An Indian court has deferred the content censorship case against Google, Facebook, Microsoft and other Internet companies until May 23.
According to the WallStreet Journal reports, the case which was slated to be heard by Judge Sudesh Kumar at the Patiala House court, will now be handled by another metropolitan magistrate Jay Thareja at the same court.
Last year, the Indian government asked Internet companies to screen online content on their websites and remove objectionable material before it goes live, following a complaint received from journalist, Vinay Rai, about websites posting objectionable content and promoting enmity between different groups on grounds of religion and race.
Justice Suresh Kait of the Delhi High court had issued summons to Facebook India, Google India and other Internet companies in India, asking them to remove all offensive content or risk facing criminal charges for hosting such content.
Most companies stated that it’s impossible for them to pre-screen content with billions of users accessing websites every day. They further argued that India’s information-technology law protects them from liability for content posted by users, and that blocking online content would curb the right of the users to freely express themselves on online platforms.
The Indian unit of Yahoo Inc. has successfully appealed to be removed from the case. Google, Facebook and Microsoft are planning to prove the case invalid. read more
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