Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) founder Abhijeet Dipke on Wednesday said the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) has not disclosed why the party’s X account was blocked in India, identify any specific posts that were deemed objectionable, or share the blocking order with him.
Dipke, who appeared before a review committee on Wednesday, said he was told it was confidential.
“At the hearing, I asked for the blocking order, but the ministry said it is confidential. I asked for the tweets they found problematic, but they again said they could not share them because they are confidential,” said Dipke.
“If they have banned my account, why aren’t they revealing why?”
A senior IT Ministry official, speaking on condition of anonymity, later said the account was blocked because of alleged links between the outfit and Pakistan.
Similar allegations have also been made by Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leaders in the past.
Dipke attended a hearing by the review committee, constituted under the Information Technology Act, at the ministry office at 3 pm. The committee reviews government orders directing online platforms to block content or accounts.
The X handle of the Cockroach Janta Party (@CJP_2029) was withheld in India on May 21 under Section 69A of the IT Act. The provision allows the government to direct online intermediaries to block access to content under specified circumstances.
{{/usCountry}}The X handle of the Cockroach Janta Party (@CJP_2029) was withheld in India on May 21 under Section 69A of the IT Act. The provision allows the government to direct online intermediaries to block access to content under specified circumstances.
{{/usCountry}}CJP, a youth-led collective, has emerged as a voice against examination paper leaks, recruitment delays and alleged irregularities in competitive examinations. The group has been holding a round-the-clock protest at Jantar Mantar since June 20 and has demanded accountability from the government over examination-related issues.
Dipke also responded to education minister Dharmendra Pradhan’s recent remarks describing CJP as “the B team of terrorists” in an interview with NDTV. “Aren’t you ashamed to call us terrorists? If students are terrorists, then who is left who isn’t a terrorist?” Dipke said, speaking from a stage decorated with posters reading, “I am a cockroach, not a terrorist.”
Dipke has also moved the Delhi high court against the government order to block his X account. Hearing Dipke’s petition seeking restoration of the account, the high court on May 29 granted Dipke a chance to present his case before the Centre’s review committee constituted under Rule 14 of the Information Technology (Procedure and Safeguards for Blocking for Access of Information by Public) Rules, 2009, which examines blocking orders, and directed the committee to examine all the aspects and place its decision before the court on the next date of hearing, July 7.