Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg and his company stand to face consequences, such as no protection under the Indian Information Technology (IT) Act, if he does not apologise for removing a video of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. An Indian Express report says that a three-day ultimatum was served to the US billionaire by the Parliamentary Standing Committee on IT on August 3 (Monday).
The video in question was the one where the PM addressed the students, especially the Gen Z about exam-related controversies, the IE report added.
The Committee has given Meta CEO a three-day ultimatum to apologise for the removal of PM Modi’s video addressing students and Gen Z about exam-related controversies.
Lok Sabha Apprised On Future Consequences
The Lok Sabha was also apprised on the matter with its secretariat telling the government that if Zuckerberg does not apologise, the protection to Meta platforms under the IT Act may be withdrawn and he may face action.
Facebook In Trouble
According to a letter accessed by the Indian Express, A Jyothirmayi, director of the Lok Sabha, wrote to S Krishnan, secretary of the Ministry of Electronics & IT, about a August 3 meeting of the Parliamentary Standing Committee with representatives of the ministries of Home Affairs, Electronics and Information Technology, and social media platforms, including Meta, which runs Facebook, WhatsApp and Instagram.
In the meeting the removal of the video for nearly 5-6 hours from Facebook was discussed at length.
“The removal of Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi’s video addressing students and Gen Z regarding examination controversies and strict actions against paper leaks from Facebook for 5-6 hours (was) viewed very seriously by the Committee. During the deliberations, the Committee demanded an apology from Mr. Mark Zuckerberg, Meta Chief, on this issue,” IE quoted, as being written in the official letter.
What happens when Zuckerberg doesn’t apologize?
The consequences in the case of a failed apology, were written with utmost clarity in the letter.
“If he [Zuckerberg] fails to tender an unqualified apology within 3 days of receipt of this letter, the protection/immunity given under Section 79(3) of IT Act may be withdrawn and action taken against him as a Publisher,” the letter read.
When was the video removed and restored?
The video of PM Modi’s address to students and Gen Z on the NEET paper-leak controversy and the promise of strict action against future leaks was released on July 23. It went missing from Facebook that same night, between 12:30 am and 5:00 am, a gap of roughly four-and-a-half hours.
Meta confirmed the removal and restoration on July 28, saying the content had been “removed in error” due to a technical glitch and had since been put back up.
The social media company cited technical-glitch in explanation to the parliamentary panel, an explanation the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) has since called “inadequate.”