This article discusses the Centre's directions to block 129 illegal betting websites, revealed to be based on fake High Court orders. The Department of Telecommunications (DoT) issued these directives on July 21 and September 2, citing purported orders from the Rajasthan High Court and the Allahabad High Court.
The Department of Telecommunications (DoT) issued directions for website takedowns on July 21 and September 2, claiming purported orders from the Rajasthan High Court and the Allahabad High Court. An investigation by Reuters revealed that these orders were fake. The directive on September 2 was found on the DoT's website, with a purported Allahabad High Court order attached. However, when accessed, the QR code linked to this order led to an untraceable webpage displaying only a case number. Neither of the takedown orders appeared in the High Courts’ online registration records.
Further investigation by Reuters found that the purported Rajasthan High Court order was sent to the telecommunications department by email on July 19 and was signed by Aryan Chaudhary, described as an advocate-on-record. When contacted, an email sent to Chaudhary bounced back with a ‘recipient not found’ notification.
The Rajasthan High Court's registrar stated that the order 'appears to be fraudulent' and did not exist on its server. The Allahabad High Court also confirmed that the order bearing its name was fake, leading to a police complaint for alleged forgery and cheating being filed on November 6.
The purported Allahabad High Court order was dated August 14 and bore the name of Justice Garima Prashad. However, her office confirmed no such order had been passed.
Source:
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