Twitter is challenging Indian government orders to remove content.
Sources told BBC that the social media giant filed a petition at the Karnataka high court to resist "several" orders.
Twitter responded to a June letter from the government warning of "serious implications" if such orders are not followed.
According to one estimate, Twitter has more Indian users than 24 million.
Hours after the petition was filed in court, Rajeev Chandrasekhar, federal minister, tweeted that all foreign Internet sites had to adhere to Indian laws.
Sources familiar with this matter claimed that the government had warned Twitter back in June, stating that it was the company’s "last chance" to comply with certain blocking orders.
They are covered by India's information technology law, which permits the government to block any online content that "threatens security of the state" or public order.
Twitter claimed that it had decided to sue the court because of "seriousness" of threats. Failure to follow the law could result in criminal proceedings.
Sources said that the social media giant believes the orders are procedurally and substantially inadequate to the law's requirements. Many of them also "demonstrate excessive power and are disproportionate".
The sources said that there have been several instances where it was demanded that entire accounts be blocked. Many accounts may contain content that has been posted by official handles of political parties.
This latest development is part of a ongoing battle between Twitter and India’s Bharatiya Janata Party, (BJP)-led government.
Authorities have requested that the social media giant remove and block tweets over the past year. They cited objections based upon public order. These include tweets and accounts related to the massive protests of farmers last year and criticisms of the government's handling the pandemic.
Twitter temporarily blocked 250 accounts during the protests by farmers in response to a government legal notice, citing objections based upon public order.
These accounts included those of investigative news magazines, activists, and groups that supported the long-running protests in the outskirts Delhi.
Twitter restored the accounts within six hours, citing "insufficient reason" to continue the suspension.
In February last year, Twitter was informed that it was allowed to do business with India but had to comply with the laws of India "regardless of Twitter's rules and guidelines".
Twitter expressed concern about freedom of expression in India in May, just days after India Police visited its Delhi offices.
After a tweet was branded "manipulated media" by the BJP, the police notified the site.
