3 months ago
1
The Union Government has issued a spate of takedown orders for posts satirising, criticising and mocking Prime Minister Narendra Modi and accounts critical of the authorities successful effect to the UGC Equity Regulations connected X and Instagram. Over the past month, posts that were taken down connected X see a notation by Hotmail co-founder Sabeer Bhatia to a viral mistranscription of a Sanskrit subhashita by Mr. Modi; disapproval of the targeting of minorities successful India; and 2 animated satirical cartoons featuring the Prime Minister.
The Hindu counted dozens of specified posts successful a reappraisal of takedown orders posted by affected users, but broad statistic are not available, arsenic these orders are confidential. Social media firms comply with takedown orders by making posts invisible successful India, portion they stay disposable successful different countries. Last year, for instance, galore (but not all) of the accounts and posts that were “withheld” this mode successful India were from accounts operated from different countries, oregon posting footage targeted by the Ministry of Railways.
The astir up-to-date takedown stats from Meta amusement that the Instagram and Facebook genitor took down 3 times arsenic overmuch contented successful effect to authorities orders successful January–June 2025 than successful the aforesaid play successful 2023. This fig does not see contented successful India that was besides taken down globally owed to assemblage standards violations. X does not people transparency reports for authorities takedowns.
The Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology and the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting did not respond to questions from The Hindu connected a illustration of these takedown notices. Meta and X did not respond to a petition for comment.
Posts that diagnostic Mr. Modi prominently person been targeted with persistent takedown orders. When The Wire enactment retired 2 satirical euphony videos featuring Mr. Modi, they were targeted with takedown notices connected some X and Meta’s Instagram, and erstwhile the site’s founding exertion Siddharth Varadarajan reposted the 2nd cartoon, the repost was besides taken down.
The Congress said satirical posts by the enactment that were AI-generated (and duly labelled arsenic such, arsenic required by the IT Rules, 2021’s latest amendment), were taken down. Nine posts were taken down successful all, enactment spokesperson Supriya Shrinate said connected February 14.
Numbers unclear
It is unclear conscionable however galore of these orders person been issued successful caller weeks. Orders nether Section 69A of the Information Technology Act, 2000, are confidential, 1 elder authoritative pointed out.
As for orders nether Section 79(3)(b) of the IT Act, wherever takedown notices tin beryllium sent to societal media companies by instrumentality enforcement agencies, the timelines for losing “safe harbour” from ineligible liability for users’ posts has been shortened from 24–36 hours to 2–3 hours. One manufacture root said that portion these orders aren’t binding, societal media firms are near with “no choice” but to comply since they don’t person the clip to find if a station is really illegal.
For each orders The Hindu reviewed — based connected idiosyncratic posts — for the past period connected X, the level has notified users successful peculiar that takedowns were issued nether Section 69A of the IT Act. This peculiar disclosure has been absent successful the past, with X much generically referring to a ineligible demand.
Pranesh Prakash, the laminitis of the Centre for Internet and Society, India and present an autarkic researcher, said these orders were “unconstitutional,” arsenic they gave users small accidental to beryllium heard beforehand, and that determination was nary “public, reasoned order”. Before Elon Musk bought what was past called Twitter, the steadfast regularly uploaded details of specified orders with a 3rd enactment database accessible to researchers and journalists. Since that entree has stopped, the measurement of these orders cannot beryllium determined.
In a 2024 nonfiction for the Indian Public Policy Review, Mr. Prakash argued that Rule 16 of the Information Technology (Procedure and Safeguards for Blocking for Access of Information by Public) Rules, 2009, which provides for confidentiality of blocking orders nether Section 69A, was successful struggle with the Supreme Court’s Shreya Singhal v. Union of India judgment, wherever the tribunal invalidated Section 66A, a wide prohibition connected obscenity, and held that “reasons person to beryllium recorded successful penning successful specified blocking order[s] truthful that they whitethorn beryllium assailed successful a writ petition nether Article 226 of the Constitution.”
On Instagram, an relationship belonging to the Hindu activistic Sarthak Bhagat, who precocious protested the execution of 26-year-old Tarun Bhutolia successful Uttam Nagar, Delhi during Holi, and has implicit 2.7 lakh followers, was withheld successful India. @woke_kashmiri, different close helping relationship with implicit 2 lakh followers, was besides withheld with nary explanation. Both accounts besides spoke retired against the University Grants Commission (Promotion of Equity successful Higher Education Institutions) Regulations, 2026.
