If Madras High Court doesn't decide by April 24, ban on TikTok will be lifted: Supreme Court
Chinese app TikTok
The Supreme Court of India on Monday told Chinese company Bytedance Technology, maker of hugely popular video sharing app TikTok, that if Madras the High Court fails to decide by April 24 its plea for relief then its ban order will stand vacated.
The company had told the court that the Madras High Court gave the order banning the app in India without hearing its side of the story. It also said that the ban has led to a los of crores of rupees.
The Supreme Court bench then said the next date of hearing is April 24, and if the high court doesn't decide on the plea against ban, the order will stand vacated.
Google had last week blocked access to TikTok on its Play Store in India. The decision was taken hours after the Madras High Court refused a request by Bytedance Technology to suspend a ban on TikTok, putting its future in one of its key markets in doubt.
The Madras High Court had on April 3 asked the central government to ban TikTok, saying it encouraged pornography and made child users vulnerable to sexual predators. It's ruling came after an individual launched a public interest litigation calling for a ban.
The Centre had sent a letter to Apple and Google to abide by the state court's order.
TikTok, which allows users to create and share short videos with special effects, has become hugely popular in India but has been criticised by some politicians who say its content is inappropriate.
It had been downloaded more than 240 million times in India, app analytics firm Sensor Tower said in February. More than 30 million users in India installed it in January 2019, 12 times more than in the same month last year.
Jokes, clips and footage related to India's thriving movie industry dominate the app's platform, along with memes and videos in which youngsters, some scantily clad, lip-sync and dance to popular music.
Bytedance challenged the Madras High Court's ban order in the Supreme Court earlier this month, saying it went against freedom of speech rights in India.
The top court had referred the case back to the Madras High Court, where a judge rejected Bytedance's request to put the ban order on hold.
TikTok had earlier said in a statement that it had faith in the Indian judicial system and was "optimistic about an outcome that would be well received by millions" of its users.
(With inputs from agencies)