The inability of top Twitter officials to appear before the Parliamentary Committee on Information Technology on Monday met with strong disapproval from the committee’s chairman, Anurag Thakur.
“The Parliamentary Committee on Information Technology takes very serious note of this. We will take appropriate action on 11th February,” Mr. Thakur, who is a BJP MP, tweeted on Sunday.
When contacted, a Twitter spokesperson said, “We have indicated that we are willing to participate in such a broad hearing process… Given the short notice of the hearing, we informed the committee that it would not be possible for senior officials from Twitter to travel from the United States to appear on Monday.”
The committee had asked Twitter and IT Ministry officials to present their views on “safeguarding citizens’ right on social/online new media platforms.” The committee was supposed to meet on February 7. However, the meeting was postponed to February 11.
‘Waiting for feedback’
“We have suggested that we work with the Lok Sabha Secretariat to find mutually agreeable dates for this meeting so that a senior Twitter official can attend,” the spokesperson said in an emailed response, adding that Twitter suggested that that its representatives from India answer questions on Monday. “We await feedback from the government on both of these matters,” the spokesperson said.
BJP spokesperson and New Delhi MP Meenakshi Lekhi warned of “repercussions,” “if Twitter is disrespecting the established institution of Parliament.”
The Twitter spokesperson added: “We want to reiterate that we have deep respect for India’s parliamentary process and we are also committed to serving the people who use Twitter in the Indian market.”
