Recently, a TV anchor was booked by Karnataka Police for allegedly spreading misinformation and fake news.
Legislative measures
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Indian Penal Code (IPC) |
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Provisions |
About |
Penalty |
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Section 153A- Promotion of enimity |
Criminalises acts that promote hatred or ill-will between different religious, racial, or linguistic groups, and actions prejudicial to the maintenance of communal harmony |
Imprisonment of up to 3years, a fine, or both |
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Section 292- Publication |
Criminalises the sale, distribution, or public exhibition of obscene books, pamphlets, or other materials |
1st offence-Imprisonment for up to 3 months, fine, or both Subsequent offence-Imprisonment for up to 2 years, fine, or both. |
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Section 499- Defamation |
Defines defamation as making a false statement to harm a person’s reputation. Exceptions- “Imputation of truth”, which is required for the “public good” and thus has to be published. |
Punishment is dealt under Section 500 |
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Section 500- Punishment for criminal defamation |
In India, defamation can be both a civil and a criminal offence. Punishment for criminal defamation is dealt under this section |
Imprisonment for up to 2 years, a fine, or both. Rahul Gandhi was sentenced to 2 years in prison under this section, which triggered the law that led to his disqualification from Parliament. |
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Section 503- Criminal intimidation |
Criminalises the act of threatening another person with injury to their person, property, or reputation with the intention to cause fear or compel them to do something against their will |
Imprisonment for up to two years, a fine, or both, depending on the circumstances and severity of the threat.
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Section 504- Intentional insult |
Pertains to intentional insult with intent to provoke breach of the peace”. |
Imprisonment for up to two years, a fine, or both |
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Information Technology Act, 2000 |
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Provisions |
About |
Penalty |
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Section 67- Publication in electronic form |
Pertains to “publishing or transmitting obscene material in electronic form” |
3-year prison term, a fine, or both |
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Section 69- National security |
Empowers the government to intercept, monitor, or decrypt any information generated, transmitted, received, or stored in any computer resource in the interest of national security. |
Does not specify a punishment but outlines the government’s authority to access such information under certain conditions. |
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Section 69- Safe harbour provision |
Provides safe harbour provisions for intermediaries, shielding them from liability for user-generated content if they follow certain due diligence requirements. |
Does not specify punishment but defines the legal responsibilities and immunities of intermediaries in handling user content |
Other Measures
The Shreya Singhal v. Union of India case has exempted the intermediaries from incurring any liability for the content posted by the third parties.
References
