Held placard without understanding meaning of placard: Jack Dorsey asks Raj HC to quash FIR

(Jack Dorsey with Indian women journalists for a meeting)

, Twitter

Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey on Wednesday defended a series of tweets about his recent meditation retreat in Myanmar that was pilloried on his own platform for failing to mention the persecution of Rohingya Muslims. Dorsey's gushing thread on Sunday came after a 10-day silent Vipassana meditation retreat near Mandalay in which he praised the country's food, beauty and its people, whom he said were "full of joy".

The comments drew heat online for leaving out any discussion of atrocities committed against Myanmar's Rohingya minority during a military crackdown last year that drove more than 720,000 people into Bangladesh camps.

The Twitter CEO has been compelled to move to the High Court after an FIR was registered against him on the order of the magistrate.  

Doresy had a met agroiup of female journalists for a closed-door rountable discussion on how Indians experience Twitter. 

However, a complaint was raised before a magistrate, who ordered to rehister an FIR under the charges of defamation, creating hatred between reigions or communitites, insulting religious beliefs etc. 

Subsequently, Jack Dorsey moved to the High Court for getting the FIR quashed on the ground and that he was not complicit in the act. He further added that he did not even know to understand the meaning of the words written on placard he was holding.

“The petitioner is unaware of the history and complexity of the caste system in India. He has no idea, whatsoever, as to what connotation the expression 'Brahminical Patriarchy' has, and does not subscribe to the views that Brahmins are a patriarchal community,” stated the CEO's petition. 

Dorsey, in his plea, added that when he was gifted the placard, he “innocently” held it without understanding the “full and complex meaning of the placard”.

Critics piled into the tech mogul for being "tone deaf" at a time when the UN has said Myanmar's generals should be investigated for genocide.

In a series of tweets, Dorsey defended his actions but conceded he could have handled the situation better.

"I'm aware of the human rights atrocities and suffering in Myanmar. I don't view visiting, practising, or talking with the people, an endorsement," he said.

"I didn't intend to diminish by not raising the issue, but could have acknowledged that I don't know enough and need to learn more." Dorsey said he has been a long-time meditator and wanted to travel to Buddhist-majority Myanmar where Vipassana is practised in its "original form".

Twitter is not nearly as popular in Myanmar as Facebook, which has been accused of not doing enough to control hate speech that fuelled anti-Rohingya and anti-Muslim sentiment.

But hate speech during the Rohingya crisis also spilled over onto the micro-messaging site, which is facing similar allegations over hosting toxic content in countries where it is more broadly used.

Dorsey batted away speculation that there was a business twist to the visit, saying he had no conversations with the government during his trip, and described the platform as a way to raise awareness about human rights issues.

"Twitter is a way for people to share news and information about events in Myanmar as well as to bear witness to the plight of the Rohingya and other peoples and communities," he said.

It is not the first time the travelling tech whizz has stirred outrage online.

On a trip to India in November, Dorsey was accused of inciting hatred against the highest caste after he was photographed holding a poster declaring "smash Brahminical patriarchy".

(With Inputs from PTI)