India cracks down on independent news websites and Twitter profiles amid ‘information war'
India reportedly blocked access to an independent news website and ordered the removal of Pakistan -linked content across digital platforms in a sweeping clampdown on online information amid growing cross-border tensions.
The website of The Wire, a news organisation known for its investigative journalism and critical coverage of the government, became inaccessible across much of the country on Friday.
While officials have not issued any public order or statement, internet service providers told The Wire that the site had been blocked following directions from the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MEITY) under the Information Technology Act, 2000, it said in a statement.
The publication said it would challenge the action in court and the move amounted to 'a clear violation of the constitutional guarantee of freedom of the press'.
In another instance, the X handle of Maktoob Media, another Indian news website, was also withheld.
In a statement, X (formerly Twitter) said it has received executive orders from the Indian government to block access to over 8,000 accounts within India. The company said the orders came with threats of 'significant fines and imprisonment of the company's local employees' for non-compliance.
'In most cases, the Indian government has not specified which posts from an account have violated India's local laws,' the company said. 'For a significant number of accounts, we did not receive any evidence or justification to block the accounts.'
India's Ministry of Information and Broadcasting issued a separate advisory instructing online intermediaries, including social media platforms and streaming services, to take down all content 'having its origins in Pakistan'.
'In the interest of national security, all OTT platforms, media streaming platforms and intermediaries operating in India are advised to discontinue the web-series, films, songs, podcasts and other streaming media content, whether made available on a subscription based model or otherwise, having its origins in Pakistan with immediate effect,' read the advisory dated 8 May.
The advisory did not define what qualified as such content or specify any legal framework under which it was issued.
The Indian Ministry of Defence also on Friday asked 'all media channels, digital platforms and individuals' to refrain from 'live coverage or real-time reporting of defence operations and movement of security forces'.
'Disclosure of such sensitive or source-based information may jeopardise operational effectiveness and endanger lives. Past incidents like the Kargil War, 26/11 attacks, and the Kandahar hijacking underscore the risks of premature reporting. As per clause 6(1)(p) of the Cable Television Networks (Amendment) Rules, 2021, only periodic briefings by designated officials are permitted during anti-terror operations. In 1999, India and Pakistan fought a brief but intense conflict in the mountains above Kargil on the Line of Control, the cease-fire line dividing the former kingdom of Jammu and Kashmir.
'All stakeholders are urged to exercise vigilance, sensitivity, and responsibility in coverage, upholding the highest standards in the service of the nation,' the ministry said.
The 26/11 attacks refer to the 2008 militant strikes in India's financial capital Mumbai in which over 160 people were killed. In the 1999 Kandahar hijacking of Indian Airlines flight 814 from Kathmandu, India blames Pakistan and Pakistan-based militant groups. The hijacking was resolved after New Delhi freed three Islamist militants, including Masood Azhar, the head of one such group.
Lawyer and Internet Freedom Foundation (IFF) director Apar Gupta said the government's move to block The Wire was not accompanied by a transparent legal order and appears consistent with a broader pattern of digital censorship.
'The restriction on access to The Wire's website does not emerge from any clear legal order, as it is not being disclosed and there is no public statement which exists on record,' Mr Gupta told The Independent. 'That matches a pattern of web censorship through the IT Rules 2021, where directions for blocking content are not transparently disclosed – either to the public or even to the impacted parties.'
He added that a similar case involving the takedown of 4PM News's YouTube channel had reached the Delhi High Court, which has asked the government to respond.
IFF also raised concerns about the 8 May advisory, which it said could lead to over-compliance by platforms and remove a wide range of material not connected to misinformation or threats to national security.
'The advisory rests on no clear statutory footing and imposes an indiscriminate, origin-based embargo,' the foundation said in a separate written statement. 'We urge the government to support Indian journalists and fact-checkers and issue content takedowns as a last resort.'
The crackdown comes amid an information vacuum fuelled by rising military tensions between India and Pakistan. Television news channels have faced criticism for airing misleading or false footage, including a widely broadcast video claimed to be from India's recent missile strike across the border, which fact-checkers later identified as footage from Israeli airstrikes on Gaza in 2023.
Social media platforms have seen a surge in unverified claims, including videos of old explosions, AI-generated imagery and repurposed gaming footage shared as evidence of Pakistani retaliation. The government has not made public which specific content prompted the 8 May advisory, or whether it is tied to any verified disinformation campaigns.
With access to some news websites restricted, international platforms facing growing regulatory pressure, and misinformation circulating unchecked on mainstream television and encrypted apps, some observers have raised concerns about the shrinking availability of reliable information for Indian readers during a time of national crisis.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Independent
10 hours ago
- The Independent
Concern grows as India ramps up deportation of alleged migrants to Bangladesh
India has forcibly deported over 2,500 alleged Bangladeshi nationals since early May in an intensified nationwide campaign, raising concerns about violations of human rights, legal procedures and international norms. The campaign, launched on 7 May, involves mass detention of suspected illegal immigrants across several states, including Delhi, Gujarat, Maharashtra, Assam and Rajasthan, followed by their transfer to border states such as Assam, Tripura, and Meghalaya, The Indian Express reported. There, they are handed over to the Border Security Force and 'pushed back' into Bangladesh. In a striking shift from earlier, the detainees are reportedly transported to the border in air force aircraft. Authorities claim the crackdown is driven by national security concerns sparked in particular by a terror attack in Pahalgam, Kashmir, on 22 April left 26 civilians dead and led to a military conflict with Pakistan. Assam chief minister Himanta Biswa Sarma claimed the northeastern state had detained almost 1,000 alleged Bangladeshis in recent months and expelled 303, IANS news agency reported. A digital identification system has become key to the deportation campaign. The Foreigners Identification Portal – originally designed in 2018 to track Rohingya refugees from Myanmar – has been expanded to store biometric and demographic data of suspected migrants from Bangladesh, according to The Indian Express. State governments, union territories, and the foreign ministry now have access to the portal, enabling deportation when identity can't be verified. Additionally, applicants for national identity documents such as biometric-based Aadhaar card, voter IDs and ration cards are being screened against this database. The home ministry has given states a 30-day deadline to verify the status of suspected undocumented immigrants from Bangladesh and Myanmar. This drive is supported by a centralised server integrating data from border and immigration agencies. The campaign is also targeting Rohingya refugees and convicted foreign nationals in detention facilities. Mr Sarma said even individuals who had received temporary protection from deportation by India 's Supreme Court and various high courts had been expelled – though later re-admitted to India through diplomatic intervention. The chief minister cited the Supreme Court ruling upholding Section 6A of the 1955 Citizenship Act to justify bypassing Foreigners Tribunals, a quasi-judicial process for determining citizenship. Section 6A allows those who entered Assam between 1966 and 1971 to apply for Indian citizenship, but it has long been opposed by Assamese groups who argue it legitimises migration from Bangladesh. State authorities refer a person suspected to be a foreigner to a tribunal, which looks at documentary evidence to decide whether the person is Indian or not. The efficacy of the system has been criticised, however. In an egregious case, a tribunal declared Assam resident Rahim Ali a foreigner, forcing him to wage a 12-year legal fight to prove his citizenship. By the time he was recognised as an Indian citizen by the Supreme Court, Ali had died. Delivering its ruling in July last year, the court called the tribunal's order a 'grave miscarriage of justice'. Bangladesh has formally protested the deportations. On 8 May, Dhaka lodged a diplomatic complaint with India and foreign affairs adviser Md Touhid Hossain confirmed that another protest note was forthcoming. 'We see it's happening. It's not feasible to resist physically,' Mr Hossain said. He urged both countries to resolve the issue through legal and diplomatic channels. Despite India's assertion that migration from Bangladesh was rising, Bangladesh's Border Guard previously said that such flows had declined due to economic gains in their country. In 2020-21, Bangladesh's per capita income briefly surpassed India's, complicating the narrative of economic desperation as a primary driver of migration. Still, Indian officials continue to press for faster nationality verification from Bangladesh. Foreign ministry spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said over 2,360 people were awaiting deportation pending confirmation of their Bangladeshi citizenship, with some cases stalled since 2020. In the capital Delhi, police have arrested 66 alleged Bangladeshi immigrants, PTI news agency reported, quoting officials. The expulsion campaign has sparked condemnation from rights groups as many of the deported people claim to be Indian nationals wrongfully identified as Bangladeshis. Khairul Islam, 51, a former government schoolteacher in Assam's Morigaon, is one of them. He was picked up from his home by Assam police on 23 May and thrown across the border four days later. In a video posted by a Bangladeshi journalist, Mr Islam was seen standing in a field between Assam and Bangladesh's Kurigram district. 'My hands were tied like I was a thief and I was made to sit in the bus,' he said, recounting his ordeal. Mr Islam had been declared a foreigner by a tribunal in 2016, a decision upheld by the Gauhati High Court in 2018. He spent two years in a detention centre before being released on bail. His appeal to the Supreme Court is still pending. After being stranded in no man's land between the two countries for two days, he was taken to a camp run by Bangladesh's Border Guard. A few days later, the group was escorted to the Indian border, where he was taken into police custody again and finally released on Thursday. 'I am an Indian, so why would I go to Bangladesh?' Mr Islam said, adding that he was beaten at the Matia Detention Centre when he resisted deportation. His family had submitted documents proving his Indian citizenship to local authorities but to no avail. 'This is injustice and there will be judgement for this one day,' Mr Islam was quoted as saying by the Indian news outlet Scroll. 'We are not Bangladeshi. We are swadesi [native-born]. They should check and verify this before doing such acts.' Human rights campaigners, academics and lawyers have condemned the deportation of people to Bangladesh, calling it a violation of protections granted by the Indian constitution and the right to due process. Demanding an end to all 'pushbacks', 125 academics and activists called on the Indian government to 'allow the return of those citizens who have already been forcibly deported to Bangladesh'. 'This is not just a legal failure,' they said in a statement, 'it is a humanitarian crisis that strikes at the core of India's constitutional democracy.' The concern followed Indian media reports that at least 40 Rohingya refugees had been flown from Delhi to the Andaman and Nicobar Islands, then allegedly abandoned in the sea off southeastern Myanmar, handcuffed and blindfolded. Bangladeshi media reported that some 300 individuals, including Rohingyas, were forced back into the country from India between 7 and 9 May, often through isolated and remote border points.
BBC News
14 hours ago
- BBC News
Trump: India 'hopeful' of reaching deal with US before tariff deadline
Delhi is "hopeful" of reaching a trade agreement with the US before the 90-day pause on reciprocal tariffs ends on 9 July, India's foreign minister has said. In an interview with French daily Le Figaro on Tuesday, S Jaishankar, who is on a four-day visit to Belgium and France, said India and US had already begun trade negotiations before Trump unveiled his 2 April 'Liberation day' tariffs on global partners, including up to 27% on India. "Prime Minister [Narendra] Modi met with Donald Trump in February and they decided to further open access to our respective markets," Jaishankar told the paper."We are hopeful of reaching an agreement before the end of the tariff suspension on 9 July." Earlier in the day, a US delegation held closed-door meetings with Indian trade ministry officials in Delhi. An unnamed Indian official told Reuters news agency that the recent set of trade talks with US officials had been productive and "helped in making progress towards crafting a mutually beneficial and balanced agreement including through achievement of early wins". Until recently, the US was India's largest trading partner, with bilateral trade reaching $190bn. India has already reduced tariffs on a range of goods - including Bourbon whiskey and motorcycles - but the US continues to run a $45bn (£33bn) trade deficit with India, which Trump is keen to and Modi have set a target to more than double this figure to $500bn, though Delhi is unlikely to offer concessions in politically sensitive sectors such as agriculture. Earlier this month, the White House told its trade partners that the US wants them to make their best trade offers, with the deadline fast approaching, Reuters news agency reported. Last week, US Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick said he was "very optimistic" about a deal between India and US, which he said said would come in the "not too distant future".In May, Trump made global headlines by claiming that Delhi had offered to drop all tariffs on goods imported from the US. These claims were swiftly disputed by India, with the foreign minister saying that "nothing is decided till everything is".Jaishankar had previously emphasised that any trade deal must be mutually beneficial and work for both separately about US foreign policy under Trump, Jaishankar told Le Figaro he sees the US "looking at things from the perspective of its immediate interest and seeking benefits for itself"."Frankly, I will do the same with them," Jaishankar added. Follow BBC News India on Instagram, YouTube, Twitter and Facebook.
Reuters
a day ago
- Reuters
India and US advance toward interim trade deal after four-day talks, say sources
NEW DELHI, June 10 (Reuters) - Indian and U.S. negotiators made progress in their latest round of talks in New Delhi on Tuesday on a bilateral trade deal, having focused on market access for industrial and some agricultural goods, tariff cuts and non-tariff barriers, Indian government sources said. "The negotiations held with the U.S. side were productive and helped in making progress towards crafting a mutually beneficial and balanced agreement including through achievement of early wins," one of the sources said. The U.S. delegation, led by senior officials from the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative, held closed-door negotiations with Indian trade ministry officials headed by chief negotiator Rajesh Agrawal. Both sides discussed increasing bilateral digital trade, by improving customs and trade facilitation measures, the sources said, adding that "negotiations will continue" for early conclusion of the initial tranche of the trade pact. U.S. President Donald Trump and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi had agreed in February to conclude a bilateral trade agreement by fall 2025 and to more than double bilateral trade to $500 billion by 2030. The two sides are expected to sign an interim agreement by the end of the month, before the expiry of Trump's 90-day pause on reciprocal tariffs on major trading partners, including a 26% tariff on India. Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal, currently in Switzerland for talks with European trade partners, said India is prepared to proceed with the deal by first addressing simpler issues. The next phase of negotiations could tackle more complex matters, with the goal of signing the first tranche of the bilateral trade pact by September or October, the officials added. India resisted U.S. demands to open its markets to wheat, dairy and corn imports, while offering lower tariffs on high-value U.S. products such as almonds, pistachios and walnuts, one of the sources said. India also asked the U.S to revoke its 10% baseline tariff. However, the U.S. side opposed this, noting that even Britain was subject to this under its recent bilateral trade agreement. Additionally, India sought an exemption for its steel exports from a 50% tariff. A potential 26% tariff on India would be devastating to Indian goods - including rice, shrimp, textiles and footwear, which together comprise nearly one-fifth of India's merchandise exports - and could severely hit exports and dampen foreign investment inflows. India has pledged to increase purchases of American goods, including energy products like liquefied natural gas, crude oil, coal and defence equipment. India's exports to the U.S. rose 28% to $37.7 billion in the first four months of 2025, while imports increased to $14.4 billion, widening India's trade surplus, according to U.S. government data.
