The US government, in a key report, has noted that since 2021, American companies like Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, and X have been subject to an “increasing number of takedown requests” for content and user accounts related to issues that appear “politically motivated”. 

The report, called the 2026 National Trade Estimate Report on Foreign Trade Barriers, was released by the Office of the United States Trade Representative (USTR), outlines “significant foreign trade barriers facing US exports” in various countries. 

For India, the report has flagged a number of barriers that American companies face in the country, ranging from its laws for the digital ecosystem — like the IT Rules, 2021 and the data protection law — to UPI and agriculture, among others. 

The USTR’s comments on India’s censorship mechanism comes as the government is tightening its control over the internet, and recently proposing it to broaden to what independent news creators and citizen journalists post on social media. Queries sent to the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology did not elicit a response.

India directed content takedowns ‘politically motivated’: USTR 

In February 2021, the Indian Government published regulations — the Information Technology (Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media Ethics Code) Rules, 2021 (IT Rules) — to govern a wide range of Internet-based service providers, particularly those that operate social media, messaging, and news and entertainment content in India, the USTR report said. 

It added that these rules require compliance by significant social media intermediaries — companies like Meta, Google etc — and platforms with five million registered users or more, along with a number of requirements that “US stakeholders have identified as concerning”. 

“For example, the IT Rules impose personal criminal liability on individual employees in cases where a firm is not in compliance with the rules. The IT Rules also include imposition of impractical compliance deadlines and take-down protocols. Since 2021, U.S. firms have been subject to an increasing number of takedown requests for content and user accounts related to issues that appear politically motivated,” the USTR said in its report. 

The growing ambit of India’s online censorship mechanism 

Last month, draft amendments to the Information Technology (Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media Ethics Code) Rules, 2021 proposed that the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting (MIB) would be able recommend issuing of direct blocking orders to independent news creators online, and require them to apologise, or make changes to the content, if found guilty of any grievances received by an inter-departmental committee.

Popular news and current affairs creators could fall under the ambit of these proposed changes, since they are currently not defined as publishers. In fact, the proposed rules could be even wider in their coverage. For instance, even if a creator does not regularly make content related to news or current affairs, but creates something involving a current topic — say a stand-up comic making a joke about a government policy — could potentially fall under its ambit.

India is also planning to decentralise a key online content takedown framework and empower multiple ministries and regulators to start sending blocking orders to social media companies, raising concerns over an expanding censorship regime, The Indian Express had earlier reported. 

These are only some of the ways in which the government is doubling down on blocking content on social media. Other attempts include shortening content takedown timelines for online platforms significantly, plans to introduce new no-go areas under a new definition of “obscene” content, and of course, expanding a parallel content blocking mechanism under Section 79 (3)(b) of the IT Act, which is managed through the Home Ministry’s Sahyog portal.

The effects of these widespread efforts are showing through: users on social media have been flagging that many of their posts which were satirical or critical of the government, and not necessarily illegal, have been impacted as companies ramp up their compliance infrastructure in the face of growing regulatory pressure.

Last year, The Indian Express reported that more than 2,300 blocking orders were sent to 19 online platforms, including WhatsApp, Facebook, YouTube and Instagram, between October 2024 and October 2025 through the Union Home Ministry’s Sahyog portal, according to data obtained through a Right to Information request. These blocks, which can be directed by a host of Central and state level agencies, marks the other content blocking regime currently active in the country.

In February, the IT Ministry notified amendments to the Information Technology (Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media Ethics Code) Rules, 2021. One of the most contentious changes it has implemented is that social media platforms must now remove content within two-three hours as opposed to 24-36 hours before. Industry executives say the new timeline is the shortest takedown window prescribed by any government in the world.