Delhi HC dismisses WhatsApp, Facebook pleas against CCI order to probe privacy policy
The court said it would have been "prudent" for the regulator to await the outcome of petitions in the Supreme Court and the Delhi HC against the new privacy policy, but not doing so would not make the order "perverse".
FollowNew Delhi: The Delhi High Court on Thursday dismissed pleas by social media platforms Facebook and WhatsApp, challenging India's competition regulator CCI's order directing a probe into WhatsApp's new privacy policy.
Justice Navin Chawla said that though it would have been "prudent" for the Competition Commission of India (CCI) to await the outcome of petitions in the Supreme Court and the Delhi HC against WhatsApp's new privacy policy, but not doing so would not make the regulator's order "perverse" or "wanting of jurisdiction".
The court said it saw no merit in the petitions of Facebook and WhatsApp to interdict the investigation directed by the CCI.
The CCI had contended that it was not examining the alleged violation of individuals' privacy which was being looked into by the Supreme Court.
While reserving its decision, the court had observed that the order of the Competition Commission of India (CCI) does not reflect an investigation into abuse of dominant position and rather appears to be concerned with privacy issues of consumers.
The CCI 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, alleged abuse of dominant position.
