The Karnataka High Court has directed Meta Platforms to restore the Facebook page managed by BJP state spokesperson T.N. Dileep, also known as Dileep Gowda Kunigal, after the account was geo-blocked in India despite the removal of links described as objectionable by a magistrate’s court.
Justice C.M. Poonacha issued the interim direction while hearing Dileep’s writ petition. The court also instructed the investigating officer at Basavanagudi police station to direct Meta Platforms to restore the petitioner’s social-media accounts. Notices were ordered to be issued to Meta Platforms Inc. and Meta Platforms Technologies India Private Limited.
The court, however, directed Dileep to strictly comply with the magistrate court’s order dated August 27, 2026. That order required him to remove the objectionable links from his Facebook page. The High Court has adjourned the matter to November 12.
The case relates to a clash between two groups during a Milad-un-Nabi procession on K.R. Road in Basavanagudi on August 26, 2026. The report said that allegations had been made against Puneeth Kerehalli of the Rashtra Rakshana Pade, Gopi Gowda, Puneeth Gowda, Chetan Nayak and others for allegedly obstructing the procession, raising slogans and abusing participants. The allegations are part of the police case and have not been established by the High Court order.
Dileep had shared a video clip containing visuals from the incident on his Facebook page. Based on a complaint filed by procession organiser Abdul Razak Khan, Basavanagudi police registered a first information report under various provisions of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita.
The magistrate’s court had directed Meta, X, Google and YouTube to remove the objectionable links. Dileep subsequently claimed that the Facebook page, which had more than 1.55 lakh followers, was geo-blocked in India even after the links were removed. He also told the High Court that emails sent to Meta’s grievance redressal department seeking restoration of the page had not produced a result.
The order places the restoration of the page within an ongoing legal process rather than treating the account’s return as an unconditional clearance of the material previously shared. The petitioner remains bound by the magistrate court’s direction to remove the specified links, while Meta and its Indian entity have been asked to respond before the next hearing.
The case highlights the interaction between police investigations, magistrate-level directions, platform enforcement and judicial oversight when disputed online material is connected to a public-order incident. The next significant step will be the response of the Meta entities and the hearing scheduled for November 12.
