Fourth Case Against Twitter, Now Over Content On Child Pornography

A case has been registered against Twitter in Delhi on the issue of child pornography -- the fourth against the social media platform since it lost legal immunity for content posted by users amid a massive row with the government. The fresh case has been filed under the Posco Act and the IT Act.

The case was lodged by the Cyber Cell of the Delhi Police following a complaint by the National Commission for Protection of Child Rights or NCPCR.

In its complaint, the NCPCR said pornographic material involving children was continuously being posted on Twitter.

The commission -- which complained about this issue earlier -- has has written two letters to the Cyber Cell and the Delhi Police chief. It has also ordered a senior officer of the Cyber Cell to appear before it on June 29.

Earlier this month, case was filed against Twitter in Ghaziabad in connection with tweets on the alleged assault on a Muslim man.

The issue is now pending in the Supreme Court as Twitter India chief Manish Maheshwari got protection from arrest by an order of the Karnataka High Court. The Uttar Pradesh police have challenged the order in the top court.

Mr Maheshwari has also been named in another First Information Report (also filed in Uttar Pradesh) -- over an incorrect map of India on the Twitter website; the map showed Jammu and Kashmir, and Ladakh as a separate country.

Another FIR has been registered against Mr Maheshwari in Madhya Pradesh, with the same allegation.

Twitter lost legal protection from prosecution over users' posts earlier this month after its failure to comply with new digital rules, including appointment of Indian officials for the grievance and redressal system.

Twitter had clashed with the government over the new IT rules, which it said were against the Constitution. The row intensified after it tagged tweets by BJP leaders on an alleged "Congress toolkit" as "manipulated media".