NEW DELHI (INDIA) – An parliamentary panel head has blamed Twitter for disrespecting the sovereignty of the nation after mapping data revealed Indian territory as part of China. The social media giant said the goof-up was quickly resolved.
The error was spotted last week and Twitter executives presented themselves before the Joint Committee on the Personal Data Protection Bill to explain the mistake.
A lawmaker hailing from the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party and committee chairperson Meenakshi Lekhi said the committee was unanimous that an explanation from Twitter was not enough.
“Twitter stating that it respects the sensitivity (of the issue) was not adequate. It is a matter of Indian sovereignty and integrity,” she said.
“Showing Ladakh as part of China amounts to a criminal offence.”
Both India and China fought a bloody war, albeit for a very short period, in 1962 and both countries are engaged in a military stand-off along the contested border in the Himalayas and that includes Ladakh as well.
When some users began tagging their posts as being in Ladakh, Twitter showed it to be within China.
Although the territory is claimed wholly by Pakistan as well, China stakes claim to a small portion of Ladakh in the east known as Aksai Chin.
“The recent geo-tagging issue was swiftly resolved by our teams,” said a spokesperson for the social media platform.
“We are committed to openness, transparency around our work and will remain in regular touch with the government to share timely updates.”