The Delhi High Court has issued a directive to the social media platform X (formerly Twitter), mandating the disclosure of user information for accounts that shared a contentious video involving BJP leader Shazia Ilmi. The court has provided X with a 36-hour window to comply with this order, emphasizing the urgency and seriousness of the matter.
This legal action stems from an incident that occurred during a televised debate on July 26, 2024, where Shazia Ilmi participated in a discussion moderated by journalist Rajdeep Sardesai on India Today. The debate, which focused on Kargil Vijay Diwas and the politicization of the armed forces, became contentious when Ilmi's microphone was allegedly muted, prompting her to exit the show. Following her departure, a video surfaced online depicting Ilmi in a heated exchange with a cameraperson from India Today, who continued filming her without consent.
Ilmi subsequently filed a defamation suit against Sardesai, asserting that the video was recorded without her permission and shared on social media in a manner that violated her privacy and portrayed her in a negative light. The Delhi High Court, upon reviewing the case, determined that the video was indeed recorded after Ilmi had left the show, thus constituting a breach of her privacy. The court criticized Sardesai and India Today for lacking the authority to record and disseminate the footage, ordering its removal from all social media platforms.
Despite the court's directive, the video continued to circulate online, leading Ilmi to file a fresh application seeking the removal of the video from various platforms, including X and Instagram. The court responded by instructing both X and Meta (the parent company of Instagram) to take down the video and to provide information about the users who had shared it. The court emphasized that the unauthorized sharing of the video violated Ilmi's right to privacy and could not be permitted to remain online.
Furthermore, the court issued contempt notices to the users who had uploaded the video on X, highlighting that their actions were in direct violation of the court's previous orders. The court also directed X to take appropriate action against these accounts in accordance with its service agreement and the Information Technology Rules of 2021.
This case underscores the judiciary's commitment to upholding individual privacy rights in the digital age and sets a precedent for the accountability of social media platforms and users in respecting legal directives and personal privacy.
0 Comments
Thank you for your response. It will help us to improve in the future.