NewDelhi: Social media platform X (formerly twitter) told Delhi High Court that it was an “imposter” and not Delhi Police that told them to block the handles of the Internet Freedom Foundation (IFF) and the Software Freedom Law Centre (SFLC) to block their posts. The platform further informed the court that it had filed a complaint with the police.
The matter was heard by Justice Amit Mahajan. X made the submission in response to petitions filed by IFF and SFLC, challenging the notices allegedly sent to the platform by the Delhi Police. X’s counsel assured the court that the platform would not block the social media accounts of IFF and SFLC.
IFF on Tuesday said it had received copies of two notices sent by the Delhi Police to X on November 3 and demanded their immediate withdrawal. The digital rights organisation had warned that it would challenge the notices in court if the police failed to withdraw them.
The notices allegedly issued by “imposters” reportedly sought the removal of the X accounts of IFF, SFLC and Geo Blocked in India, along with 37 posts, including content shared by 16 other users.
Senior Advocate Akhil Sibal appeared on behalf of IFF and SFLC. Meanwhile, the Delhi Police has not official said anything on the matter.
“The petitions filed by IFF and @SFLCin, on an apprehension of action being taken against their X accounts, were heard together today before the Delhi High Court. Sr. Adv. Akhil Sibal appeared for both IFF and SFLC, and placed on record the transparency reports published by X and the legal notice sent by the RSS. IFF had written to the RSS and received no response; SFLC had written to the Delhi Police on the email address provided, which bounced back,” IFF said in a statement on X after the hearing.
“On Mr Sibal’s submission, the Court recorded X’s statement and disposed of the petitions in these terms, with liberty to approach the Court afresh if any action is taken,” it added.
Meanwhile, SFLC said it had questioned the authenticity of the takedown notices from the outset and repeatedly sought clarification from the Delhi Police.
“Since day one, we have been questioning the authenticity of these takedown notices. We have repeatedly written to the Delhi Police, seeking confirmation on whether these notices were indeed issued by them,” SFLC said in its X post.
According to IFF, the first notice was sent to X by the Special Commissioner of Police (Crime) on October 31 and identified two posts published by IFF and SFLC on October 30. The posts discussed a purported legal notice issued in the name of the RSS.
A second notice was submitted on November 2, listing 40 URLs, including 37 posts and the entire X accounts of IFF, SFLC and Geo Blocked in India.
The second notice cited alleged defamation and illegal content under Section 356 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) and invoked Rule 3(1)(d) of the IT Rules, 2021, read with Section 79(3)(b) of the IT Act. It reportedly asked X to take action within three hours.
IFF said the notices also flagged posts by 16 other users who had commented on the purported legal notice or the subsequent police action. The organisation said X had forwarded both notices to it on November 3.
Bureau Report
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