Facebook blocks hashtag #ResignModi; says done "by mistake"
Facebook Block Resign Modi hashtag: Amid a rise in coronavirus cases in India, Facebook has raked a controversy after blocking posts tagged #ResignModi before restoring them hours later.
While people accused that the government requested to remove social media content, Facebook stated that it blocked the hashtag by mistake and not at the government's request.
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It is pertinent to mention that Facebook blocks hashtags for several reasons, some manually but many based on automated internal guidelines.
The block on Resign Modi hashtag by Facebook came ahead of the final phase of elections in a key state. Several people called on Prime Minister Narendra Modi to resign while the hashtag witnessed a public outrage.
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A Facebook company spokesperson said that the company temporarily blocked this hashtag by mistake and not because the Indian government asked it to.
This year, India established several new rules including the likes of Facebook and Twitter Inc. to take down unlawful content quicker. It also triggered a debate over the freedom of speech in the world's largest democracy.
The second wave of coronavirus in India has left hospital beds, medicines and oxygen in short supply. The crematoriums were overrun. Meanwhile, India continues to report more than 300,000 new daily infections in the past few days.
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