KATHMANDU, Nov 21: The hearing of writ petitions against the decision of the government to ban TikTok is being heard in the Supreme Court (SC) today.

Due to public holidays on Saturday and Sunday on the occasion of Chhath Puja, the hearing was scheduled for Monday. The hearing for the writ petitions originally scheduled for Monday was postponed for today.

The petitioner's lawyer Anantaraj Luitel said that the bench will decide whether to issue an interim order today. 

Ten writ petitions were filed on Friday against the government's decision on November 13 to ban TikTok. Additionally, advocate Jagannath Dulal filed a separate writ petition on Monday. The writ petitioners claim that the recent government's move to control social media violates people’s right to freedom of expression guaranteed by the constitution.

The new writ petition also calls for the cancellation of the correspondence from the Nepal Telecommunication Authority to internet service providers. The writ petitioners have claimed that the ban on TikTok violates people’s right to information, especially at a time when many citizens rely on the platform for getting information.

The writ petitioners also mention that the intellectual property of those who have ventured their creations through TikTok is worth millions of rupees and the property rights have also been violated when Tik Tok is banned.

The writ petitioners urge the government to establish a legal framework for managing digital platforms. If deemed necessary, it calls for a directive order to initiate the drafting of legislation in accordance with the Constitution of Nepal, international norms, and established practices.

Lawyers such as Advocate Luitel, Senior Advocate Dinesh Tripathi, Advocate Parshuram Pandey, Swagat Nepal, Advocate Trilok Chand, Advocate Bhadra Prasad Nepal, Advocate Sunil Ranjan Singh have filed separate writ petitions against the ban on Tiktok.

 
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