'In talks with X, Grok': Will India take action after Musk's X sues Modi govt over alleged censorship?

The Indian government on Thursday (March 20) said that it is in talks with Elon Musk's X and Grok to determine which Indian law has been violated.

This comes after Elon Musk's X sued the Indian government in the Karnataka High Court, alleging what it called unlawful content regulation and arbitrary censorship.

The Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY), however, said that they have "not sent any notice to Grok or X" in this regard.

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"MeiTY is in talks with X and Grok. MeitY officials are interacting with the officials of X and examining at what stage it specifically violated and which Indian law has been violated," Indian news agency ANI reported citing government sources.

The social media platform challenged the Central government for the way it uses Section 79(3)(b) of the Information Technology Act (IT Act), claiming that the government authorities in India are bypassing proper legal procedures and setting up an illegal system to block content online.

It further alleged that the government is undermining free expression online. X feared that random blocking orders could damage its platform and user trust.

The company has warned that this could lead to widespread censorship in India, stressing that these actions are hurting its business in the country.

According to the IT Act, platforms like X can lose their legal protection, known as a safe harbour, if they do not remove or block content when told by government authorities.

Elon Musk's X argued that this section does not allow the government to block content, adding that they are misusing the provision, bypassing the structured legal process outlined in Section 69A.

(With inputs from agencies)