Highlights

New rules limit takedown orders to senior bureaucrats, police

X opposed India’s policy, lost legal challenge in September

Critics say process still burdensome, affects free speech

Rule change a relief for X, which counts India as big market

The central government has reduced the number of officials who can order content to be taken down from the internet, a move that follows a bitter legal battle with Elon Musk’s X around a contentious policy.

X, Musk’s social media platform, had been in opposition to Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s 2023 decision to police the internet by allowing thousands of officials to file takedown orders.

In August, Reuters reported that police inspectors were issuing takedown orders on cartoons and satirical posts, sparking one of X’s most high-pr

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