INS urges Centre to drop proposed amendments to IT Rules

The INS asked the MEITY to initiate consultations with stakeholders to create a mechanism to ensure accuracy of reports about government business on media sites

The Indian Newspaper Society (INS) on Tuesday demanded that the Centre drop the proposed draft amendment to the Information Technology Rules, 2021. The amendment set out to empower the Press Information Bureau (PIB) to police the factual accuracy of reports on social media.

The INS, an umbrella body of India's press, said the amendment could "give rise to mischief as it will allow the Central government to arm itself with powers to proscribe any criticism of its actions", muzzle criticism and even fair comment of the government. It asked the Ministry of Electronics and IT (MeitY) to initiate consultations with stakeholders to create a mechanism that, while ensuring the factual accuracy of reports about the government's business on media sites, meets the highest standards of fairness and due process. "The PIB or an agency of the Central government is ill-equipped to play this role," it said.

Read | Draft IT rules have potential to muzzle the press: Digital news consortium DigiPub

Responding to mounting criticism over authorising the PIB to police fake news on social media, Union IT minister Rajeev Chandrasekhar on Tuesday said that the government will hold discussions with stakeholders next month before the proposal is implemented. Chandrasekhar said that the rules for regulating online gaming are expected to be notified by January 31 and tabled in Parliament. "We will hold a separate consultation (on PIB fact check) sometime early next month," Chandrasekhar said when asked about clarification on the proposed amendment to the IT rules 2021.

Last week, MeitY amended the Information Technology (Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media Ethics Code) Rules, 2021, which it had previously released for public consultation. It added a small note in the due diligence section for removing content identified as false, fake or misleading by the PIB's Fact-Check Unit or any government-authorised agency.

The INS said the amendments would grant the responsibility of checking statements related to the central government to its own agency and imbue it with the power of the law. "By legislating to become a judge in its own cause, the government, through a proposed amendment to a set of rules which have otherwise also caused concern, is taking a step to effectively muzzle criticism and even fair comment," it said.

According to a PTI report, an official source, who did not wish to be named, said that the option of fact check by PIB or any other government authorised agency was added to the proposed amendment after discussion with the industry. "Intermediaries, mainly social media companies, asked Meity to provide notified fact check for misinformation. We are entering into a regime where all intermediaries and fact-checkers need to have accountability," the official said. He said that intermediaries are the ones who have to be regulated and they can't put in place fact-checkers.