Delhi Police may soon act against social media posts that criticised Prime Minister Narendra Modi and other leaders in harsh terms. The posts came up during and after a protest held by the Cockroach Janta Party at Jantar Mantar. Sources close to the matter confirmed this.
Police plan to send notices to social media companies. These notices will ask the platforms to take down posts, videos and comments that cross the line into abuse.
Review process underway
A source in the police department said officers have gone through content shared during the protest. Based on this review, notices will target posts found to be abusive. The source added that a separate exercise is running right now. Its aim is to track down such content on different platforms.
Officers are also checking two things. First, whether any post broke existing laws. Second, whether any post carried the risk of disturbing peace in public spaces.
Social media monitoring team on the job
The Delhi Police has a dedicated Social Media Monitoring Team. This team has kept a constant watch on online platforms since the protest. Their job is to flag content connected to the demonstration that could count as objectionable.
Legal angle
Indian law allows action against online content under provisions of the Information Technology Act. This includes Section 69A, which lets the government direct platforms to block content seen as a threat to public order or national security. Police can also invoke provisions under the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, which replaced the Indian Penal Code in 2023, for content that amounts to defamation or incitement.
Social media platforms in India are required to comply with government takedown orders within set timeframe once notices are issued. Non-compliance can lead to platforms losing safe harbour protections under IT rules.