Thursday, March 28, 2024

Delhi HC seeks CCI stand on Facebook, WhatsApp appeals against single judge order on privacy policy

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By PTI
NEW DELHI: The Delhi High Court on Thursday asked the Competition Commission of India to reply on the appeals of Facebook and WhatsApp against a single judge order dismissing their pleas against the probe CCI ordered into the instant messaging app’s new privacy policy.

A bench of Chief Justice DN Patel and Justice Jasmeet Singh issued notice to the CCI which had ordered the probe and sought its response by May 21, the next date of hearing.

The single judge on April 22 had said though it would have been “prudent” for the CCI to await the outcome of petitions in the Supreme Court and the Delhi High Court against WhatsApp’s new privacy policy, not doing so would not make the regulator’s order “perverse” or “wanting of jurisdiction”.

The court had said it saw no merit in the petitions of Facebook and WhatsApp to interdict the investigation directed by the CCI. The CCI had contended before the single judge that it was not examining the alleged violation of individuals’ privacy which was being looked into by the Supreme Court.

It had argued before the court that the new privacy policy of WhatsApp would lead to excessive data collection and “stalking” of consumers for targeted advertising to bring in more users and is therefore an alleged abuse of dominant position.

“There is no question of jurisdictional error,” it had contended saying that WhatsApp and Facebook’s pleas challenging its decision were “incompetent and misconceived”. WhatsApp and Facebook had challenged the CCI’s March 24 order directing a probe into the new privacy policy.

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