X takes Indian govt to court, alleges arbitrary censorship of content

 The petition, filed under Article 226, alleged that the Union government circumvents safeguards under Section 69A of the Information Technology Act, 2000 (IT Act), and the protections recognised for internet intermediaries by the apex court in the Shreya Singhal vs Union of India case.

X also sought a declaration from the court that Section 79(3)(b) of the IT Act does not authorise the government to issue information blocking orders.

The introduction of the Sahyog Portal, an online system managed by the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA), enables state police and various government departments to issue takedown requests directly without adhering to due process under Section 69A.

This, according to X, creates a parallel framework for content censorship, allowing thousands of officials to order content removals without transparency or oversight.

The company has also challenged the requirement to appoint a ‘Nodal Officer’ to facilitate compliance with directives issued through the portal, arguing that such a mandate lacks statutory legitimacy.