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Supreme Court Stays High Court Proceedings Against Centre's Sahyog Portal Pending Final Transfer Decision
The has intervened in the ongoing legal battles surrounding the central government’s 'Sahyog portal,' issuing a stay on all active proceedings before the and the . A Bench comprising Chief Justice of India Surya Kant, Justice Joymalya Bagchi, and Justice V. Mohana passed the order on , in response to filed by the .
A Landscape of Legal Challenges
The dispute centres on the of the Sahyog portal, an initiative managed by the via the . The portal acts as a mechanism for government agencies to request that online intermediaries remove or disable access to specific digital content.
Petitioners, including (formerly Twitter), the , comedian Kunal Kamra, and Senior Advocate , have challenged this framework. They argue that the portal establishes a parallel that bypasses the mandated by , and the associated 2009 Blocking Rules. Concerns have been raised that this process violates and threatens guarantees by allowing content removal without prior notice or a formal hearing.
The Union’s Push for Consolidation
Represented by Solicitor General , the sought to move these matters to the Supreme Court to ensure consistent legal interpretation. The Centre argued that with multiple High Courts evaluating the same constitutional questions—specifically regarding —there remains a significant risk of conflicting judicial pronouncements. By consolidating these cases, the government aims to establish a uniform standard for how intermediary obligations and government blocking powers are exercised.
Judicial Intervention
The Supreme Court’s order effectively halts further movement in four distinct legal challenges: * Two appeals from the ( and ). * Two before the (Kunal Kamra and ).
The stay is an , with the court issuing notice returnable by . On that date, the bench will decide whether to formally transfer the cases for a consolidated hearing to definitively resolve the legal status of the portal.
Legal Implications
The core of this conflict lies in the tension between state-led content moderation and protections for intermediaries. The petitioners contend that Section 79(3)(b) is a safe harbour provision, not a grant of power for the government to issue independent . Conversely, the government maintains that the portal is merely a tool for streamlining the communication of lawful requests to intermediaries, rather than a new exercise of authority.
As the matter awaits further consideration, the legal community is watching closely to see if the Supreme Court will provide a definitive interpretation of these powers, which could fundamentally reshape the regulation of digital content in India.
