New IT Rules will have chilling effect on free speech: Petitioners to Bombay HC

Two petitions filed in the Bombay High Court challenging provisions of the Information Technology IT Rules 2021 on Monday contended that the rules were vague and draconianThe petitioners digital news portal The Leaflet and journalist Nikhil Wagle told the HC that the IT Rules will have a chilling effect on the freedom of press and a citizens right to free speech guaranteed by the ConstitutionSenior counsel Darius Khambata who appeared for The Leaflet urged a bench of Chief Justice Dipankar Datta and Justice G S Kulkarni to immediately stay the implementation of the new rulesThe petitioners said the new rules propose to impose several regulations on content published by citizens journalists digital news portals online and demand accountability and grievance redressal from social media platforms among other thingsAlso Read Appointed employees in compliance with new IT rules Twitter tells Delhi High CourtThe premise of regulating content and demanding accountability is based on parameters that are vague and surpass the provisions of the existing IT Act and the constitutional right to freedom of speech under Article 19 the petitioners told the HCThere is a brazen regulation of content for the first time These regulations go beyond the parameters of the IT Act The rules also go far beyond the provisions of free speech under Article 19 Khambata saidThe regulations are vague and draconian And they will have a chilling effect on authors publishers regular citizens who put anything on the internet The rules are manifestly unreasonable he saidFor instance the rules prohibit media organisations from carrying out sting operations without proof they demand that no defamatory content is published against any public personality However the regulations do not define what constitutes as adequate proof or what can be considered as defamatory content Khambata saidThese rules are seeking to effectively monitor and censor speech on the internet by giving powers to a ministerial committee This is the most draconian law on free speech in recent times he saidAdvocate Abhay Nevagi who appeared for Wagle told the HC that the rules were arbitrary illegal and violative of a citizens right to privacy freedom of speech trade and libertyNevagi said the rules were against the iquestprinciple of netneutrality and amounted to a form of ldquocensorshipHe said these rules enabled government agencies to trace the origin of any purported cyber security incident and to take down content in certain cases of explicit contentHowever to enable such tracking and taking down the rules provided for decryption of a citizens data and social media exchanges he saidTraceability is intended to push platforms to identify the originator of a message This will breach privacy of every citizen It will amount to mass surveying and allow for misuse of a persons personal data Nevagi saidAppearing for the Union government Additional Solicitor General Anil Singh urged the HC not to grant any interim relief to the petitionersSingh said the Union government had filed transfer petitions in the Supreme Court seeking that pleas challenging the IT Rules be transferred to the apex courtThe transfer petitions are likely to be heard by the SC on Tuesday he saidThe HC then adjourned further hearing on the pleas to TuesdayThe high court said it will hear the Union governments response to the plea on Tuesday provided the Supreme Court does not pass any contra order preventing hearing of the matter in the HCThis story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed agencies Midday accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability trustworthiness reliability and data of the text Midday managementmiddaycom reserves the sole right to alter delete or remove without notice the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever