P&H High Court Seeks Response From Centre, Punjab Govt In Plea Challenging Takedown Of Journalist's Facebook Page
The Punjab & Haryana High Court has sought a response from the Union of India, Facebook and the State of Punjab on a plea challenging the removal of a journalist's Facebook page. The Court noted that the respondents require time to obtain instructions in the matter.
Justice Jagmohan Bansal was hearing a writ petition filed under Articles 226/227 of the Constitution seeking the setting aside of the decision to remove the petitioner's Facebook page “Maninderjeet Sidhu” from the platform of respondent No.1.
The petitioner, a journalist associated with Lok Awaz TV, contended that his page, which had approximately 4.5 lakh followers, was blocked without any prior notice or reasons being furnished, and that he was only informed that the action had been taken pursuant to a notice from Government of India or law enforcement agencies under Section 79(3)(b) of the Information Technology Act, 2000. Counsel appearing for the respondents sought time to obtain instructions.
The Court took note of the submissions and directed that respondent No.1 be served through its authorised person.
The matter was adjourned to 07.05.2026 for further consideration.
Case Title: Maninderjeet Singh vs. Facebook Meta Platform Inc. & Ors. [CWP-9023-2026]