The Delhi High Court on Wednesday issued notices to the Lieutenant Governor of Delhi and the Union Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology on a petition challenging a notification that empowers the Delhi Police to issue takedown notices for online content on social media platforms.
A division bench comprising Chief Justice D.K. Upadhyaya and Justice Tushar Rao Gedela directed both the LG’s office and the Centre to file their responses within six weeks and posted the matter for further hearing on September 17.
The plea has been filed by the Software Freedom Law Center (SFLC), which has assailed the legality and constitutional validity of the notification issued by the Lieutenant Governor, designating the Delhi Police as the nodal agency under the Information Technology (Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media Ethics Code) Rules, 2021.
According to the petitioner, the notification empowers Delhi Police officers to directly issue takedown orders to social media intermediaries, mandating the removal of content deemed illegal under the Information Technology Act.
Representing SFLC, Advocate Talha Abdul Rahman argued that the designation of the police as the nodal authority has no legal backing. “Neither Section 79 of the IT Act nor the IT Rules, 2021, confer such authority,” he submitted.
The petition underscores that the statutory power to block or remove online content lies solely with the Central Government under Section 69A of the IT Act, read with the Information Technology (Procedure and Safeguards for Blocking for Access of Information by Public) Rules, 2009. The LG’s notification, by enabling police officers to exercise this power, is “ultra vires” the parent law, it contends.
SFLC has further raised concerns about the absence of judicial or independent oversight in the takedown process. The current mechanism, it argued, amounts to unchecked censorship, allowing the police to arbitrarily curtail constitutionally protected speech.
The petition terms the move a violation of Articles 19(1)(a) and 21 of the Constitution, pointing to landmark Supreme Court rulings that mandate legal safeguards and proportionality in any state action affecting fundamental rights.
The court’s decision to seek replies signals the beginning of a potentially significant judicial examination of digital rights, executive overreach, and free speech safeguards in India’s online regulatory framework.
