Ban On TikTok App Lifted By Madras High Court
TikTok was blocked
on the App Store and Google Play Store since 18 April . The video app claims to
have more than 54 million active users in India.
Deciding the case filed
by advocate Muthukumar, the bench vacated its interim order banning the app,
subject to conditions that pornographic videos will not be uploaded on it,
failing with the contempt of court proceedings would begin.
On April 3, the Madras High Court had directed the centre to
ban the download of the TikTok app in India over concerns over
"pornographic" content. The top court had earlier refused to stay the
Madras High Court interim order on grounds that it is temporary and the matter
is still being heard at the high court. Following the government order, TikTok
was blocked on the App Store and Google Play Store since 18 April.
The Madurai bench of the
Madras High Court, which is hearing another petition that alleges the app "degrades
culture and encourages pornography", had earlier said children who were
using TikTok were vulnerable to exposure to sexual predators. The TikTok developer also said that users flagged only
a tiny proportion of TikTok videos, showing that a "very minuscule"
proportion of its content was considered inappropriate. some
Indian politicians and parents believe the app’s content is inappropriate,
particularly with regard to its use by minors. And the Tamil Nadu court — which
ruled against TikTok — said the app could expose children to
sexual predators, as well.
TikTok, meanwhile, had argued that a “very miniscule” proportion of its videos were inappropriate, and that after reviewing content created by users in India it had removed over 6 million videos that had violated its terms of use and community guidelines.
ByteDance, in a statement, welcomed the court’s decision to reverse the ban, saying:
We are glad about this decision and we believe it is also greatly welcomed by our thriving community in India, who use TikTok as a platform to showcase their creativity. We are grateful for the opportunity to continue serving our users better. While we’re pleased that our efforts to fight against misuse of the platform has been recognised, the work is never “done” on our end. We are committed to continuously enhancing our safety features as a testament to our ongoing commitment to our users in India
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