New Delhi, Oct. 10 -- The Delhi High Court has held that a private company's provision of email services does not, by itself, make it amenable to writ jurisdiction, even when an account is important to the user's business, while dismissing a petition by a media company seeking restoration of access to its Gmail account.

Justice Amit Mahajan said the nature of the function performed by a private entity, rather than its popularity or reach, is the decisive factor in determining whether a writ petition can be maintained against it under Article 226 of the Constitution.

The court observed that the provision of email services is a commercial activity and that the suspension or disabling of an account on security grounds does not, without add...