Journalist Abhishek Upadhyay has approached the Supreme Court challenging a notice issued by the Ghaziabad Crime Branch seeking extensive digital information connected with his account on social-media platform X.
Upadhyay, who had reported on alleged irregularities involving donations at the Ram Temple in Ayodhya, has sought an immediate stay on the August 22 notice issued by the Crime Branch Investigation Unit under Section 94 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS). He has also sought quashing of the notice.
The application has been moved in proceedings arising from Upadhyay’s challenge to an FIR registered against him in Ghaziabad in connection with an alleged road-rage incident.
According to the plea, X’s legal department informed the journalist on August 26 that it had received a request from the Ghaziabad Crime Branch seeking information pertaining to his account, @upadhyayabhii. The platform reportedly notified him so that he could take appropriate legal steps to safeguard his interests.
The journalist’s principal objection is to the breadth of the information sought by the investigating agency. His counsel told the Supreme Court that although the FIR concerns an alleged incident dated August 18, the police have sought digital information dating back to June 1, 2026.
Upadhyay contends that the period sought by the police coincides with the time when he was pursuing his reporting on alleged theft and irregularities concerning offerings made at the Ram Temple. He apprehends that disclosure of the requested information could enable authorities to identify individuals who provided information to him during his investigation.
The notice reportedly seeks a wide range of information, including login and logout IP addresses, alternate email details, mobile-number information, location data, device particulars, IMEI details, registration records and other IP-related information.
The journalist has argued that an indiscriminate demand for such information could go beyond the legitimate requirements of investigating the road-rage case and potentially provide the authorities with a digital map of his professional interactions, movements and communications.
The plea places particular emphasis on the implications for journalistic independence and source confidentiality. Upadhyay contends that access to such records could expose individuals who communicated with him while he was reporting on matters of public interest.
The application invokes the constitutional protection of freedom of speech and expression under Article 19(1)(a), arguing that the ability of journalists to protect confidential sources forms an important component of meaningful investigative journalism. According to the petitioner, compelled disclosure of extensive digital records may also have a chilling effect on prospective sources who approach journalists with information concerning matters of public significance.
The matter was mentioned before the Chief Justice of India, Surya Kant, for urgent listing. During the hearing, the Bench observed that the journalist had already received interim protection from coercive action in relation to the FIR and questioned why the investigation should not proceed.
The petitioner’s counsel, however, maintained that the scope and time period of the data request raised a distinct concern because the material sought could reveal the journalist’s sources.
The Supreme Court has already granted Upadhyay protection from coercive action in connection with the FIR and directed him to approach the Allahabad High Court for appropriate relief concerning the registration of the case.
Upadhyay has now asked the apex court to restrain the authorities from obtaining, accessing, processing or disclosing information pursuant to the impugned notice and has sought its eventual annulment.
The dispute places the investigation of a criminal allegation alongside a broader constitutional question concerning the limits of investigative access to journalists’ digital records, particularly where such access may potentially compromise confidential sources.
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