India Givers: Google & Facebook Accede to New Delhi Court Order to Censor Content

Image via WikipediaFacebook and Google pulled controversial content  from domain Websites in India in response to a warning from a New Delhi court hearing a civil case brought by an Islamic scholar who claims the material is religiously offensive.

The Reuters news service reports the social media giants Monday removed the information after the New Delhi lower court gave them 15 days in which to submit in writing to the court actions taken to block offensive content. Mufti Aijaz Arshad Qasm, who operates the Website fatwaonline.org, initiated the action against Facebook and Google.

Although only roughly 10 percent of the country's population enjoys Internet use, the Indian government generally has not censored Web access. India, however, passed a law last year requiring companies to remove complained-about content from their Websites within 36 hours.