X claims it received order to block 2,355 accounts in India, govt denies issuing ban order

A fresh row has erupted between the Indian government and social media platform X (formerly Twitter) over the temporary blocking of prominent international news handles, including Reuters and ReutersWorld, with both sides offering sharply differing versions of events.

X, in a public statement, claimed that on July 3, 2025, it received a government order under Section 69A of the Information Technology Act to block 2,355 accounts in India. The platform said the directive included global news organisations and came with a stern warning of criminal liability for non-compliance.

The Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY), according to X, demanded action within an hour and offered no justification for the blocks.

However, following a public outcry over the temporary restriction of news accounts such as @Reuters and @ReutersWorld, the government allegedly asked X to lift the blocks on these handles.

"We are deeply concerned about ongoing press censorship in India due to these blocking orders," X said in its statement, adding that it is exploring legal options but is limited by Indian law from challenging such executive orders directly. The platform urged affected users to seek legal remedies through Indian courts.

Meanwhile, the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) refuted X’s version, stating that no fresh blocking orders were issued on July 3 targeting Reuters or any other international news outlets.

"There was no intention to block any prominent international news channels, including Reuters and ReutersWorld. The moment we noticed these handles were blocked, the government immediately wrote to X to unblock them and followed up vigorously," an official spokesperson from MeitY said.

The spokesperson accused X of “unnecessarily exploiting technicalities” and delaying the unblocking process. "Despite our hourly follow-ups from the late night of July 5, X took more than 21 hours to restore Reuters' accounts, which were finally unblocked after 9 pm on July 6,” the official added.