X will appeal Indian court ruling allowing 'arbitrary takedown orders'

X, a major social media platform, is challenging an Indian court order that would require it to comply with millions of takedown requests without due process. The order allows police officers to issue arbitrary takedown orders through a secretive online portal called the Sahyog, which X has labeled as a "censorship portal." X argues that the Sahyog enables officers to order content removal based solely on allegations of "illegality," without judicial review or due process for the speakers, and threatens platforms with criminal liability for non-compliance. The company is deeply concerned about the ruling and plans to appeal it in order to defend free expression. This is not the first time X has clashed with the Indian government over content moderation issues. The platform has previously challenged orders requiring it to block specific posts and accounts, and has also faced threats of jailing its employees for reversing content moderation decisions.