Digital news to be regulated, face action in case of violations

New Delhi: Digital media in India will be regulated and can face action for 'violations' under an amended law that the government plans to bring in the parliament session starting next week.

The law for the registration of media will, for the first time, include digital media, which has never been defined by any law or any government regulation till now.

The Information and Broadcasting ministry, which will be the 'administrative ministry', has started the process to amend the Registration of Press and Periodicals Bill to include "news on digital media through any electronic device". Digital news publishers have to apply for registration and will be required to do so within 90 days of the law coming into effect.

Digital publishers will need to register with the Press Registrar General, who will have powers to act against various publications for violations and who can suspend or cancel registrations and impose penalties. An appellate board is planned with the Chairperson of the Press Council of India as its chief, according to officials. The Bill has yet to be approved by the Prime Minister's Office and other stakeholders, say sources.

The amendments will bring digital news media under the control of the Information and Broadcasting Ministry.

A previous attempt to regulate digital media under new Information Technology rules had sparked a huge controversy in 2019.

The Centre had put out a draft bill that defined news on digital media as news in digitized format that can be transmitted over the internet, computer or mobile networks and includes text, video, audio and graphics". Critics saw this as an attempt to control the digital news media. The Registration of Press and Periodicals Bill will replace the British-era Press and Registration of Books Act, 1867, which regulators newspapers and printing presses in India.