Asia

Twitter Apologises After CEO Offends India's Upper Caste Hindus

Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey’s photograph holding a "Smash Brahminical Patriarchy" placard triggered uproar over allegedly hurting the sentiments of India’s upper caste Hindus.
Sputnik

New Delhi (Sputnik): Social media giant Twitter was forced to issue a statement after its CEO Jack Dorsey triggered an outrage in India by posing with a group of women scribes with a poster calling to "Smash Brahminical Patriarchy." Brahmans are upper caste Hindus in India.

A series of trolls caught with CEO Jack Dorsey and Twitter India, vehemently slamming the social media giant for allegedly "spreading hatred" against a section of society.

Twitter said in a statement that the photograph is not a representation of the organization or the CEO, but a reflection of the company's effort to see, hear and perceive the different sides of public conversations.

Twitter notified that the organization hosted a closed-door discussion with a group of women journalists and change makers from India to comprehend their experiences of using Twitter. Out of the panel, one of the Dalit (lower caste) activists, sharing her personal experience, gifted a poster to Dorsey.

In the Indian Hindu community, the caste hierarchy has Brahmins on the top that are normally people assigned with spiritual duties. The other three castes, the Kshatriya or the martial class, the Vaishya or the trading class, and the Shudra or the lower scheduled class, come in that order following the Brahmins.

The legal head of Twitter in India seemed to be on the defensive with a tweet.

The hosts in India hit back at Twitter for its apologetic stand.

Dorsey, who was on a visit to India, met Prime Minister Narendra Modi, opposition leader Rahul Gandhi, and film actor Shah Rukh Khan. Among his other engagements, he also participated in a roundtable with women journalists, writers, and activists to converse about the Twitter experience in India.

Today @jack made me realise with his calm demeanour & composed, nearly meditative mindset…’that all Work and no Pray, would make Jack a dull boy.” Thx for dropping in & also team @Twitter for a lively evening. Have a happy stay in India. pic.twitter.com/melFfe8NKJ

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