Centre withdraws broadcasting bill draft amid backlash, to issue new one after ‘mass consultation’

NEW DELHI: The Ministry of Information and Broadcasting (MI&B) on Monday announced that it is working on a draft Broadcasting Services (Regulation) Bill and a fresh version would be published after detailed consultations.

It also stated that additional time is being provided to submit feedback on the same till October 15.

In a statement on the micro-blogging site ‘X’, the ministry said, “The draft Bill was placed in public domain on November 10, 2023 along with the explanatory notes for comments of the stakeholders and the general public. In response, multiple recommendations/ comments/ suggestions were received including from various Associations. Ministry is holding a series of consultations with the stakeholders on the draft bill.”

A fresh draft will be published after detailed consultations, it also declared.

The ministry’s statement came after it was reported that the contentious draft had been withdrawn as it proposes to bring a revised version.

Some of the provisions in the draft were being criticized for having far-reaching consequences for the press and creative freedom.

It was also alleged that the Government is holding closed-door consultations and the draft was made available selectively.

“Doubts were raised unnecessarily therefore the fresh draft will be brought in. It will also be based on the mass consultancy concept. It will be for open discussion,” said officials, who wished not to be named.

All stakeholders, who were given watermarked prints of the draft, were asked to return physical copies without their feedback.

The latest version now withdrawn – shared with stakeholders a few weeks ago – is reported to have proposed comprehensive regulations on independent news creators or influencers on social media platforms such as X, YouTube and Instagram, expanding its remit from Over-The-Top (OTT) content and digital news content. Online influencers could be labelled as broadcasters if their content falls under the current affairs category.

The original version was made public to seek feedback in November 2023. It had a self-regulation mechanism to keep a check on obscene and vulgar content, hefty penalties in case of violations and self-classification of programmes. It had also proposed to regulate the entire broadcasting sector including Over-the-Top (OTT), direct-to-home (DTH), Internet Protocol television (IPTV), and digital platforms.

As per the provisions, broadcasters or broadcasting network operators need to set up a Content Evaluation Committee (CEC) – comprising eminent individuals as its members – to certify the programmes to be aired. It also said that the broadcaster will nominate grievance redressal officers to deal with the complaints about the content. The Bill further provides for another layer – Broadcast Advisory Council (BAC) – to take up appeals against the decision of the grievance redressal officer or CEC.

DigiPub News India Foundation, an organisation representing more than 90 digital news publishers, earlier this month wrote to the minister of information and broadcasting Ashwini Vaishnaw requesting a conversation about the Bill.

Addressing a press conference on Thursday, general secretary of the foundation Ritu Kapur said that it had reached out to the Government to allow it to be part of the consultation process but had received no response yet. She also said that the ministry held closed-door consultations with selective stakeholders and larger discussions with digital media organisations. Associations of civil society have so far not taken place.

Earlier, Congress had alleged that the Bill was a direct threat to freedom of speech and the independent media and claimed that it would pave the way for “excessive surveillance” online. The Congress’ media and publicity department head Pawan Khera urged people to raise their voice against what he termed as the “government’s tyranny”.