Social media users and influencers posting news content may face stricter accountability similar to that applicable to news publishers, under the draft amendment to the Information Technology (Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media Ethics Code) Rules, 2021.

The regulations were proposed by the ministry of electronics and information technology (MeitY) on Monday while seeking public feedback on the draft amendments by April 14.

The draft rules have recommended the extension of broadcasting regulations to news and current affairs content hosted by non-publisher users on Google, Facebook, Instagram and X, bringing them under the ambit of the oversight mechanism.

Under the proposed amendment, rules 14, 15 and 16 shall apply to intermediaries and the news and current affairs content hosted, displayed, uploaded, modified, published, transmitted, stored, updated or shared on the computer resources of the intermediaries by users who are not publishers.

Rules 14, 15 and 16 empower an inter-departmental committee (IDC) to conduct an inquiry and authorise the minister of information and broadcasting (MIB) to issue directions to block or modify content.

“The proposed amendments seek to strengthen compliance with clarifications, advisories and directions issued by the Ministry under Part II, and to enhance the effectiveness of regulatory oversight of content regulation mechanisms under Part III (Code of Ethics relating to Digital Media) of the IT Rules, 2021,” the government said.

Part II of the IT rules deals with due diligence by an intermediary.

The proposed amendment also inserted a new Rule 3(4), mandating that an intermediary comply with any clarification, advisory, order, direction, standard operating procedure, code of practice or guideline issued by the ministry. The rules state that adherence to government directions will be part of the due diligence undertaken by intermediaries to claim immunity from liability for third-party content under Section 79 of the IT Act.

Demanding the rollback of the amendment, the Internet Freedom Foundation (IFF) questioned the 15-day period for submitting feedback.

“We wish to state at the outset that these proposed amendments need to be immediately withdrawn and every member in our citizenry should demand their rollback and stand with the Constitution of India,” the IFF said.

“These proposed amendments come at a time of fear and increased government-directed censorship, especially of online political speech that includes parody and satire of the government, including the Prime Minister,” it added.

The organisation opposed expanding Rule 8 (1), an ethics code that brings news publishers under scrutiny, to intermediaries and users.

“The expansion of Rule 8(1) to cover Rules 14, 15 and 16 is an attempt to expand the blocking powers of MIB to both intermediaries and users who are not ‘publishers’ but post news and current affairs content online,” the IFF said.

“The IDC can now examine ‘matters’ related to user-generated news content on intermediary platforms without the Code of Ethics framework having been adjudicated as constitutional; the government effectively obtains the content oversight machinery that three high courts found illegal, through a different procedural door,” the digital rights group stated.