The main X (formerly Twitter) account of the international news agency Reuters was blocked in India, displaying a message stating, "Account withheld. @Reuters has been withheld in IN (India) in response to a legal demand". This action sparked confusion, particularly as the Indian government denied issuing any new legal demand for the blocking.

Government sources indicated that the demand to block the Reuters account, along with hundreds of others, originated during "Operation Sindoor". This operation, reportedly related to India-Pakistan tensions in April, involved a counter-terrorism operation inside Pakistan-controlled Kashmir. An unnamed source stated that the government had issued the order on May 7, but X appeared to have acted on it only recently, calling it a "mistake on their part".

A spokesperson for the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) stated, "There is no requirement from the Government of India to withhold the Reuters handle. We are continuously working with 'X' to resolve the problem". The government has requested an explanation from X and asked the platform to lift the restrictions.

Several affiliated Reuters accounts, including Reuters Tech News, Reuters Fact Check, Reuters Asia, and Reuters China, remained accessible in India. However, both the primary Reuters X account and the Reuters World account were initially blocked.

X's help center explains that messages about "country withheld content" mean the platform was compelled to withhold an account or specific posts due to a valid legal demand, such as a court order or local laws. X has been at odds with the Indian government over content removal requests. The company sued the Indian government in the Karnataka High Court over previous blocking orders issued under the Information Technology (IT) Act, 2000, arguing that they lack adequate safeguards. The final hearing in the case is scheduled for July 8.

The situation raised concerns about press freedom and digital censorship in India. The absence of a clear justification for the block led to questions among Indian users and media observers. Around the same time as the Reuters block, the Indian news website The Wire, known for its investigative journalism and critical coverage of the government, reported that its website was blocked and that the government ordered the removal of Pakistan-linked content across digital platforms.

The Reuters account remained blocked for nearly 24 hours, from Saturday evening to Sunday evening. However, access to Reuters' X account was restored after government intervention. The government reiterated that it had not requested the blocking of the account and that X had cited a legal demand for withholding the account, which the government denied.