Centre’s IT rules supersede J&K’s authority on digital media regulation: Govt tells HC

Srinagar, Oct 13: The government has informed the High Court of Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh that it was not competent to issue fresh regulatory guidelines regarding the working of news portals in J&K as the Centre had already framed detailed rules.

In a compliance report on a related contempt plea, the government through its Secretary Information Department submitted that the central acts had now become directly applicable to Jammu and Kashmir given the reorganisation of the erstwhile state of J&K into two union territories – J&K and Ladakh.

In June 2022, the High Court had left it open for the J&K government to regulate social media news while disposing of a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) filed by a trust, Jammu and Kashmir Peoples Forum, concerning the mushrooming of news portals without the due procedure of law and regulating and controlling the portals.

The court had asked the forum to submit a detailed representation and suggestions regarding regulating and controlling the social media network to J&K’s Principal Secretary Information Department.

In August this year, the court issued notice to authorities on the forum’s contempt plea.

In its compliance report, the J&K government underscores that the Government of India has already framed detailed rules, and framework on the subject in the form of Information Technology (Intermediaries Guidelines and Digital Media Ethics Code) Rules, 2021.

“Since the subject is administered by the Government of India, Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, the Jammu and Kashmir government and the J&K Information Department is not able or competent to issue any further regulatory guidelines on the subject,” the government said.

The government’s report also indicated that the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, Government of India, vide its communication dated August 27, 2021, forwarded comments along with a public notice of May 26, 2021, and the list of all cases pending on subject before different High Courts that had now been transferred to Delhi High Court under orders of the Supreme Court of India in a case titled Union of India versus Foundation for Independent Journalism and Others.

The government’s compliance report said that the matter was again taken up with the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, Government of India after the petitioner filed the representation following the court direction.

The report said that as per the comments of the Union Ministry provided vide office memorandum dated May 31, 2024, the news portals are required to adhere to the rules of 2021 including the Code of Ethics and the three-tier grievance redressal mechanism provided therein.

Moreover, the report divulged that the Union Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology, vide its communication dated October 31, 2023, has directed that to tackle the menace of unlawful content in the online world, a suitable and effective mechanism is to be developed for the removal of the unlawful content over the internet (social media platforms, websites, mobile apps, e-commerce websites, and ISPs) in a timely way.

For this purpose, the report said, the IT Act of 2000 and the IT Rules, 2021, made there under empower the appropriate government or its authorised agency to issue notice to an intermediary to disable access or take down any unlawful material from its domain.

The government informed the court that complying with the directions of the Union Ministry to notify a nodal officer for issuing take-down notices to the appropriate intermediary if any online content violates the laws, the J&K government on April 29, 2024, designated Information Officer Sachin Bali as the Nodal Officer for issuing takedown notices to the appropriate intermediary if any online content violates the laws.