The Ankara 18th Administrative Court has referred a case brought by the Media and Law Studies Association (MLSA) challenging the Information and Communication Technologies Authority's (BTK) ban on Instagram to the Ankara Regional Administrative Court. The court did not issue a ruling on the request for a stay of execution.
On August 3, MLSA's legal team filed a lawsuit against the BTK's decision to block access to Instagram, seeking both the suspension and annulment of the decision. On August 5, the Ankara 18th Administrative Court determined that there was a connection between this case and other lawsuits filed against the BTK on similar grounds. Consequently, it referred the case to the Regional Administrative Court for potential consolidation with the related cases.
After consolidating the seven lawsuits, including MLSA's case, the Regional Administrative Court will forward the case to the appropriate court. The competent court will then decide on the request for a stay of execution.
MLSA took legal action against the Instagram ban immediately after the decision was made on August 3, arguing that the access restriction violates fundamental rights and freedoms, including freedom of expression, freedom of the press, access to information, and the right to communication.
MLSA highlighted that the BTK's decision lacks public interest, claiming that the rights of 57 million users have been infringed. Additionally, MLSA argued that the ban disrupts daily commercial activities worth 2 billion lira and results in a daily loss of 400 million lira in value-added tax (VAT) alone.
