Thread by @internetfreedom

Can Facebook India wash its hands off its role in the Delhi Riots? The Supreme Court says NO — it has upheld the summons issued by the Peace and Harmony Committee of Delhi Assembly and has made some pretty important observations.

Read our analysis 👇🏾
internetfreedom.in/explained-supr…
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In the wake of the bloody Delhi Riots, the Delhi Assembly formed the Peace Committee, to try and understand what caused these riots. Before long, it received complaints regarding Facebook's role — soon after, this @WSJ article went viral 👇🏾
wsj.com/articles/faceb…

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This led to the Parliamentary Committee on IT and the PaH Committee separately summoning Mr. Mohan, Facebook India head. Although he appeared before the Parliamentary Committee, he refused to appear before PaH Committee, stating that it did not fall under their legal domain.
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Upon his refusal, the PaH Committee summoned him again. Mr. Mohan filed a petition under Article 32 before the Supreme Court of India, asking to set aside the summons, and the Committee issued yet another summons for a competent senior representative of Facebook India.
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On 8th July '21, SC upheld the summons by Peace the Committee. The Court accepted that the significant functions of legislature went beyond simply enacting laws, and they could indeed conduct an inquisition. Mr. Mohan's petition was deemed premature.
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https://twitter.com/internetfreedom/status/1413129402636853250

Although the Committee can't recommend actions against persons with incriminating evidence and Facebook reps can refuse to answer questions that fall strictly within the domain of the Union Govt., this judgement still goes a long way in delineating the powers of legislatures.
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The judgement also makes several crucial observations on how Facebook functions & the power it wields in India. It noted that while Facebook has provided a platform to many, it has also become a medium for "disruptive messages, voices and ideologies"- internetfreedom.in/explained-supr…

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In conclusion: IFF welcomes this decision! This will help move forward the much-needed inquiry into events that led to the Delhi Riots. We are glad that the Delhi Assembly can conduct an exercise similar to the Parliamentary Committee, for which we had sent a representation.
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Keep our work going! IFF can function only because of Indian citizens who care about their digital and fundamental rights.

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