India Revises Rules for Social Media Companies to Protect Users’ Rights

India on Monday reissued new guidelines on social media corporations that it proposed then abruptly withdrew final week, making no adjustments however explaining that the regulation was wanted as a result of the businesses had violated Indians’ constitutional rights.

The nation final week launched a draft of adjustments to its IT regulation that may require corporations to “respect the rights accorded to the citizens under the constitution of India” and establishing a authorities panel to listen to appeals of the businesses’ content material moderation selections.

The authorities launched the draft once more on Monday with out adjustments and solicited public feedback inside 30 days. But New Delhi for the primary time defined its reasoning.

“A number of (technology) Intermediaries have acted in violation of constitutional rights of Indian citizens,” the federal government stated, with out naming any firm or particular rights.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s authorities has had strained relations with many Big Tech corporations, and New Delhi has been tightening regulation of corporations corresponding to Facebook, YouTube and Twitter.

Tension flared between India’s authorities and Twitter final 12 months when the corporate declined to conform absolutely with orders to take down accounts that authorities stated have been spreading misinformation about sure farmers’ protests.

Twitter has additionally confronted backlash in India for blocking accounts of influential individuals, together with politicians, citing violation of its insurance policies.

The authorities’s proposal would compel the businesses to “take all reasonable measures to ensure accessibility of its services to users along with reasonable expectation of due diligence, privacy and transparency.”

Defending the proposed new appellate physique, the federal government stated social media corporations had no such mechanism and nor was “there any credible self-regulatory mechanism in place.”

Google’s YouTube, Facebook and Twitter didn’t instantly reply to requests for remark.

© Thomson Reuters 2022