Sahyog Portal Case – Section 79(3)(b) of IT Act ,2000

Why in News ? The Karnataka High Court has dismissed X Corp’s petition against the Union government’s Sahyog portal, which enables content takedown under Section 79(3)(b) of the Information Technology (IT) Act, 2000.

Who is Involved?

• Petitioner: X Corp (formerly Twitter)
• Respondent: Union of India

What is Sahyog Portal?

• Launched by Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) in October 2024.
• Run by Indian Cybercrime Coordination Centre (I4C).
• It is a central system to remove illegal content from social media, websites, and other online platforms.
• Based on Section 79(3)(b) of IT Act, 2000:

Safe Harbour:

• Platforms are protected from legal liability for content posted by users.
• But protection is lost if a government notice asks them to remove illegal content and they fail to act quickly.

What X Corp Claimed (Petitioner’s Arguments)

1. Sahyog is a “censorship portal” → bypasses proper procedure under Section 69A.
2. Section 79(3)(b) is only about safe harbour, not about removing content directly.
3. Section 69A is the only legal way to restrict content and has safeguards like:
   • Committee review
   • Reasoned written order
   • Possibility of judicial review
4. Supreme Court in Shreya Singhal (2015): Section 66A was struck down; Section 69A upheld with safeguards.
5. Sahyog allows thousands of government officials to issue takedown notices without proper legal checks.
6. DigiPub (digital news media group) said Sahyog is hurting journalism

What Government Said (Union Govt’s Arguments):

1. Safe harbour is a legal privilege, not a right.
2. Sections 79 and 69A are separate → both work independently.
3. Ignoring Sahyog notices means losing safe harbour, not direct censorship.
4. X Corp is a foreign company → cannot claim Article 19 free speech rights, which are for Indian citizens only.
5. X follows stricter laws in other countries (like U.S.) but resists Indian rules.

High Court’s Decision (Justice M. Nagaprasanna):

• X Corp’s petition was dismissed → “no merit.”
• Sahyog is an “instrument of public good” and helps cooperation between citizens, platforms, and government.
• Article 19 rights apply only to Indian citizens → X Corp cannot claim them.
• India cannot be treated as a “playground”” where platforms ignore laws.
• Criticism of X: it follows U.S. Take It Down Act, 2025, but not Indian rules.
• Shreya Singhal (2015) → related to 2011 IT Rules; cannot be applied directly to 2021 IT Rules, which are new and different.

Section 79(3)(b) – IT Act, 2000:

What it Says ?

• Section 79 gives intermediaries (social media, ISPs, websites) “safe harbour” protection → they are not legally responsible for user-generated content.
• Safe harbour is conditional.

Section 79(3)(b) Condition:

If an intermediary receives actual knowledge (a notice) from a government or law enforcement agency that certain content is unlawful, it must expeditiously remove or disable access to that content.

• If the platform fails to act, it loses the safe harbour protection and can be held legally responsible for the content.