Chennai: Madras High Court on Wednesday explained that it would not delay hearing the request to challenge the validity of information technology (guidelines for intermediary and digital media ethics code), 2021, in the absence of a fixed HC process by the Supreme Court.
The first bench Head of Justice Sanjib Banerjee and Justice Senthilkumar Ramamoorthy made observations as the center informing the court that the petition had been submitted in SC to transfer similar petitions challenging rules.
“There is no stay in the process.
We can continue this problem and decide.
SC will benefit from the opinion of the High Court,” said the bench, refused to postpone the trial.
The court then directed the center to submit Affidavit against three weeks and postponed the trial to August 11.
The bench made observations on the application transferred by the Association of Digital News publishers, challenging rules.
The association looks for temporary commandments that hold the center of taking any action based on the rules.
It quotes the problem with the provisions including the rule of 16, which gives strength to the Secretary of the Union of the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting to block public access to any digital information.
Singer Carnatic T M Plea Krishna, that the rules allude to their rights as artists and cultural / political commentators by imposing a cold effect on free speech, also delayed in front of the court.