NEW DELHI: The Bombay high court on Friday struck down the amended Information Technology (IT) Rules, which proposed action against fake content about the government, calling it “unconstitutional”.
The decision was delivered by Justice AS Chandurkar, who was appointed as the third judge after a split verdict by a division bench in January 2023.
“I am of the opinion that it violates Articles 14 and 19 of the Constitution,” Justice Chandurkar said while reading out the judgment, according to the Bar and Bench.
The IT Amendment Rules, 2023, introduced changes to the Information Technology (Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media Ethics Code) Rules, 2021. A key provision under Rule 3 empowered the central government to establish Fact-Check Units (FCUs) tasked with identifying false or fake news about the government circulating on social media and online platforms.
On March 20, 2023, the Centre notified a fact-checking unit under the Press Information Bureau (PIB) to oversee and monitor online content related to the government for accuracy.
Several petitions were filed challenging these amendments, including one by comedian Kunal Kamra, which specifically contested Rule 3’s grant of authority to the central government to form these FCUs.
The decision was delivered by Justice AS Chandurkar, who was appointed as the third judge after a split verdict by a division bench in January 2023.
“I am of the opinion that it violates Articles 14 and 19 of the Constitution,” Justice Chandurkar said while reading out the judgment, according to the Bar and Bench.
The IT Amendment Rules, 2023, introduced changes to the Information Technology (Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media Ethics Code) Rules, 2021. A key provision under Rule 3 empowered the central government to establish Fact-Check Units (FCUs) tasked with identifying false or fake news about the government circulating on social media and online platforms.
On March 20, 2023, the Centre notified a fact-checking unit under the Press Information Bureau (PIB) to oversee and monitor online content related to the government for accuracy.
Several petitions were filed challenging these amendments, including one by comedian Kunal Kamra, which specifically contested Rule 3’s grant of authority to the central government to form these FCUs.