Source : INDIA TODAY NEWS
Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg should personally apologise for the temporary removal of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s video from Facebook, Parliamentary Standing Committee on Information Technology chairman Nishikant Dubey said on Monday after a meeting with representatives of the social media giant.
Speaking after the more than three-hour meeting, Dubey said Meta had acknowledged that Modi’s video remained unavailable on the platform for about five hours, from 12.30 am to 5 am.
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“They themselves admitted that the video was taken down for five hours. This is a very serious matter and an apology must come from Zuckerberg’s side,” Dubey said, according to PTI.
He also warned that if Zuckerberg did not apologise, the government should consider withdrawing Meta’s safe harbour protection under Section 79 of the Information Technology Act.
The provision protects intermediaries from liability for third-party content under certain conditions.
WHY WAS PM MODI’S VIDEO REMOVED?
The meeting was convened after a Facebook post by Modi on action against paper leaks was briefly removed from the platform.
Meta had earlier attributed the incident to a technical glitch, apologised and restored the post. However, the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology described the explanation as “inadequate”.
Sources said the parliamentary panel has asked Meta to submit a written response within 10 days.
During the meeting, several BJP MPs questioned Meta representatives over who authorised the removal of the Prime Minister’s video and sought clarity on who was responsible.
Members also raised concerns over alleged algorithmic bias, arguing that objectionable material remained available on the platform while “genuine” content was removed.
META OFFICIALS EXPRESS REGRET
According to sources, Meta representatives expressed regret over the incident and indicated that they were willing to apologise before the committee.
BJP members, however, argued that the matter went beyond an apology and called for accountability to be fixed, with legal action to be considered if warranted.
Opposition MPs on the committee took a different position, arguing that social media platforms must preserve space for dissent in a democracy.
They also cautioned against treating criticism of the government as anti-national content.
GOOGLE, X, YOUTUBE ALSO APPEAR
The meeting was part of the parliamentary panel’s broader examination of the regulation of social and digital platforms.
Apart from Meta representatives, Union Home Secretary Govind Mohan, MeitY Secretary S Krishnan and officials from Google, X, YouTube and Snapchat also appeared before the committee.
The episode has put fresh focus on how major social media platforms moderate political content and the extent of accountability they should face when posts by public figures are removed, even temporarily.
– Ends
SOURCE :- TIMES OF INDIA
