advertisement
The Quint has moved the Delhi High Court, challenging the regulation of digital news portals under the newly released Information Technology (Guidelines for Intermediaries and Digital Media Ethics Code) Rules, 2021.
Calling the regulation of digital news under the Information Technology Act framework "unconstitutional", the petitioner organisation believed that the new rules have a “chilling effect on media freedom”.
Apart from challenging the constitutional validity of the new IT Rules, the petitioner also has asked the court to impose a stay on the operation of the said rules till the pendency of the case. The demand for the stay was made to ensure that no media portals were subjected to the “draconian” provisions of the new rules till the time their legality has been proved before the court.
In order to protect the interests of the digital news portals, the court assured the petitioner organisation that it will be allowed to move an urgent application if there’s any coercive step taken against it under the challenged rules.
This is the third petition moved by a digital news portal challenging the inclusion of “digital news and current affairs content” under the new IT Rules. Earlier, the Kerala High Court provided interim protection to LiveLaw India from any coercive action under Part III of the rules. This decision came just days after the Delhi High Court had issued a notice in a similar plea moved by The Wire.
The Delhi High Court will be hearing The Quint’s petition along with that filed by The Wire on 16 April.
One of the major contentions of the petitioners is that the new rules unjustly classify "news media and current affairs content" as "digital media", to make them subject to the government’s Code of Ethics.
They argue that news portals cannot be classified as "digital media", because unlike the curated content hosted by digital media, news portals publish news and views. Therefore, the petitioners have restricted the legal challenge to the new rules only to their applicability to news portals and not to OTT platforms.
The petitioners argue that the Information Technology Act "neither intends nor provides" for regulation of news portals. News media can only be regulated under the Press Council Act, 1978, while the Cable TV (Regulation) Act, 1995, provides for a "programme code" for regulating content on TV networks.
Unlike the Press Council Act, the object and purpose of the IT Act is restricted to legal recognition and authentication of electronic data, electronic communication, and receipts of electronic data as evidence.
The Information Technology Act doesn’t provide for the regulation of electronic content barring two scenarios:
Section 69 of the Information Technology Act, which provides for blocking of a website, only stipulates directions to be issued to intermediaries. Petitioners have contended that news portals can’t be classified as "intermediaries" for the purpose of Section 69.
The petitioners cite the Supreme Court’s judgment in the Shreya Singhal case, where it was held that directions under Section 69 can only be issued either to an "agency of the government" or an "intermediary".
Therefore, the petitioners have argued that news portals can’t be included in rules made to regulate content under Section 69 of the Act, as they are neither "government agencies" nor "intermediaries".
The government’s newly proposed rules also provide for a three-tier Grievance Redressal system.
Petitioners have argued that this entire idea of “self-regulation" is a misnomer, as the setting up of an appellate body requires approval from the Ministry. It triggers the possibility of the central government’s interference over any content merely on the basis on one complaint. The petition reads:
The petitioner has contended that the question is not whether news agencies should be subjected to the Code of Ethics or not. The real question is whether the central government can prescribe oversight and regulation through rules when this is not the intent of the parent Act?
While claiming that the IT Act doesn’t contemplate regulating of news media, the petition argues that:
(At The Quint, we question everything. Play an active role in shaping our journalism by becoming a member today.)
Published: 19 Mar 2021,04:01 PM IST