LI Network
Published on: November 23, 2023 at 18:36 IST
The Supreme Court directed the submission of pertinent regulations in an appeal filed by the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) against the Telecom Disputes Settlement and Appellate Tribunal’s (TDSAT) 2012 decision that invalidated the cap of 200 text messages per day.
The bench, comprising Justices PS Narasimha and Sandeep Mehta, was addressing an appeal initiated by TRAI in 2012.
The cap on daily text messages was imposed by TRAI as part of its stringent Telecom Commercial Communications Customer Preference Regulations, aiming to curb unsolicited commercial communications.
Aditya Thackeray, president of Yuva Sena, filed a petition challenging the cap, asserting that limiting the sending of SMSs contradicted the fundamental right to freedom of speech and expression under Article 19(1)(a) of the Constitution of India.
In response, TRAI argued that the ‘right to privacy’ under Article 21 would take precedence over the right to freedom of speech and expression, as contended by Thackeray.
TDSAT, in its 2012 decision, emphasized that restrictions on genuine users of SMS services cannot be imposed to prevent illegal telemarketing. The tribunal noted that telemarketers needed to be registered, and violations could be addressed through effective measures.
TDSAT held that citizens have an absolute right to propagate their views, subject only to reasonable restrictions under Article 19(2) of the Constitution. The tribunal further asserted that regulations should focus on service providers rather than imposing indirect restrictions on citizens’ rights.
TDSAT also examined the right to privacy and concluded that restricting the number of messages in the name of privacy was not justified.
In response to TDSAT’s decision, TRAI appealed to the Supreme Court, which issued a notice on the appeal and stayed the challenged order.
It’s noteworthy that in the same year, the Delhi High Court, in Telecom Watchdog v. Union of India & Anr., W.P.(C) No. 8529 of 2012, had declared the impugned regulations unconstitutional, providing liberty to TRAI to formulate more appropriate regulations for non-commercial SMSs.
Case Title: TELECOM REGULATORY AUTHORITY OF INDIA vs. ADITYA THACKERAY, Diary No.- 34554 – 2012.