Google withholds Dhruv Rathee's "defamatory" video in India

Google has withheld a "defamatory" YouTube video by social media influencer Dhruv Rathee in India, the company told the Delhi High Court on Tuesday, Aug 11 after the video allegedly hurt religious sentiments.

Google made the statement before Justice Swarana Kanta Sharma while hearing a petition filed by lawyer Amita Sachdeva.

Sachdeva had claimed that Rathee published a highly derogatory and communally sensitive video on March 21, which garnered millions of views and contained "false, misleading, and provocative statements insulting Bhagwan Shri Ram, Bhagwan Shri Krishna and Sita Devi."

Google's counsel told the court that the video was withheld pursuant to an order by the Centre's Grievance Appellate Committee (GAC), but only in India, since the question of a global block was pending before a division bench of the high court.

Sachdeva argued this amounted to only "partial compliance," pointing out that the GAC had, on July 15, directed Google to take down the video within 24 hours. "The issue regarding global injunction is already pending before the division bench. Whatever they could do, they have already done," Justice Sharma observed, before adjourning the hearing to September 3.

The case dates back to July 3, when the court had directed the GAC to decide Sachdeva's plea seeking removal of the video within 15 days. She later filed an application seeking compliance with that direction, contending that the GAC — set up by the Central government under the Information Technology regime — had failed to decide her appeal even after two months.

According to the plea, Sachdeva had first approached YouTube's Resident Grievance Officer under the Information Technology (Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media Ethics Code) Rules, besides filing a complaint with the Delhi Police's cyber cell. The grievance officer, however, said no violation of community guidelines could be identified, prompting Sachdeva to appeal to the GAC on March 27.

"Despite the statutory mandate to decide the appeal within 30 days, the GAC has failed to dispose of the same. The offending video continues to remain publicly accessible on YouTube and is causing continuous injury to the religious sentiments of crores of Hindus," the plea said.