Now Reading: Kerala HC seeks Centre, State reply on blocking NoCap Facebook page
-
01
Kerala HC seeks Centre, State reply on blocking NoCap Facebook page
The Story in Brief
The Kerala High Court on Monday (26 October) sought responses from the Union and State governments on whether any order was issued to Meta Platforms to block the Facebook page of independent Malayalam digital news platform NoCap. Justice Ziyad Rahman A.A. admitted a petition by NoCap's Chief Editor Hyder Ali K. and granted time for government counsels to get instructions.
According to the plea, NoCap, established in November 2023, received a notification on 28 September that its content was restricted in India under Section 79(3)(b) of the Information Technology Act, 2000. The petitioner argued the blocking order was not disclosed, no hearing was given, and the action violated fundamental rights under Article 14 and Article 19(1)(a) and 19(1)(g) of the Constitution.
The court also issued notice to Meta by speed post. The matter is posted for further consideration on 5 November. The petitioner seeks restoration of the page and a declaration that blocking orders must be communicated to the affected user.
Indian Opinion Analysis
Both livelaw.in and barandbench.com delivered uniform straight reporting on the Kerala High Court hearing, quoting the same petition details, court order, and November 5 next date. Neither outlet editorialised or added context beyond the court proceedings. The coverage is identical wire-style reporting. The key point is that the court has paused for government instructions before any ruling on the merits, leaving the core issue, whether Section 79(3)(b) blocking orders must be disclosed to the affected party, unresolved until the November 5 hearing.
Coverage: 2 sources, 2 neutral
Sources (2): livelaw.in (neutral report), barandbench.com (neutral report)
This brief was synthesised by AI from the 2 sources linked above, so one read covers every framing they carry. Methodology and corrections.
