After deleting a controversial tweet by Haryana Home Minister Anil Vij on Monday related to 21-year-old climate activist Disha Ravi, Twitter later restored it, saying the tweet is “not subject to removal” under its rules regarding online hate speech.
Vij on Monday said whoever harbours the “seed of anti-nationalism” has to be dealt with accordingly, be it Ravi or anyone else.
In a tweet in Hindi, Vij said: “Whoever harbours the seed of anti-nationalism in their minds, that has to be completely destroyed, be it Disha Ravi or anyone else.”
देश विरोध का बीज जिसके भी दिमाग में हो उसका समूल नाश कर देना चाहिए फिर चाहे वह #दिशा_रवि हो यां कोई और ।
— ANIL VIJ MINISTER HARYANA (@anilvijminister) February 15, 2021
Twitter removed the tweet based on a complaint from a user in Germany.
“Twitter is required by German law to provide notice to users who are reported by people from Germany via the Network Enforcement Act” the company said.
Vij later shared a screenshot from Twitter, which said that “We have investigated the reported content and have found that it is not subject to removal under the Twitter rules.”
— ANIL VIJ MINISTER HARYANA (@anilvijminister) February 15, 2021
Ravi was arrested by the Delhi Police Special Cell from Bengaluru on Saturday for allegedly editing and sharing a ‘toolkit’ on social media related to the farmers’ protest. She was produced before a court the next day and was remanded to five days in police custody.
The police procured her custody to identify the pro-Khalistan group – Poetic Justice Foundation – and its active members.
–IANS
