Twitter hires former Network18 Digital CEO Manish Maheshwari as India MD

Twitter has appointed former Network18 Digital chief executive Manish Maheshwari as the managing director of its India operations.

Maheshwari will be taking over from Balaji Krish who was appointed as the interm country head, after Taranjeet Singh quit the company in September last year.

ET had reported in October last year that the microblogging giant was scouting for a country director to head the company's operations in India that may have failed to live up to the promise of high advertising sales growth despite increasing smartphone and Internet penetration.

In this role, Maheshwari will be leading the company's strategy and execution in India. He will also be responsible for growing its audience and revenue growth in the country, Maya Hari, vice-president and managing director, Asia Pacific said on Twitter.


"Our focus in India will remain consistent and strong as ever. Twitter is here to serve the public conversation, be the destination for what’s happening, and the place where brands can launch and connect with audiences when they’re at their most receptive" Hari said in a tweet.


"India's future is digital and full of possibilities. With our amazing teams across the country, I’m bullish about the positive impact that we can have on all elements of Indian society." Maheshwari said in a tweet.

Maheshwari's appointment comes at a time when social media platforms including Twitter are facing intense regulatory scrutiny over concerns about political misuse of social media during the ongoing general elections in the country.

Earlier this year, Twitter's global head of public policy Colin Crowell had called India as an "incredibly important" market, with elections being the top priority for the company. He had said that they will be appointing an officer to liaise with the Election Commission, apart from investing "both in personnel and in the platform".

Maheshwari had joined Reliance-owned Network18 as the chief executive of its digital business in April 2016, after a year-long stint as the head of merchant business and seller ecosystem at Flipkart. He's also had stints at Intuit, McKinsey and Procter & Gamble.