Islamabad (Monitoring Desk) The X accounts of global news agency Reuters, including @Reuters and @ReutersWorld, were blocked in India following a “legal demand,” Indian publication The Print reported on Sunday. Despite this, the Reuters website and roughly 30 other associated X handles remain accessible in the country.
Screenshots shared by Indian users on X (formerly Twitter) revealed they could no longer view these key Reuters accounts. However, the Indian Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) denied ordering any such action. “There is no requirement from the Government of India to withhold the Reuters handle. We are working with X to resolve the problem,” a ministry spokesperson told India Today.
Reuters has not yet issued an official statement. Meanwhile, X’s Global Government Affairs account, which typically comments on such matters, has also stayed silent. In previous instances where accounts were blocked in India due to legal demands, X publicly confirmed the restrictions.
This is not the first time India has moved to limit social media accounts. According to The Hindustan Times, during “Operation Sindoor” — when India reportedly launched strikes on sites in Pakistan in May — similar measures were enforced. The outlet suggested the recent restriction might have been an error by X, owned by Elon Musk.
Earlier, on May 8, X disclosed it had received executive orders from the Indian government to block over 8,000 accounts, under threat of hefty fines or even jail time for local staff. The platform claimed that in many cases, authorities neither specified offending content nor provided evidence, yet X was compelled to comply, limiting access to targeted accounts within India alone.
The situation remains unclear as discussions continue between X, Indian officials, and Reuters, with users awaiting further clarification on whether this is a technical slip or a legally mandated block.
