The Punjab and Haryana high court has ruled that whenever the government directs a social media platform to block a page or remove online content, a copy of the intimation sent to the intermediary must also be provided to the affected user.
The court held that informing the user is an essential requirement under the principles of natural justice, even though the Information Technology (Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media Ethics Code) Rules, 2021, do not explicitly prescribe such an obligation.
The ruling came in a petition filed by Haryana 24 News Network Private Limited, a news platform operating in Haryana, which approached the high court after Meta blocked its social media page in India on August 21, following an order issued by Haryana Police.
Justice Tribhuvan Dahiya, who presided over the matter, observed that although the Information Technology Act, 2000, and the rules framed under it do not provide for a hearing to the affected user before the government issues a blocking intimation to the intermediary, the user is directly affected by the resulting restriction on access to their online content or page.
The court noted that the issue of providing prior notice to a user before blocking a social media page was not under consideration in the present case. However, the question of providing a post-decisional hearing before the platform’s grievance officer was relevant to the dispute.
{{/usCountry}}The court noted that the issue of providing prior notice to a user before blocking a social media page was not under consideration in the present case. However, the question of providing a post-decisional hearing before the platform’s grievance officer was relevant to the dispute.
{{/usCountry}}The bench observed that such a hearing would be meaningful only if the affected user had knowledge of the action taken against them, including the contents of the government’s intimation and the material relied upon to issue it.
“In its absence, he cannot defend himself and the very purpose of providing the grievance redressal mechanism under the rule gets defeated,” the court observed.
Emphasising the importance of procedural fairness, the high court stated that every procedure established by law must be fair and reasonable and must comply with the basic principles of natural justice, including the right to a fair hearing.
The court acknowledged that sub-rule (2) of Rule 3 of the Information Technology (Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media Ethics Code) Rules, 2021, does not expressly require the government or its agency to notify the person responsible for uploading the information before sending a blocking intimation to the intermediary.
However, the bench held that such an obligation is inherent in the principles of natural justice and must be read into the rule.
Accordingly, the court ruled that a copy of the government’s intimation must be furnished to the affected user at the time it is sent to the social media intermediary.
The court observed that this requirement would ensure compliance with the fundamental principles of natural justice and help make the procedure constitutionally valid.
Apart from the issue of providing notice to affected users, the high court also examined the authority under which the blocking order against Haryana 24 News Network’s page had been issued.
The court found that the order had been issued by the senior superintendent of police (SSP), Yamunanagar. It held that the officer was not authorised to issue such an order under the applicable provisions of the 2021 Rules.
The state government argued that the powers relating to the blocking of the social media page had been delegated to the SSP. However, the court did not accept this contention.
Referring to the applicable rules, the bench observed that the prescribed procedure requires the authorised officer to be of a rank not below that of an inspector general of police (IGP).
The court held that the blocking action initiated on the basis of the SSP’s order was in violation of the applicable rules.
In view of its findings, the high court directed the Yamunanagar SSP to ensure that the social media page of Haryana 24 News Network was restored within 24 hours of the receipt of a certified copy of the court’s order.