Centre Not Interested In Censorship, 11 Unlawful Types Of Content Covered By IT Act: Rajeev Chandrasekhar At DNPA Conclave & Awards 2024

Chandrasekhar assured that the "Internet cannot be a place where the law cannot reach."

New Delhi: Reiterating the Government’s focus on safeguarding users' safety and protection of their data, Rajeev Chandrasekhar, the Union Minister of State for Electronics and Information Technology and Union Minister of State for Skill Development and Entrepreneurship, said that the Internet “cannot become a space where the law can’t reach”. Speaking during a fireside chat at the Digital News Publishers Association (DNPA) Conclave & Awards 2024, the Union Minister emphasised that the amendments brought under the Information Technology Act are simple and are there to “safeguard the users.”

“The Internet cannot be a place where the law cannot reach. The Government is not interested in censorship. Eleven types of unlawful content that are otherwise in violation of the law of the land have been covered by the [IT] Act,” Chandrasekhar said. 

On Rules 3(i)(II)(A) & (C) of the IT Amendment Rules, 2023, which empowers the Centre to establish a fact-checking unit (FCU) to identify any 'fake, false or misleading' information about its business on the social media platform, Chandrasekhar said it has been developed based on the demands from social media platforms.

The Union Minister noted, "The government's fact-checking unit was the demand from intermediaries to determine if the content is unlawful or not." 

'Idea Is To Develop Good Habits'

The Digital Personal Data Protection (DPDP) Act of 2023, aimed to protect the personal data of individuals, contains strict punitive measures including hefty fines. The MeitY Minister highlighted the DPDP Act’s action is to limit the breaches, which the end user faces once it shares its information with consent.

“The idea is to secure data and not allow tech to go for a hunt, once the information of the users has been plugged. In order to control these kinds of infringements or data breaches, we have introduced a Rs 50 crore fine per violation. The idea is to develop good habits in storing data,” the minister said.

Coming down heavily on social media platforms in ways to control the content flow, Chandrasekhar laid down that the Centre will try to control the abuse of powers and will not let monopoly or duopoly form.

Chandrasekhar said, “In the beginning, social platforms encouraged news to get users on their platforms. Now that they have a robust base they're playing God-like. Social media platforms cannot pick and choose. They should provide a level playing field.”

Modi Govt's Priority In Third Term

Identifying the core area of concern by the news media industry in getting a fair revenue share from Big Tech companies, Chandrasekhar said it will be the PM Narendra Modi-led government's priority in the third term.

“The Government has spoken on deep asymmetry from the content creator to the revenue generation or monetisation being controlled by one or two players. Big asymmetry needs to be legislated. Narendra Modi when he resumes office [for a third time], it will be his priority," Chandrasekhar added.