Internet Control

The bench of Justices N.V. Ramana, R. Subhash Reddy and B.R. Gavai, declared that the freedom of speech and expression and the freedom to practice any profession or carry on any trade, business or occupation over the medium of Internet enjoys constitutional protection under Article 19(1)(a) and Article 19(1)(g) respectively. While such freedom is not absolute, the restrictions imposed on it should be in consonance with the mandate under Article 19(2) and Article 19(6) of the Constitution, inclusive of the test of proportionality, the bench ruled.

The bench, however, was unable to accept the prayers of the petitioners, Anuradha Bhasin and the Congress leader Ghulam Nabi Azad, to quash the government orders leading to suspension and shutting down of Internet, mobile and fixed line telecommunication services because no such orders were placed before it. The petitioners could not get the orders on their own and the government too, for inexplicable reasons, refused to place them for scrutiny. The bench expressed its dismay over the government’s refusal to do so, even while making it mandatory to publish all orders in force and any future orders to enable affected persons to challenge it before the High Court or any other appropriate forum.

Finding itself in a dilemma of how to quash “non-existent” orders to suspend Internet and mobile services, the bench chose the next best option of asking the government to constitute a review committee to review such orders once in every seven working days as suspension of such services can be resorted to only for a temporary duration. The bench also directed the competent authorities to review all orders now in force for suspending Internet services forthwith.