A legal battle is unfolding between Elon Musk’s social media platform X and the Indian government over what X describes as an unconstitutional crackdown on online content. The dispute centers on new regulations implemented by Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s administration since 2023, which have significantly expanded the government’s ability to police the internet.
The core of the issue is a new system that allows a wide range of government agencies and police officials to issue takedown orders directly to tech firms. Previously, only India’s IT and Information & Broadcasting ministries could order content removal on a limited set of grounds, such as national security or public order. In 2023, the IT ministry empowered all federal and state agencies to issue takedown notices for “any information which is prohibited under any law,” and in October 2024, it launched a website called Sahyog to “facilitate” this process.
X has refused to join Sahyog, labeling it a “censorship portal,” and has filed a lawsuit in the Karnataka High Court. The company argues that the government’s actions are illegal and an infringement on free speech, as they are being used to suppress legitimate criticism of public officials and satire. Court filings reviewed by Reuters show that between March 2024 and June 2025, federal and state agencies ordered X to remove approximately 1,400 posts or accounts. These orders included demands to remove news reports about a deadly railway station stampede, as well as cartoons that unfavorably depicted the prime minister or mocked local politicians.
The Indian government, in its court filings, defends its actions by stating that the measures are necessary to combat a proliferation of unlawful content and ensure online accountability. It claims that other major tech companies, including Meta and Google, support its approach. The government also points to examples of misinformation, such as fabricated images of a prominent politician’s son, to justify its requests. However, some of the posts cited in the takedown orders remain online, including a 2023 post from an account with a few hundred followers that described a senior ruling-party politician as “useless,” which a police inspector deemed likely to “create serious communal tension.”
The conflict comes at a sensitive time, as Musk, who has expressed a warm public rapport with Modi, is looking to expand his business ventures, including Tesla and Starlink, in India. The outcome of this legal challenge could have significant implications for internet freedom in one of the world’s largest online markets.
