Centre Defends 'Sahyog' Portal, Rejects X Corp's Censorship Allegations in Karnataka High Court

The Government of India has strongly objected to X Corp's (formerly Twitter) description of the ‘Sahyog’ portal as a “censorship tool,” calling the claim “unfortunate” and “condemnable.” The rebuttal came in a detailed submission before the Karnataka High Court, where X is challenging India’s content-blocking mechanism under the Information Technology (IT) Act.

Clarifying Sections 69A and 79(3)(b) of the IT Act

X Corp argued that Section 79(3)(b) does not permit the government to issue content-blocking orders without adhering to the safeguards outlined in Section 69A and its corresponding rules, as reinforced in the Shreya Singhal Supreme Court judgment.

In response, the government clarified:

Section 69A explicitly allows content blocking under specified conditions with multiple procedural safeguards.

Section 79(3)(b) is fundamentally different and only outlines the due diligence obligations for intermediaries.

Failure to comply with notices under Section 79(3)(b) may result in loss of safe harbour protections under Rule 7 of the IT Rules, 2021.

The Centre said X Corp had wrongly equated binding blocking orders under Section 69A with notices under Section 79, misinterpreting the legal framework despite clear distinctions made by the Supreme Court.

Sahyog Portal Described as Coordination Tool, Not Censorship Mechanism

Defending the Sahyog portal, the government stated it is a facilitative platform aimed at improving coordination between intermediaries and law enforcement agencies.
The portal:

Automates the notice issuance process under the IT Act.

Helps in the removal or disabling of unlawful online content.

Supports timely and lawful compliance by intermediaries.

“It is misleading to call Sahyog a censorship tool. X is misrepresenting itself as a content creator, not an intermediary. That is a false narrative,” the government’s statement added.

X Corp's Legal Standing Questioned

The Centre also highlighted:

X Corp is a foreign commercial entity and holds no inherent right to host or defend third-party content under Indian law.

The Karnataka High Court had earlier ruled that Articles 19 and 21 of the Indian Constitution do not apply to the company.

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