Bengaluru: Social media platforms must abide by Indian laws, the Karnataka High Court observed on Wednesday while dismissing petitions filed by X challenging the Centre’s directions to block certain accounts and posts.

Observing that regulation of social media was “the need of the hour”, the court stressed that microblogging platforms cannot be allowed to operate in India without oversight. ADVERTISEMENT

“Social media companies cannot be allowed to work unregulated in India,” the High Court said. Every company seeking to operate in the country “needs to know this”, it added.

The bench observed that X must comply with the country’s laws and clarified that the Constitutional protection of free speech under Article 19 is available only to Indian citizens, not foreign entities.

The bench

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