Meta agrees to pay ₹25m to settle lawsuit by Trump over account suspension

Tech giant Meta, parent company of Facebook and Instagram, has agreed to a $25 million settlement for a lawsuit by US President Donald Trump after the company suspended his accounts following the US Capitol attacks on January 6, 2021, as per reports.

The settlement included the payment to a non-profit supporting the development of Trump’s future presidential library, with the rest covering legal fees and related expenses, as per reports.

Former US President Donald Trump is reportedly looking to regain control of his powerful social media accounts in order to make a comeback for the White House. 

Earlier, in March 2023, Trump’s campaign formally petitioned Meta to unblock his account, which was locked two years ago in response to the January 6, 2021 Capitol riot, reported US media.

According to a copy reviewed by a US media house, Trump’s campaign had written in its letter to Meta, “We believe that the ban on President Trump’s account on Facebook has dramatically distorted and inhibited the public discourse.” 

The campaign however, did not threaten a lawsuit at that time. 

Instead, it had emphasised the importance of free speech and petitioned Meta for a ‘meeting to discuss President Trump’s prompt reinstatement to the platform’. 

Twitter (Now ‘X’) had also planned a permanent ban, but on November 19, 2022, new owner Elon Musk reinstated Trump’s account and then criticised the company's previous leadership for the ban.

(with inputs from syndicated feed)