Social media platform X has informed the Delhi High Court that a police order demanding the removal of accounts belonging to two Indian digital rights organisations was fraudulent and had been submitted by an individual impersonating a senior Delhi police official.
The disputed notices, filed through X’s online reporting system, sought the removal of accounts operated by the Internet Freedom Foundation (IFF) and the Software Freedom Law Centre India (SFLC). The organisations were accused of defaming the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), a Hindu nationalist organisation linked to the ideological origins of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).
During proceedings before the Delhi High Court, a lawyer representing X said the company had conducted an internal investigation and discovered that the notices had been submitted by someone falsely claiming to represent Delhi Police.
Delhi Police had not immediately responded to requests for comment.
Free-speech advocates have repeatedly criticised India’s content removal regulations, arguing that they are being used to restrict dissent and limit freedom of expression in the world’s most populous country.
The Indian government, however, maintains that such directives are intended to address unlawful and misleading online content while safeguarding legitimate expression. The country has more than 1.1 billion internet subscribers.
The disputed notices reportedly invoked Indian regulations requiring social media platforms to act on content removal requests within three hours. X had forwarded the notices to the affected organisations before confirming their authenticity.
The Internet Freedom Foundation subsequently approached the Delhi High Court, seeking the cancellation of the orders. The alleged directives triggered widespread criticism on social media, with Amnesty International and India’s main opposition party also questioning their legality.
According to the petition, the two organisations had also received legal notices the previous week, purportedly issued on behalf of the RSS. The notices demanded that they stop criticising and documenting government-issued content blocking orders.
