New Delhi: As part of its drive to repeal colonial-era laws, the BJP government at the Centre is now mulling to replace the Press and Registration of Books Act (PRB Act) of 1867 with new legislation, which is aimed at liberalising the print media but is also expected to bring digital media in the regulatory framework of the administration.
The new piece of legislation, expected to come from the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting soon has already been drafted and is known as the Registration of Press and Periodicals Bill, 2019 (RPP Bill).
The RPP Bill aims to significantly do away with draconian provisions of its predecessor, such as stringent punishments and jail-time for violators while retaining the provisions to fine them. The new law will also de-criminalise printing newspapers and periodicals without the permission of local authorities and will only require that they are informed of it.
However, when it comes to media organisations in the digital space, the RPP Bill, if passed, will bring digital media into the regulatory ambit of the administration. As per the draft Bill, digital media outlets "shall" register themselves with the Registrar of Newspapers of India (RNI) "in such manner and giving such particulars as may be prescribed (under the rules to be framed under the proposed law)".
The proposed law defines news on digital media as "the news in digitised format" that can be transmitted through the Internet, computer or mobile networks and covers text, audio, video and graphical content.
But most importantly, the RPP Bill will not allow any person to publish a newspaper, who has been convicted by any court of being involved in terrorist acts or unlawful activities. Interestingly, the Bill draws the definitions of "terrorist act" and "unlawful activity" from the ones outlined in the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, 1967 as amended by Parliament earlier this year.
The I&B Ministry is currently seeking suggestions from the public and concerned stakeholders on the draft Bill and will table it in the Union Cabinet for approval before introducing it in Parliament.