By Sushil Kutty
Twitter, that little blue bird, is not scared of the Modi Government taking penal action against it. Not even a tiny-wee bit. Otherwise Twitter wouldn’t have refused to disable the nearly 1400 handles charged with instigating protests against the three farm laws. On the contrary, Twitter is behaving as if it gives the orders and the government complies. The microblogging site says it does not want to be seen as highhanded or vindictive, forget the fact that in the United States, Twitter’s highhandedness is legendary.
The United States-headquartered Silicon Valley entity says it wants more time to decide whether or not to delete the 1400 offending handles. The Social Media platform is being extraordinarily reckless. Also, maybe Twitter is confusing India with the United States of America where the rule of law is a byword, unlike in India where 100 kilometres outside Delhi in any direction will find law lost with lawless abandon.
Take the Hathras gang-rape which was passed off as crime of no consequence by the local police but was treated as high crime by the Central Bureau of Investigation. Possibly Twitter could be under the impression that what it could do to Donald Trump in the United States, it could finesse with Prime Minister Narendra Modi in India and no questions asked.
Ha! Twitter doesn’t know Narendra Modi. And God forbid if Union Minister Amit Shah took it into his head to reply to a slight done to Narendra Modi. Twitter wouldn’t know what hit it, till it’s too late. Even otherwise it’s 100% fait accompli that by refusing to disable the 1400 handles, Twitter was risking existence. At least facing sure-shot legal action. Committing harakiri.
For all the swagger, post-Trump ouster from Twitter, Jack Dorsey should know that Twitter cannot take unwarranted risks in India. Not if Dorsey cared for the millions of Indians who throng Twitter because it’s the done-thing, and for the simple fact that where else but on Twitter could a complete non-entity follow/unfollow the likes of Rihanna and Mia Khalifa without even a courteous ‘May I?’
Jokes apart, and it’s not a laughing matter, any real faceoff between the Government of India and Twitter will see the microblogging site at the receiving end. And, mind you, the world is watching. Countries up and down the Antarctica and the Arctic, all of them, barring a knoll or two where seals roost, want Twitter taught a lesson in etiquette – nobody and nothing can or should be allowed to get away with trying to discipline a politician!
According to some reports, the outcome of a Twitter-Government of India faceoff will be keenly watched by half the ‘woke’ world, and the other half will analyze the outcome after the fact. It will be a “global test case.” These same reports state that the Government can lodge an FIR under Section 69A (3) of the IT Act, 2000, which will give the government the power to suspend a platform in national interest, and to maintain public order.
Twitter should look see what’s beyond its nose; it should think of the fate of the 200-plus Chinese apps including the hugely and vulgarly popular Tik-Tok which stopped ticking with life following strictly enforced government action. Once again, Twitter should update itself on geography. India is not the United States and both India and the United States exist in different time zones far apart from each other.
Dorsey should immediately, pronto, promptly, fix up meetings with Facebook’s Mark Zuckerberg and Google’s Sundar Pichai and discuss the ramifications of basking in one’s own glory. Both Facebook and Google had complied with the Government of India’s diktats and Twitter cannot be sole exception. Not if it wants to remain relevant in India and keep making tonnes of money.
The reality is, things are building up to “drastic crescendo” in India and Twitter maybe could be walking into a trap. The law and order in the country is getting from bad to worse and even the Prime Minister of India is displaying signs of weakness, throwing up his hands in surrender, saying that the forces of destructive ideology (FDI) are eyeing India in a most unedifying and horrifying manner.
Chances are Twitter, if it does not mend its ways and comply with the instructions of the Ministry of IT, might be declared an ‘andolanjivi’ and outright consigned to the dustbin. The point is Twitter is in India as an intermediary and not as an independent publisher/editor. Twitter cannot be a law unto itself, impose conditions and have the powers to enforce them.
Twitter might have the Joe Biden Administration in the United States in its front pocket. But time flies and it wouldn’t be long before another administration comes along and then Twitter wouldn’t be tweeting the same. Already, individual states of the United States of America are striking out on their own and handling Twitter each according to their own! The question being asked is: Who is Twitter to decide what is free speech?
But the problem with India and in India is that nobody, none of Modi’s ministers, can or will take an independent, informed, decision. And Prime Minister Narendra Modi is such an overwhelming presence at the back of their minds that their minds have stopped working. They’re incapable of taking independent decisions, their mental faculties are incapacitated!
Union Ministers like Ravi Shankar Prasad and Prakash Javadekar fill up slots in the Modi ministry. That’s all. How many times have we seen or heard I&B minister Javadekar speak up like he owned his ministry? Mr. Javadekar smiles a pretty 32 pearls. And he’s mighty popular with the journo-flock. But ask him or IT minister Ravi Shankar Prasad what the government’s gonna do with Twitter and they’ll break out in ugly sweat.
Last but not least, let’s do some plain-speaking, Prime Minister Narendra Modi will not do anything to hamper the workings of Twitter, not as long as he remains 12th most popular Twitter handle in the world. Mr. Modi like Mr. Trump cannot do without Twitter. ‘A Day in the life of Mr. Modi without Twitter’ will be an essay that will never be written.
So Twitter will cock a snook at Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his Government and neither Mr. Modi nor will the Modi Government will take action against Twitter. The helplessness is so glaringly obvious that it wouldn’t need more than 140 alphabets to tweet a description.
Twitter will acknowledge receipt of the non-compliance notice, say it’ll review and take appropriate action, but will hold firm to “our fundamental values and commitment to protecting the public conversation.” The simple fact is Twitter has understood Mr. Modi better than Mr. Modi understands himself. And every aware person in India knows that @narendramodi is a slave to his own publicity.
So while on the one hand Twitter doesn’t get it that if push comes to shove the government of India can uproot Twitter and send it packing, on the other hand there’s the government and Prime Minister Narendra Modi not willing to take action against Twitter because Modi has gotten used to Twitter like a habit grows on people and there’s no way Twitter is gonna get the axe, not as long as Modi remains Prime Minister.
And if Republic TV all-in-all Arnab Goswami is trying to sell the “Koo app” to Modi and his government that’s not gonna replace Twitter in Mr. Modi’s head because none of the G7 and G20 leaders will be on ‘Koo’ and that is something Mr. Modi cannot think about, to be on a Social Media platform where he cannot be seen or read about by his peers on the global/international stage. Mr. Modi is an actor of immense talent, and a thespian on Twitter. Goswami’s ‘Koo’ is no match to Twitter. Living dangerously is a Twitter-trait. (IPA Service)