Twitter's interim resident grievance officer for India has stepped down, leaving the micro-blogging site without a grievance official as mandated by the new IT rules to address complaints from Indian subscribers, according to reports.
According to reports, Dharmendra Chatur, who was recently appointed as interim resident grievance officer for India by Twitter, has quit from the post.
Twitter's website no longer displays his name, as required under Information Technology (Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media Ethics Code) Rules 2021, the report added.
The development comes at a time when the micro-blogging platform has been engaged in a tussle with the Indian government over the new social media rules. The government has slammed Twitter for deliberate defiance and failure to comply with the country’s new IT rules.
The new rules which were implemented on May 25 stipulate that social media companies appoint a grievance redressal mechanism to address complaints about objectionable material. All social media companies with a user base of 50 lakh and above are required to appoint such a grievance officer and share details such as the name and number of these officers with authorities. Social media companies are also required to appoint a chief compliance officer, a nodal contact person and a resident grievance officer.
Twitter in response to the final notice issued by the government on June 5 had said that it intends to comply with the new IT rules and will share details of the chief compliance officer. In the meantime, the microblogging platform had appointed Chatur as interim resident grievance officer for India.
Twitter now displays the company’s name in the place of grievance officer for India with a US address and an email ID.