Sahyog Portal: A New Step in Regulating Online Content

The internet has become a powerful space for free expression but also a platform for spreading harmful and unlawful content. To tackle this challenge, the Union Government launched the Sahyog Portal in October 2024. Recently, the Karnataka High Court upheld the portal, rejecting X Corporation’s challenge that termed it “extra-legal censorship.

” What is the Sahyog Portal?

Sahyog is an online regulatory platform developed by the Indian Cyber Crime Coordination Centre (I4C) under the Union Home Ministry. It works under Section 79(3)(b) of the IT Act, 2000. The portal helps the government send takedown notices to internet intermediaries such as social media platforms, ISPs, and web-hosting services.

Aim and Features

The portal aims to ensure a safe, secure, and accountable cyber ecosystem. * It provides a centralised channel connecting 65 intermediaries, state/UT officers, and central agencies. * It issues automated notices, speeding up the removal of unlawful content. * It preserves “safe harbour” protections but warns that non-compliance can remove this immunity. * Unlike Section 69A (blocking powers), it only makes intermediaries disable unlawful data.

The Legal Dispute

X Corporation argued that Sahyog bypassed procedural safeguards of Section 69A and acted as a “censorship tool.” The government defended it as necessary for fast action against illegal online material. The High Court ruled that social media cannot remain in “anarchic freedom” and upheld Sahyog as an instrument of public good.

Conclusion

The Sahyog Portal is a step toward responsible digital governance. While balancing free speech and accountability remains sensitive, the platform highlights that liberty must go hand in hand with responsibility in the online world.