The draft of the Broadcasting Regulation Bill 2024 is reportedly being withdrawn and reviewed by the Centre, as per a report by the Economic Times.
Reportedly, the few industry stakeholders who had received a copy of the draft have been asked to return the physical documents to the government without feedback.
“MIB is likely redoing the whole thing,” one source told ET. Others confirmed that the Ministry is likely to come out with a revised note.
The latest version of the Bill have reportedly incurred concerns over some of its provisions. In particular, the Bill aimed to replace the Television Network Act of 1995 and sought to classify influencers and social media pages that create content or report on news or current affairs online as “digital news broadcasters“.
The Bill provoked backlash from many quarters, especially digital and creator communities, who claimed that it was a threat to free speech and the independence of media in India, and a sign of government overreach.
Moreover, the draft was not released publicly, incurring the displeasure of several groups. Industry experts expressed concern about the limited representation during reviews of the Bill and the closed-door meetings the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting conducted with only a few select stakeholders. Digital associations, civil society groups, and non-industry stakeholders were not represented in the respective discussions and urged the government to make the draft open for public comment.
The draft bill also provoked sharp criticism from the opposition Congress, with Priyanka Gandhi Vadra who accused the government of trying to “gag” digital platforms.
It is possible that a combination of these factors prompted the government to make their latest announcement.
