The X handle of ‘Cockroach Janta Party’, a satirical account launched after Chief Justice of India Surya Kant’s comments about those who “attack the system,” withheld after instructions from the Centre. This decision came after inputs from the Intelligence Bureau (IB) raised concerns about national security, according to a senior government official speaking to news.
Cockroach Janata Party’s X handle withheld
The Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) asked X to block the account under Section 69 (A) of the Information Technology Act, 2000. The official noted that the IB provided the recommendation for this action.
“MeitY got a tip from the IB to block the X account of Cockroach Janta Party because it posed a threat to India’s sovereignty. The IB thought this account was sharing inflammatory content, which could endanger the country’s national security,” the official said, requesting anonymity since such blocking orders are confidential. “The concern was particularly due to the fact that the account’s content was appealing to young people.”
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Section 69 (A) of the Information Technology Act allows the Central government to limit public access to information for the sake of sovereignty, security, public order, or to prevent incitement to offenses.
The process follows the Information Technology (Procedure and Safeguards for Blocking for Access of Information by Public) Rules, 2009, and blocking orders are kept confidential.
Even though the account blocked in India, it remains accessible from other locations. It had over 200,000 followers on X as of Thursday evening. A second government official mentioned that the blocking order issued when the account had about 90,000 followers.
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