TikTok sued the US government on Monday challenging the Trump administration’s ban on the app operating in the country from mid-September.
The suit was filed in the Federal District Court for the Central District of California.
President Trump has repeatedly claimed TikTok, owned by the Chinese internet company ByteDance, poses a national security threat because of its Chinese ties.
However, Tiktok said the Trump administration's move was motivated by politics, not national security.
Earlier on August 6, he issued twin executive orders banning transactions with TikTok and the Chinese social media app WeChat within 45 days. A week later, he issued a separate executive order giving ByteDance 90 days to divest from its American assets and any data that TikTok had gathered in the United States.
“We do not take suing the government lightly; however, we feel we have no choice but to take action to protect our rights, and the rights of our community and employees,” the company said in its suit.
“Our more than 1,500 employees across the US pour their hearts into building this platform every day,” the company said, noting that it planned to hire more than 10,000 more workers across eight states in the coming years.
The popular social media app currently has more than 80 million users across the US.Relations between the United States and China have soured in recent months over rifts in geopolitics, technology, and trade. The campaign has been partly provoked by China’s more assertive posture, but also Mr. Trump’s desire to convince voters that he is tough on China. Source: https://www.daily-bangladesh.com
