Facebook Founder Mark Zuckerberg has disowned the controversial tweet made by his colleague saying that Free Basics was same as colonialism and Indians are used to colonialism.
Zuckerberg said that the statement of Facebook board member Marc Andreessen was offensive and deeply upsetting.
“I want to respond to Marc Andreessen’s comments about India yesterday. I found the comments deeply upsetting, and they do not represent the way Facebook or I think at all. India has been personally important to me and Facebook,” Zuckerberg wrote in a Facebook post.
“Early on in my thinking about our mission, I Travelled to India and was inspired by the humanity, spirit and values of the people. It solidified my understanding that when all people have the power to Share their experiences, the entire world will make progress,” he added.
“As our community in India has grown, I’ve gained a deeper appreciation for the need to understand India’s history and culture. I’ve been inspired by HOW MUCH progress India has made in building a strong nation and the largest democracy in the world, and I look forward to strengthening my connection to the country,” the 31-year-old billionaire said.
Earlier, Andreessen’s tweet, “Anti-colonialism has been economically catastrophic for the Indian people for decades. Why stop now?” left many Indians lashing out on Facebook as well as on Twitter.
The tweet was the effect of Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) saying no to the discriminatory pricing of data content policy, ‘Free Basics’.
TRAI said in a regulatory, “No service provider shall offer or charge discriminatory tariffs for data services on the basis of content.”
