The government's move to potentially expand the use of Section 69A of the Information Technology Act beyond the Ministry of Electronics and IT (MeitY) comes at a time when the provision has already been under scrutiny for how it is used and its impact on India's online landscape.
Originally designed as a narrowly tailored power to block specific unlawful content, Section 69A has, over the years, evolved into an instrument for everything from app bans and account-level takedowns to restricting access to documentaries and news platforms.
What is Section 69A of the IT Act?
Section 69A of the Information Technology Act, 2000, gives the Central government the power to block public access to online content in the interest of sovereignty and integrity of India, defence, security of the State, friendly relations with foreign States, and public order.
The provision operates through the Information Technology (Procedure and Safeguards for Blocking for Access of Information by Public) Rules, 2009, which lay down a process involving requests from nodal officers, examination by a committee, and final approval at the Secretary level.
The provision was upheld by the Supreme Court in Shreya Singhal vs Union of India, where the court struck down Section 66A but retained 69A.
When is it used?
Over the years, Section 69A has become the government's primary legal tool to respond to a wide spectrum of online concerns ranging from national security threats and geopolitical tensions to misinformation, public order issues, and sensitive political content.
It has been invoked both through regular processes and emergency powers, the latter allowing blocking without prior hearing in urgent situations (but allowing appeal post the blocking).
What has been blocked under it?
Social media & platforms
Gaming and entertainment
News & information
Utilities
Have there been legal battles over Sec 69A?
The most significant challenge came in Twitter vs Union of India in 2022–23, where Twitter contested multiple blocking orders covering 1,474 accounts and 175 tweets.
The company argued that:
However, the Karnataka High Court dismissed the plea in June 2023, backing the government’s interpretation that blocking powers can extend to full accounts. The court also imposed a ₹50 lakh fine on Twitter.
What are experts saying about the proposed expansion?
With reports indicating that the government may allow other ministries to exercise blocking powers, experts are flagging structural concerns.
Garima Saxena, Programme Manager at The Dialogue, said, "The proposal's objective appears legitimate, as we are clearly grappling with misinformation and harmful and, at times, borderline illegal AI-generated content."
"While it is also understandable that the government is going for a quicker response, the legitimacy of the problem does not automatically establish the legitimacy of the solution," Saxena warned.
She pointed out that Section 69A survived constitutional scrutiny (in the Shreya Singhal case) because it was treated as a narrowly drawn power with procedural safeguards.
"Any reform that multiplies the number of ministries exercising blocking powers risks weakening the very architecture that helped Section 69A withstand challenge in the first place," she explained.
She also opined that the proposal to expand the ambit of Sec 69A refers to fake, misleading, or harmful content and deepfakes, which, she pointed out, do not fit the statutory grounds in Section 69A.
"This is likely to encourage the use of national-security/public-order blocking provisions for a much broader class of online speech problems," she added.
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