NEW DELHI — Twitter on Aug. 6. informed an Indian court that it had made permanent appointments for the posts of the chief compliance officer, resident grievance officer, and nodal contact person in compliance with specific provisions of the Information Technology (Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media Ethics Code) Rules, 2021.
In its fresh affidavit, Twitter said it had appointed Vinay Prakash its chief compliance officer and resident grievance officer, and Shahin Komath as a nodal contact person.
It further said that “Vinay Prakash is, and has been since his initial appointment, fully capable of performing the functions of chief compliance officer and resident grievance officer as contemplated under Rule 4(1)(a) and (c).”
“Komath is fully capable of performing the functions of the nodal contact person as contemplated under Rule 4(1)(b),” said Twitter’s affidavit.
A bench of Justice Rekha Palli in the Delhi High Court on Aug. 5. deferred the matter for Aug. 10 after taking note of the submission made by the Twitter counsel.
Meanwhile, Additional Solicitor General of India Chetan Sharma, appearing for the central government, said, “we need time to verify the new appointments” made by Twitter.
The Delhi High Court had pulled up Twitter for not complying with the recently amended IT rules. The Court expressed unhappiness with Twitter’s affidavits and granted the last opportunity to file a better affidavit with the details of the person appointed as chief compliance officer and grievance officer.
“Are you serious about it,” said Justice Rekha Palli and criticized Twitter after taking note of the affidavits filed by the company on the last date of hearing.
Senior Advocate Sajan Poovayya, representing Twitter, informed the Delhi High Court that it filed two affidavits regarding the chief compliance officer and grievance officer. The affidavit of entity has clarified that Twitter made appointments, and “we will no more use the word interim.”
But the court pulled up Twitter for using the term “contingent worker” and asked what it means.
The court said that it is was not acceptable to appoint the chief compliance officer and resident grievance officer as “contingent workers.”
The court said that if the company wanted to comply with IT rules, comply wholeheartedly.
Twitter, in the affidavit, said that it would not use the term “interim” anymore.
The word’s usage was to denote that employees were yet to be appointed to these positions, but contingent workers have been appointed until permanent offers were made.
Vinay Prakash had also submitted a separate affidavit confirming he was appointed as chief compliance officer and resident grievance officer by Twitter. He said that he is not an employee but engaged as a “contingent worker” and undertakes responsibilities as per law.
Twitter has told the High Court that the same person, Vinay Prakash, has been appointed to two posts.
The court was hearing a petition seeking direction to the Union of India to pass the instruction to Twitter Communication India and Twitter to appoint a resident grievance officer under Rule 4 of the Information Technology (Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Ethics Code) Rules 2021.
Amit Acharya has filed the petition, a practicing Advocate in the Supreme Court of India and Delhi High Court, through lawyers Akash Vajpai and Manish Kumar.
Every Significant Social Media Intermediary has to appoint a Resident Grievance Officer, who shall, subject to clause (b), be responsible for the functions referred to in sub-rule (2) of rule 3, stated the petition, as per the Rule 4(c) of the IT Rule.
(With inputs from ANI)
Edited by Abinaya Vijayaraghavan and Praveen Pramod Tewari
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