Microblogging social media platform ‘X’ (previously Twitter), owned by billionaire Elon Musk, has filed a lawsuit in opposition to the Indian authorities within the Karnataka High Court. The platform has challenged what it calls illegal content material regulation and arbitrary censorship.
In its petition, ‘X’ raised issues over the federal government’s interpretation of the Information Technology (IT) Act. It particularly objected to using Section 79(3)(b), arguing that it violates Supreme Court rulings and restricts free expression on-line.
The lawsuit claims the federal government is utilizing this part to create a separate content-blocking mechanism that bypasses the structured authorized course of beneath Section 69A of the IT Act, reported PTI. ‘X’ has argued that this contradicts the Supreme Court’s 2015 ruling within the Shreya Singhal case, which established that content material can solely be blocked by way of a judicial course of or as per the legally outlined procedures of Section 69A.
The Ministry of Information and Broadcasting (I&B) has defended its place, stating that Section 79(3)(b) mandates on-line platforms to take away unlawful content material when ordered by a courtroom or a authorities directive. If a platform fails to conform inside 36 hours, it dangers dropping its authorized safety beneath Section 79(1) and will face motion beneath numerous legal guidelines, together with the Indian Penal Code (IPC).
However, X has disputed this interpretation, stating that the availability doesn’t give the federal government unbiased authority to dam content material. The firm has accused authorities of misusing the legislation to impose censorship with out following due authorized procedures.
Under Section 69A, the federal government can block entry to digital content material if it threatens nationwide safety, sovereignty, or public order. However, this course of is ruled by the 2009 Information Technology Rules, which require a structured evaluate earlier than blocking content material. X has alleged that as a substitute of following these procedures, the federal government is utilizing Section 79(3)(b) as a shortcut to take away content material with out correct scrutiny.
Another key challenge raised in X’s lawsuit is its opposition to the federal government’s Sahyog portal. Developed by the Indian Cyber Crime Coordination Centre (I4C) beneath the Ministry of Home Affairs, the platform was created to facilitate takedown requests beneath Section 79(3)(b) and allow direct communication between legislation enforcement businesses and social media firms.
X has refused to assign an worker to the Sahyog portal, calling it a ‘censorship tool’ that forces platforms to take away content material with out enough authorized evaluate. The lawsuit argues that that is one other try by the federal government to manage on-line discourse with out judicial oversight.
(With PTI inputs)
