Parl panel suggests amending penal provision, fact-checking system

New Delhi: A Parliamentary committee has called fake news a “serious threat” to public order and democratic process, and recommended amending penal provisions, increasing fine and fixing accountability to deal with the issue.

In its draft report adopted on Tuesday, the Standing Committee on Communications and Information Technology has also called for mandatory presence of fact-checking mechanism and internal ombudsman in all print, digital and electronic media organisations.

Sources said the committee has made a raft of suggestions, including a collaborative effort among all stake-holders covering government, private and independent fact-checkers to tackle the challenge of fake news.

The committee headed by BJP MP Nishikant Dubey adopted the report unanimously, showing a cross-party support for stepped-up efforts to handle the menace of fake news, the sources added.

“The Committee desire the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting to ensure that fact-checking mechanism and internal ombudsman should be made mandatory in all print, digital and electronic media organisations of the country,” one of its recommendations said.

The draft report is addressed to the Electronics and Information Technology Ministry as well, as the panel scrutinises this ministry too.

The Dubey-led committee has presented its report to the Lok Sabha Speaker, and it is likely to be presented in Parliament during the next session.

While asking for assigning accountability to editors and content heads for editorial control, to owners and publishers for institutional failures, and intermediaries and platforms for peddling fake news, it underlined the need for amending penal provisions in existing Acts and rules to crack down on its publication and broadcast.

The committee, however, added that this should involve and emerge from a consensus-building exercise among media bodies and relevant stake-holders. with agency inputs