New Delhi: In what could be the start of a new row between Twitter and the Indian government, the social media giant Saturday removed the “blue badge” from Vice President M Venkaiah Naidu's personal Twitter handle.
The blue tick was removed from @MVenkaiahNaidu for "inactivity", said a report by news agency ANI.
"The personal account of Venkaiah Naidu was inactive for six months and the blue badge has gone," ANI quoted an official from the Vice President's office as saying.
The official handle of the Vice President of India @VPSecretariat continues to have the blue badge.
Incidentally, Twitter on Wednesday reopened its blue badge verification programme after a brief pause, as it has been inundated with verification requests.
Twitter on May 29 hit the pause button on its blue badge verification programme within a week of its launch, saying it was rolling in verifications requests that have reached it.
"Requests are open! Sorry about that pause –– now you can get back to your quest for a blue badge," the company said in a tweet.
Twitter re-launched its new verification application process last month, beginning with six categories, and review public applications globally to help users earn the blue badge on the micro-blogging platform.
Relation between Twitter and the Narendra Modi government is tense since last over a year. It hit a new low recently after Twitter labelled BJP spokesperson Sambit Patra’s tweet a “manipulated media”, and last week over the new IT rules.
Removal of blue tick from Venkaiah Naidu’s personal Twitter handle could further strain the relation between the two.
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