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X Corp (formerly Twitter) is contesting the Indian government's methods for ordering content blocking on its platform.
X Corp labels the government's "Sahyog portal" a "censorship portal" because it allows numerous government agencies to issue blocking orders using a standardized template.
Section 69A vs. Section 79(3)(b)
X Corp argues that content blocking should only be done under Section 69A of the IT Act.
Section 69A has safeguards (established in the Shreya Singhal case) to prevent misuse.
They claim that Section 79(3)(b) is being misused, as it was only intended to define the liability of intermediaries, not to be a direct content blocking tool.
The government argues that section 79 orders are notification of illegal content, not direct blocking orders.
X Corp has petitioned the Karnataka High Court, seeking to restrict blocking orders to Section 69A and prevent potential coercive action against them for non-compliance with section 79(3)(b) based orders.
Government's Stance
The government maintains that the court will determine the portal's legality and that section 79 orders are merely notifications.
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