Elon Musk’s X Sues India Over Its Censorship Powers

India-West News Desk

NEW DELHI – Elon Musk’s X has filed a lawsuit against the Indian government, accusing the Ministry of Information Technology of unlawfully broadening its censorship powers. The lawsuit, filed on March 5, claims that the government has granted numerous officials the authority to remove online content more easily, bypassing established legal safeguards. This legal action is the latest chapter in an ongoing dispute between X and Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s administration over content removal policies.

The timing of the lawsuit is significant, as Musk is pushing forward with plans to introduce his other ventures, Starlink and Tesla, into the Indian market.

The lawsuit asserts that the Indian IT Ministry is directing various government departments to use a newly launched website from the Ministry of Home Affairs to issue orders to block content, without the necessary legal oversight. According to X, the website system allows for content to be removed with far less scrutiny and does not adhere to the stringent safeguards that were previously required. These safeguards mandated that content removal be justified on grounds such as national security, public order, or harm to sovereignty and required top officials to oversee such decisions.

X claims that this new system represents an “impermissible parallel mechanism” that leads to “unrestrained censorship” in India. The company is seeking to quash the directive and halt the use of the website for issuing content-blocking orders.

The case was briefly heard by a judge at the Karnataka High Court earlier this week, though no final decision was reached. The court is scheduled to hear the case again on March 27.

This lawsuit escalates a long-standing legal conflict between X (formerly Twitter) and the Indian government, dating back to 2021. In that year, X found itself in a standoff with the government over its refusal to comply with orders to block tweets related to a farmers’ protest against the government’s agricultural policies.

Despite initial resistance, X eventually complied with the orders after facing public criticism from government officials. 

Also Read:- California’s Boomitra Partners With EID Parry For Sustainable Sugarcane Farming In India