‘Defend Free Expression’: X to Appeal Karnataka HC Ruling, Warns of 'Millions of Arbitrary Takedown Requests'

New Delhi: Social media site X has announced that it will file an appeal against a recent Karnataka High Court judgment requiring compliance with government removal notices. The business cautioned that the ruling would enable a large number of police officers to issue arbitrary takedown requests and called the situation extremely alarming.  

In its reply, X stated, “Deeply concerned by the recent order from Karnataka Court in India, which will allow millions of police officers to issue arbitrary takedown orders. We will appeal this order to defend free expression.” 

Prior to this, the Karnataka High Court denied X's petitions challenging the Centre's orders to ban specific users and posts on the site. 

The court emphasized that social media regulation was "the need of the hour" and that microblogging sites could not be permitted to function in India without supervision. The court declared, "Social media companies cannot be allowed to work unregulated in India," and added that any business looking to operate there "needs to know this." 

The bench noted that X must comply with the nation's laws and clarified that the constitutional protection of free speech under Article 19 is available only to Indian citizens, not foreign entities. Only citizens' rights are guaranteed by Article 19. "Those who are not citizens cannot invoke the protective embrace of Article 19," the court stated.

The bench further stated, “American jurisprudence cannot be transported to Indian judicial thought process,” criticising the platform for refusing to comply with India’s takedown orders while adhering to United States laws. "Algorithms are constantly shaping the flow of information, does the menace of social media need to be curbed and regulated?" was another concern it raised regarding the impact of algorithms.

The court noted that regulations need to change in pace with technology, pointing out that the 2021 Information Technology Rules "demand their own interpretative frame." "No social media platform can take exemption from the laws of the land," the bench stated in its ruling. It is not appropriate to approach Indian marketplaces as playgrounds.

ALSO READ: '10 FIRs Filed, 39 People Identified'; Chief Conspirator Unfolds As Maulana Tauqeer Raza: Bareilly DIG On Violence