In a significant ruling, the Bombay High Court on Friday (September 20) declared the amended Information Technology (IT) Rules unconstitutional and struck them down. These rules aimed to identify and control fake content on social media about the government.
The case was brought before Justice Chandurkar due to differing opinions within the previous division bench. While Justice Patel had previously struck down the rules, citing concerns about censorship, Justice Gokhale upheld them, claiming no adverse impact on free speech. Justice Chandurkar ultimately sided with Justice Patel's view.
What the judge said in the ruling
Justice A S Chandurkar , who was appointed as a ‘tie-breaker judge’ after a division bench provided a split verdict earlier this year, concluded that the rules violated Articles 14, 19, and 19(1)(g) of the Constitution, concerning equality, freedom of speech and profession, respectively.
“I have considered the matter extensively. The impugned rules are violative of Article 14 (right to equality), 19 (freedom of speech and expression) and 19(1)(g) (freedom and right to profession) of the Constitution of India ,” the judge said.
Justice Chandurkar specifically criticised the vagueness of the terms in the rules, saying that the expression “fake, false and misleading” in the Rules was “vague and hence wrong” in the absence of any definition.
What are IT Amendment Rules, 2023
In April 2023, the government introduced in the IT Amendment Rules, 2023, changes to the Information Technology (Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media Ethics Code) Rules, 2021 that will allow the government to establish Fact-Check Units (FCUs) that will be tasked to identify and flag potentially false or misleading content related to its work on the social media platforms.
According to these rules, if the FCU identifies any posts containing fake, false, or misleading information about the government's activities, it will report these posts to social media platforms. The platform then has two choices: remove the post or add a disclaimer. If they choose to add a disclaimer, they lose their legal protection and could face legal consequences.
The case was brought before Justice Chandurkar due to differing opinions within the previous division bench. While Justice Patel had previously struck down the rules, citing concerns about censorship, Justice Gokhale upheld them, claiming no adverse impact on free speech. Justice Chandurkar ultimately sided with Justice Patel's view.
What the judge said in the ruling
Justice A S Chandurkar , who was appointed as a ‘tie-breaker judge’ after a division bench provided a split verdict earlier this year, concluded that the rules violated Articles 14, 19, and 19(1)(g) of the Constitution, concerning equality, freedom of speech and profession, respectively.
“I have considered the matter extensively. The impugned rules are violative of Article 14 (right to equality), 19 (freedom of speech and expression) and 19(1)(g) (freedom and right to profession) of the Constitution of India ,” the judge said.
Justice Chandurkar specifically criticised the vagueness of the terms in the rules, saying that the expression “fake, false and misleading” in the Rules was “vague and hence wrong” in the absence of any definition.
What are IT Amendment Rules, 2023
In April 2023, the government introduced in the IT Amendment Rules, 2023, changes to the Information Technology (Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media Ethics Code) Rules, 2021 that will allow the government to establish Fact-Check Units (FCUs) that will be tasked to identify and flag potentially false or misleading content related to its work on the social media platforms.
According to these rules, if the FCU identifies any posts containing fake, false, or misleading information about the government's activities, it will report these posts to social media platforms. The platform then has two choices: remove the post or add a disclaimer. If they choose to add a disclaimer, they lose their legal protection and could face legal consequences.
You may also like
Gogglebox stars leave fans stunned with rare mention of unseen family member
Leigh Leopards boss Adrian Lam speaks out on epic win over St Helens
Jane McDonald admits 'it's an illness' as she opens up on shopping addiction
Rob Burrow's widow shares pain of 'first milestones' since MND campaigner's death
