Court voids Centre’s fact check unit, calls amended IT rules ‘unconstitutional’

In a setback to the government, the Bombay High Court on Thursday struck down the amended Information Technology Rules, 2023, and called it “unconstitutional.”

A division bench of Justices AS Gadkari and Neela Gokhale allowed the pleas filed by comedian Kunal Kamra, Editors Guild of India, Association of Indian Magazines and News Broadcasters of Digital Association.

While delivering the verdict, the court noted, “In view of the majority opinion, the rule 3(1)(v) is declared unconstitutional and is struck down. Petitions are accordingly allowed.”

Earlier in January this year, a division bench of Justices Gautam Patel and Dr Neela Gokhale had delivered a split ruling in the matter.

While Justice Patel struck down the amendments to the IT Rules, Justice Gokhale upheld them.

On September 20, Justice Atul Sharachchandra Chandurkar, acting as the “tie-breaker” judge, ruled against the amended IT Rules that authorised the Government’s Fact Check Unit (FCU) to label content as “fake news” on social media platforms.

Justice Chandurkar held that the Information Technology Amendment Rules, 2023, infringed upon fundamental rights guaranteed by the Constitution, including Article 14 (right to equality), Article 19 (freedom of speech and expression), and Article 19(1)(g) (freedom to practice any profession).

In his plea, Kunal Kamra, a political satirist, argued that the amended IT Rules posed a threat to his work, as they could lead to arbitrary censorship of his content on social media. Kamra expressed concerns that his posts could be blocked or taken down, and his social media accounts could be suspended or deactivated under the Rules.

On the other hand, the Ministry of Information and Technology defended the amendments, stating that it was in the public interest for “authentic information” related to the government’s business to be verified and disseminated by a government agency, such as the Fact Check Unit (FCU). The Ministry argued that this process would help prevent potential harm to the public by ensuring the accuracy of information.