WhatsApp moves court against India’s IT rules, calls them unconstitutional

In response to pressure exerted by the Indian Government on various social media platforms to comply with the new IT (Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media Ethics Code) Rules 2021, Facebook-owned messaging app Whatsapp on Tuesday moved the Delhi High Court to challenge one of the privacy clauses that it believes is in conflict with its user data protection policy, reported Reuters.

The petition by Whatsapp was filed on May 25, the final date of IT rules compliance that were introduced on February 25, 2021.

According to Reuters, the lawsuit filed by Whatsapp pleads Delhi High Court to declare one of the new social media rules a violation of the Right to Privacy granted by India’s constitution as it requires social media companies to identify the “first originator of a message or information” as per authorities demand.

Though the new law requires the identity of the person credibly accused of wrongdoings, the messaging company argues that it would have to break its end-to-end encryption policy to adhere to the guidelines.

The new IT rules that come into effect from May 26 will require social media platforms like Twitter, Facebook, WhatsApp, Instagram among others – to follow additional due diligence, including the appointment of a chief compliance officer, nodal contact person, and resident grievance officer.    

Centre argues that the new laws are aimed at making the social media platforms more accountable and responsible for the content hosted on their platform.