploring all legal options.

The affected Reuters accounts — @Reuters and @ReutersWorld — were suspended for Indian users late Saturday, showing a message that they had been “withheld in IN (India) in response to a legal demand.” While these accounts were restored by Sunday night following public outcry, the status of many other blocked accounts remains unclear.

X’s announcement contradicted claims by India’s Press Information Bureau, which denied any government order to withhold Reuters handles over the weekend.

According to X, the Indian government invoked Section 69A of the Information Technology Act, which permits blocking content in the interest of sovereignty, security, and state defence. The platform stated that non-compliance with the order risked criminal liability.

In response, India’s IT ministry said no fresh blocking order was issued on July 3 and that the government had requested X to unblock Reuters accounts, which X allegedly delayed. The ministry also said it never intended to block prominent international news outlets.

Reuters is currently working with X to restore full access to its accounts in India. The main Reuters account has over 25 million followers globally, while Reuters World has 718,000.

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This development adds to ongoing tensions between India’s government and social media companies over content regulation, with X recently suing the government over expanded takedown powers.

The situation highlights growing concerns over press freedom and digital censorship in one of the world’s largest internet markets.