Delhi High Court Dismisses Urgency in Plea to Block AI Chatbot 'DeepSeek'

The Delhi High Court declined an early hearing to block the Chinese AI chatbot, DeepSeek, in India. It deemed no urgency in the petition, which cited data vulnerability concerns. Petitioned by lawyer Bhavna Sharma, the plea aims to protect personal and government data from cyber threats and breaches.

The Delhi High Court has refused an expedited hearing on a plea aimed at blocking access to DeepSeek, an AI chatbot developed by Chinese entities. Despite the petition citing cybersecurity concerns, the court stated that the matter does not warrant urgent consideration.

The bench, consisting of Chief Justice D K Upadhyaya and Justice Tushar Rao Gedela, addressed the petitioner's argument by emphasizing that the general availability of such platforms does not necessitate their use, and subsequently dismissed the plea for early adjudication.

The plea, filed by lawyer Bhavna Sharma, stresses the importance of safeguarding personal and government data against cyber threats, highlighting vulnerabilities discovered soon after DeepSeek's app store launch. However, the court reiterated its position that the application for an early hearing fails to establish the requisite urgency.