Bengaluru, September 30: Social media platform X said on Monday it would challenge a Karnataka High Court ruling that upheld the Indian government’s Sahyog Portal, a system allowing police to request content removals, calling the decision a blow to free expression.
The court last week dismissed X’s petition against the portal, saying online content “cannot be left unregulated in the name of free speech.” Justice M Nagaprasanna described the platform as an “instrument of public good” under provisions of India’s IT Act and the 2021 intermediary rules.
X, formerly known as Twitter, argued the Sahyog system lets “millions of police officers” issue takedown orders without judicial oversight or due process, bypassing safeguards under Section 69A of the IT Act, which requires written orders and review committee scrutiny. The company said this effectively creates a “parallel blocking power” that threatens free expression.
The court rejected those arguments, noting that Article 19(1)(a) of the Constitution guarantees free speech rights only to Indian citizens, not to foreign corporations. X, incorporated in Nevada and headquartered in San Francisco, said in a post from its global government affairs account that dismissing its concerns on this basis was unfair, given its role in India’s public discourse.
The ruling also set aside X’s reliance on the Supreme Court’s 2015 Shreya Singhal verdict, saying it applied to earlier rules and did not cover the current regulatory regime.
The Sahyog Portal has been adopted by 38 other intermediaries, including Google, Microsoft, Amazon and Telegram, leaving X among the last major platforms resisting compliance. The government has defended the system as vital for rapid action against harmful content and cybercrime.
X said it would pursue an appeal to defend free expression, adding that the portal forces platforms to remove posts based solely on allegations of illegality, under threat of criminal liability.
