IT Rules: Centre notifies fact-check unit, Kamra and Editors Guild move SC

The central government today notified the fact-check unit under the Press Information Bureau, as per the amended IT Rules, which allows it to identify “fake news” about itself on social media and order its take down.

This comes hours after stand up comedian Kunal Kamra and the Editors Guild of India moved the Supreme Court in the matter. The top court is set to hear the petitions against the setting up of the FCU on Thursday. 

On March 11, the Bombay High Court rejected the petitioners’ case in a 2:1 judgement, with Justices AS Chandurkar and Neela Gokhale supporting the government’s argument in contrast to Justice Gautam Patel.  

Kamra’s earlier petition had said the amended rules, originally notified by the government on April 6 last year, will “have a chilling effect” on the public. The Guild’s petition had also challenged its constitutional validity, saying it violated “the right to freedom of speech and expression”. 

The amendments have been widely criticised by press groups, opposition leaders and journalists. 

Newslaundry has reported on length on the controversies surrounding the amendment and why it’s a blow for press freedom. Read about it here.

To know how the amended IT Rules translate to “greater opacity” in surveillance and impact RTI, read here.