In a legal action, the social media platform 'X', which is owned by US billionaire Elon Musk, has moved to the Karnataka High Court against the Government of India. The platform is contesting what it believes is unlawful content regulation and arbitrary censorship practices.
The lawsuit is raising fears about the interpretation of the Information Technology Act by the government, especially Section 79, which 'X' contends is in contravention of Supreme Court decisions and jeopardizes free expression online.
'X' argues that the government is employing Section 79 to establish a parallel mechanism for blocking content, thereby skipping the legal framework specified under Section 69A. The site asserts that such a method is at odds with the 2015 Supreme Court judgment in the case of Shreya Singhal, which explained that blocking content was only feasible by a correct judicial process or according to the specified procedures under Section 69A.
Section 79, as per the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, mandates online platforms to delete illegal content on receipt of a direction from a court or government notice. If a platform does not act within 36 hours, it will lose its safe harbor protection under Section 79 and may be subject to legal action under several laws, including the Indian Penal Code.
Nevertheless, 'X' challenges this interpretation, claiming that Section 79 does not accord the government the ability to unilaterally block content. The site alleges that authorities are abusing the law to introduce arbitrary censorship without following due process.
According to Section 69A of the IT Act, the government has the power to block online content that incites harm to national security, sovereignty, or public order. Nonetheless, this procedure is regulated by the 2009 Information Technology Rules, where a formal examination must precede any blocking actions. 'X' contends that the government is circumventing such procedures by taking the shortcut route under Section 79, facilitating content deletion without proper scrutiny. The platform alleges this compromises legal protections intended to avoid arbitrary censorship.
The other major focus area of the lawsuit is 'X's protest against the Indian government's Sahyog portal, which is a product from the Indian Cyber Crime Coordination Centre under the Ministry of Home Affairs. This portal was devised to make requests for takedowns under Section 79 and allow social media sites to share information with the police.
But 'X' has declined to come on board the Sahyog portal, calling it a "censorship tool" that induces platforms to take down content without adequate legal examination. The lawsuit contends that this is another attempt by the government to regulate what can be said online without the involvement of the judiciary.
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