Delhi High Court issues notice to center in Facebook, WhatsApp challenge to the requirement under IT Rules 2021 to trace the first originator.
The plea submitted that the outlay goes against end-to-end encryption policy, and it would make “who-said-what and who-shared-what” data vulnerable to private companies.
When the central government lawyer asked for a postponement, Senior Advocate Mukul Rohatgi, coming out for WhatsApp, requested the Court to issue a notice in the matter.
The Court agreed to the given statement, returnable by October 22.
What do the new guidelines say?
The new rules require “significant social media intermediaries” like WhatsApp to “trace” the origin of particular messages sent on the service.
The Application authority also argued that the rules are unconstitutional and are against fundamental rights.
It is understood that it can be problematic to commoners and even get them into jail for sharing anything that doesn’t fit with government norms, even if they didn’t find anything inappropriate.
The petition also stated that no other country compels intermediaries to change their systems to identify the first originator of information on end-to-end encrypted messaging services.
WhatsApp vs Government
WhatsApp filed a case against the government of India on Tuesday, May 25, regarding the new IT rules, which stated to share information with the government and operate the originator accounts that share misleading information.
The messaging company denied accepting the regulations referring to the privacy of users.
High Court
The government issued the new IT rules to avoid the mass spreading of misleading information. These IT guidelines were released in February, giving social media platforms including Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and Koo three months to adapt.
Many social media accepted, but WhatsApp filed a petition against the government.
The rules work on specific content that includes revenge porn, monthly compliance reports for Indian users, self-regulation mechanisms, and an oversight mechanism created by the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology.
The government had said that these new rules would empower ordinary people, and enactment on social media will be observed to safeguard victims of social abuse.
Freedom of speech is an integral part of our Constitution, and the Indian judiciary and media are essential pillars of democracy in India, said the government officials.
