BackGovernment warns Twitter for showing Leh as part of China
'Ladakh and Jammu and Kashmir are integral parts of India.'
PremiumIndia has objected to the misrepresentation of India’s map on Twitter, with electronics and information technology secretary Ajay Prakash Sawhney writing to the chief executive officer of the microblogging site, Jack Dorsey, about it, a government official said, requesting anonymity.
The move comes in the wake of national security analyst Nitin Gokhale going live on Twitter near the Leh Airport on 18 October to say that his map location displayed Jammu and Kashmir, and China.
“This morning, I was live on Twitter along with Rohit Pandita to apprise people of my journey to Ladakh from Himachal Pradesh via a new road. After we finished our broadcast, to our horror, we found that the location that we had put of the war memorial, came up as part of Jammu and Kashmir and People’s Republic of China. I apprised Twitter by tagging them, but nothing happened, except anger from people of India…I don’t know why it is happening, but it is my duty to inform you about it," Gokhale said.
Sawhney reminded Dorsey that Leh is a part of the Union territory of Ladakh and is governed by the Constitution of India. Ladakh and Jammu and Kashmir are integral parts of India, he asserted.
Twitter must respect the sentiments of the people of India and the misrepresentation of the Indian map on its platform is in violation of law, Sawhney said. Such actions will tarnish the credibility of Twitter and raise questions on its impartial stand, he warned.
“Twitter remains committed to working with the government of India. We respect the sensitivities involved and have duly acknowledged the letter," a Twitter spokesperson said in an emailed response.
shreya.n@livemint.com
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