The Delhi High Court on Monday permitted legal services group Software Freedom Law Centre, India to withdraw its public interest litigation challenging mobile internet shutdowns in central Delhi, following the restoration of telecommunication services in the area.
A division bench of Chief Justice D. K. Upadhyaya and Justice Tejas Karia dismissed the petition as withdrawn after counsel for the petitioner informed the court that they had instructions to drop the legal challenge.
Protest Conclusion Leads to Service Restoration
The decision to withdraw the plea followed the end of a month-long agitation at Jantar Mantar by the Cockroach Janta Party. The political group had been protesting since June 20 to demand government accountability over the NEET paper leak and the resignation of Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan.
The demonstration concluded on Saturday after Pradhan resigned from his post and the government accepted the group’s remaining demands. Mobile internet capabilities across central Delhi were restored shortly after the agitation was called off.
Grounds of the Constitutional Challenge
Prior to its withdrawal, the petition filed by SFLC.in sought the annulment of multiple orders issued by the Union Ministry of Home Affairs on July 17, 20, 22, and 23. The directives had imposed repeated mobile internet suspensions within a 1.5-kilometer radius of Jantar Mantar, amounting to six separate shutdown orders within seven days.
In its court submission, SFLC.in contended that the executive branch had deployed extraordinary coercive powers under Section 20 of the Telecom Act and the Suspension Rules, 2024, without adequately proving a public emergency or threat to public safety. The organisation argued that the blanket restrictions violated fundamental freedoms guaranteed under Articles 19 and 21 of the Constitution, alleging that officials acted mechanically and failed to evaluate less restrictive alternatives before imposing the blackout.
