Plea in Supreme Court seeks to regulate social media platforms

New Delhi: A petition has been filed in the Supreme Court seeking regulation of Twitter and other social media platforms through guidelines making them culpable under criminal and civil laws until a specific law is passed by Parliament. The petition, likely to come up for hearing in the coming days, claimed that due to the lack of government control and intervention Twitter acts as it deems fit.

Advocate Mahek Maheshwari, who filed the plea in personal capacity, has sought a direction to the Centre to formulate a framework or guidelines to appeal against any kind of grievances against Twitter and all such social media platforms within designated time frame till a proper law comes into force.

The plea has also sought directions to frame guidelines to entrust responsibility on the officers of ministries of electronics and IT and Information & Broadcasting to deal with grievance/complaint against social media platforms.


"Due to lack of the government control and intervention on the social media platform Twitter, act the way they fit their way, ideology and desires.

"Twitter is not having government control so it freely act unethically and shadow ban many accounts which does not suit its ideological inclination," the petition said.

He added that "there should be no parallel ecosystem act to undermine the highest judiciary of the nation and creation of unrest, dissatisfaction among the masses."

The petition alleged that Twitter crossed all limits of lawlessness when it "supported the mocking of the highest judiciary of nation that is also institutionally of Supreme Court of Nation and individually of the judges as well".