During an April 8 hearing, the high court described Ayyub’s tweets as ‘highly derogatory, inflammatory and communal’ and said urgent action was required
NEW DELHI — Social media platform X could lose its “safe harbour” protection under Indian law for not acting on allegedly offensive tweets by journalist Rana Ayyub, the Centre and Delhi Police told the Delhi High Court on Friday.
The submission was made before Justice Purushaindra Kumar Kaurav during a hearing on a petition related to Ayyub’s past social media posts.
According to the Centre, X did not comply with takedown notices issued by the police in September and December 2025 concerning the tweets. In a written note, the Centre argued that these notices, along with a trial court’s order directing registration of an FIR against Ayyub, constituted “actual knowledge” under the Information Technology Rules, 2021.
This, it said, created a legal obligation for X to remove the content expeditiously. “As X failed to act despite actual knowledge, its safe harbour protection under Section 79 is liable to be withdrawn,” the government submitted. It added that such inaction allows the continued spread of unlawful content.
During an April 8 hearing, the high court described Ayyub’s tweets as “highly derogatory, inflammatory and communal” and said urgent action was required. The court directed both Delhi Police and X to act, observing that authorities and the platform must “work in tandem” in such cases.
X’s Position
Social media platform X argued that the petition is not maintainable against it and should be directed at the content creator. It said authorities must follow the blocking procedure under Section 69A of the IT Act and the 2009 Blocking Rules.
X added that the tweets fall under provisions where the government can directly order blocking in the interest of sovereignty, public order, or national security.
Ayyub’s Response
Senior advocate Vrinda Grover, appearing for Ayyub, argued that the petition itself is not maintainable. The high court has granted Ayyub two weeks to file a detailed reply, including on the question of maintainability. The next hearing is scheduled for May 19.
The case originates from a complaint filed by advocate Amita Sachdeva, who alleged that Ayyub’s tweets between 2013 and 2017 insulted Hindu deities and figures such as Vinayak Damodar Savarkar. Based on the complaint, a trial court had ordered the registration of an FIR and directed the police to investigate.
Delhi Police later informed the court that the tweets in question are no longer available on the platform.
