The CPI(M) has attacked the Narendra Modi government for amending the IT Rules 2021, giving “sweeping powers” to the government’s public relation outreach department — Press Information Bureau (PIB), to fact-check information about the Central government on social media platforms and termed it a form of “censorship”.
As per the changes notified on Thursday through the Information Technology (Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media Ethics Code) Amendment Rules, 2023, amending the IT Rules, 2021, social media platforms and other intermediaries on the Internet are now required to make sure that “fake news” articles about the Union government which have been declared as such by the PIB are taken down from their platforms when they are alerted to such posts.
In a statement here, the CPI(M) Polit Bureau expressed its strong disapproval and urged the government to immediately withdraw it. “Such sweeping powers to the PIB are tantamount to outright censorship, affecting all users of these platforms. This is totally anti-democratic and unacceptable,” the statement said.