The Internet Freedom Foundation on Saturday decried “secret” changes to the draft Broadcasting Services (Regulation) Bill, which expands regulatory requirements on online news and entertainment media. The Ministry of Information and Broadcasting has met “selective industry representatives, without representation from civil society, journalists, or other key stakeholders,” the IFF said in a statement, repeating concerns from civil society that the Bill would lead to further censorship implications for online platforms. 

The Hindu has received one of these subsequent versions that has not been circulated in public, but is withholding its contents because the document reportedly contains identifying markers that can expose the identity of each recipient of the draft.

A press note for the only version of the Bill released for the public to comment on has said that it is an attempt to replace the decades-old Cable Television Networks (Regulation) Act, 1995. Streaming services are required in this version to constitute “content evaluation committees” to pre-screen content before it is released on their platforms. 

OPINION | Broadcast regulation 3.0, commissions and omissions

The Bill also provides for the constitution of a Broadcast Advisory Council, with government membership, that would hear complaints against broadcasters. These requirements could be applied to streaming platforms and online influencers with a simple notification issued by the I&B Ministry. S. Meghnad, an online content creator who frequently posts on political issues and has over 64,000 subscribers, titled a recent video on the topic: “This new law can shut down youtube journalists [sic]”.

Every broadcaster covered under the Ministry’s “regulatory ambit will be required to comply with a Code prescribed by the Union government, [and] failure to do so … will lead to monetary penalties or even imprisonment,” the IFF said in its most recent statement. 

The Union government has shown concern on the impact of those it calls “negative influencers”. In a 2021 Group of Ministers report on government communications, the government said “some negative influencers give false narratives and discredit the Government” and that ”these need to be constantly tracked so that proper and timely response can be given”.