The Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology proposed yet another revision (Revised Amendment) to the Information Technology (Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media Ethics Code) Rules, 2021 on January 17, 2023. The Revised Amendment will have a significant impact on online freedom of expression and access to online information, as it makes the Union Government the last arbiter of what news can and cannot be published. It does so by vesting PIB or any other agency of the Union Government to which the news story relates with the power to remove any social media and news media content, namely any information identified as 'fake' or 'false'. We have submitted our response highlighting the concerns pertaining, but not limited to executive overreach, ambiguity in definitions, violation of the Supreme Court’s Shreya Singhal judgement and barriers in the consultation process. Our broad recommendation is to withdraw the IT Rules, 2021 in entirety. We have also requested the government to issue a white paper outlining the government's intent regarding intermediary liability and online gaming regulation.
This is a companion discussion topic for the original entry at https://internetfreedom.in/iffs-response-to-fact-checking-amendments/