Serving IPS Officer's Plea for Content Removal Gains Favor; Court Affirms Territorial Jurisdiction
In a significant development affirming privacy rights, the Delhi High Court, on July 2, 2026, delivered a crucial judgment in favor of Kokkanti Venkata Maheshwara Reddy, a serving Indian Police Service (IPS) officer. The officer sought the removal, deletion, and de-indexing of online content related to his settled matrimonial dispute, which he argued infringed upon his right to privacy and reputation under Article 21 of the Indian Constitution.
Presiding over the case, Dr. Swarana Kanta Sharma, J., recognized the 'Right to be Forgotten' as an integral part of the right to privacy. The case was brought against major digital intermediaries, including Google LLC, YouTube LLC, and Twitter/X, as well as the Union Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY).
The petitioner argued that continued publication of news reports, despite the amicable settlement and quashing of related criminal proceedings, was prejudicial to his reputation. The High Court affirmed its jurisdiction to hear the case, noting that Google and MeitY were within its territorial purview, and the content in question was accessible nationwide.
Despite the respondent's argument that the case should be moved to the High Court of Telangana, since the news articles originated from Telugu channels, the Delhi High Court maintained jurisdiction. It emphasized that the content was also published by national media and accessible across India, including Delhi.
In line with a previous Delhi High Court ruling, the court held that intermediaries, rather than individual news publishers, were appropriate parties to address such grievances. The court directed the respondents to respond to the petition, with further proceedings scheduled for August 21, 2026.
The decision underscores the evolving legal interpretation of privacy rights in the digital age and sets a precedent for similar cases involving privacy and online content.
Bottom line:-
Right to Privacy - The 'Right to be Forgotten' forms a part of the fundamental right to privacy under Article 21 of the Constitution of India. The Delhi High Court affirmed its territorial jurisdiction to entertain a petition seeking removal, deletion, and de-indexing of online news reports infringing the petitioner's privacy and reputation.
Statutory provision(s): Article 21 of the Constitution of India
Kokkanti Venkata Maheshwara Reddy v. Google LLC, (Delhi) : Law Finder Doc id # 2934528
