Yoga guru Baba Ramdev Today (Dec 19) took exception to X (formerly Twitter) sharing written submissions filed as part of its appeal against a 2019 Delhi High Court global content blocking order. X had recently filed written submissions in its appeal against a 2019 order directing the global takedown of online posts with excerpts from the book ‘Godman to Tycoon – The Untold Story of Baba Ramdev.’
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NEW DELHI: Yoga Guru Baba Ramdev expressed strong objection to social media platform X (formerly known as Twitter) for sharing legal documents with the media in an ongoing case about blocking online content globally.
The case revolves around a 2019 Delhi High Court order directing the global removal of certain excerpts from the book
“Godman to Tycoon – The Untold Story of Baba Ramdev.”
X recently submitted its legal arguments to appeal the 2019 ruling.
However, during a hearing before Justices Rekha Palli and Saurabh Banerjee, Ramdev’s lawyer strongly criticized X for allegedly sharing these submissions with the media before providing them to him.
Ramdev’s lawyer, Senior Advocate Darpan Wadhwa, expressed displeasure over this development, saying:
“They (X) did not just share the written submissions with us, but also in media. Yesterday we saw on Bar and Bench, their entire written submissions were there. You fight the matter here or in the media? I am surprised. We filed our submission as we are supposed to, not with Bar and Bench.”
The Court, in response, remarked:
“Mr. Wadhwa, everyone is doing it now.”
Advocate Tejas Kaaria, representing Meta (Facebook), highlighted a key legal question: whether Indian laws can override international jurisdictions.
Wadhwa countered this by stating:
“Why would an intermediary even bother about it? You remove content as directed. You are intermediary. You have no right to (comment) about a matter pending in Supreme Court.”
Social media platforms, including X and Meta, argue that instead of globally blocking the content, the Court could have ordered geo-blocking to restrict access to the content within India.
X’s representatives voiced concerns that global content takedown orders could lead to a dangerous precedent, saying:
“It would end up becoming a ‘race to the bottom’ if content is pulled down from the internet globally based on obscure court orders from one country.”
The case pertains to excerpts from the book “Godman to Tycoon – The Untold Story of Baba Ramdev” written by Priyanka Pathak Narain and published by Juggernaut Books. Baba Ramdev claimed the book contained defamatory content, leading to a series of legal battles.
- 2018 Injunction: In September 2018, Justice Anu Malhotra issued an injunction, restraining Juggernaut Books from publishing, distributing, or selling parts of the book deemed as making “unfounded claims” about Ramdev. The Court directed that portions of the book discussing the death of Ramdev’s associate Shankar Dev Ji and the disappearance of his guru Swami Yogananda must be deleted if the book was to be sold or published.
- 2019 Order: A year later, Ramdev filed another plea to block the circulation of ‘defamatory’ excerpts online, as the 2018 injunction was still valid. In October 2019, Justice Prathiba Singh ruled in Ramdev’s favor, ordering platforms like Twitter, Facebook, Google, and YouTube to remove such content globally. The Court emphasized that the content must be globally blocked to prevent its access in India through VPNs or other methods.
X, Google, and Meta have challenged the 2019 order.
They argue that global blocking sets an unfavorable precedent and raises questions about jurisdictional overreach.
The case is now scheduled for the next hearing on February 11, 2025.
This legal battle underscores the complexities of balancing freedom of expression, international jurisdiction, and the power of courts to regulate global content.
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