Reuters’ X account withheld in India ‘in response to legal demand’

International news agency Reuters' X account has been withheld in India "in response to a legal demand", according to a notification on the social media platform X.

However, government sources denied having raised any new legal demand in this matter and sought an explanation from X for blocking the Reuters account.

They said a demand for blocking Reuters' X account alongside several hundreds of other accounts was made during Operation Sindoor.

While several accounts were blocked from accessing in India, the Reuters handle wasn't.

According to sources, Elon Musk-owned X seems to have now acted on that request and blocked Reuters' X handle in India. And since the issue isn't relevant now, the government has asked X to explain the blocking and lift the embargo.

"An order was issued on May 7 (during Operation Sindoor) but it was not enforced. X seems to have enforced that order now which is a mistake on their part. Government has reached out to X for resolving it at the earliest," an official source said.

An email sent to Reuters seeking comments did not elicit a response.

While affiliated X handles such as Reuters Tech News, Reuters Fact Check, Reuters Asia, and Reuters China are accessible in India, both official X account of the global news agency as well as Reuters World handles are inaccessible.

X users attempting to access the main account can see a message that reads: "Account withheld. @ Reuters has been withheld in IN in response to a legal demand."

On its help centre page, X explains such messages "about country withheld content" means X was compelled to withhold the entire account specified or posts in response to a valid legal demand, such as a court order or local laws.