The Delhi High Court on Friday issued notice to the Central Government on a plea filed by Abhijeet Dipke seeking the unblocking of social media accounts associated with “Cockroach Janta Party”, but declined to grant any immediate interim relief.
The High Court also directed the review committee constituted under the Information Technology Rules to examine the dispute, hear all parties involved and take a decision on the blocking of the accounts.
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The matter came up before the court amid arguments by Dipke’s counsel that the blocked account was satirical in nature and that the blocking order had been passed without granting an opportunity of hearing to the affected party.
During the proceedings, the petitioner sought immediate restoration of access to the accounts. However, the court observed that the issue required a detailed examination and could not be adjudicated without a comprehensive affidavit from the Centre.
The bench noted that the IT Rules already provide for a review mechanism through a committee that periodically examines blocking orders and assesses whether such directions were issued in accordance with law.
Accordingly, the court directed the review committee to hear the contentions of both sides and place its decision on record before the High Court.
The court also recorded submissions made on behalf of the petitioner regarding the alleged lack of transparency surrounding the blocking order. It was argued that while confidentiality may apply to intermediaries or third parties, the blocking order could not be withheld from judicial scrutiny.
The Centre opposed the plea for interim relief during the hearing.
The High Court clarified that it was not inclined to immediately examine the blocking order itself at this stage since the review committee was already seized of the matter. The bench, however, said that if necessary, it could call for the relevant records at a later stage.
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