Missed registering for the discussion? No problem. You can watch it live on MediaNama’s YouTube channel now, or catch up at your convenience using the link below:

We’ve confirmed over 100+ attendees and a stellar speaker line-up.  

Speakers and agenda:

1:00 PM – 1:45 PM |  Session 1: Victims of Censorship in India (in partnership with DIGI Pub)

• Moderator: Adrija Bose, Editor, Decode Internet
• Neeraj Jha, Chief Editor, Molitics
• Haseen Rehmani, Bolta Hindustan, Founder
• Ambuj Kumar, Lokhit India, Editor
• Sanjay Sharma, 4-PM, Editor in Chief
  10 Minute break

Key questions:

• What does it actually feel like to have content taken down by the government, and what recourse does one have?
• What kinds of content are most at risk under the current takedown regime?
• Is online censorship in India getting worse, and if so, what is driving it?
• How are independent journalists and small digital publishers disproportionately affected by content take down mechanisms compared to larger news organisations?
• How does the threat of content removal affect what journalists and content creators choose to publish in the first place?
• Are takedown orders being used to silence criticism of the government, and what does the evidence show?

1:55 PM – 2:45 PM | Session 2: MeitY’s Expanding Mandate: Rule 3(4), the timelines for content takedowns, and the Safe Harbour, in the context of Shreya Singhal and the IT Act.

• Moderator: Aditi Agarwal, Independent Journalist, Tech Trace
• Rakesh Maheshwari, Former Sr. Director and Group Coordinator, MeitY
• Vasudev Devadasan, Lawyer and Master of Law Candidate at University of Melbourne
• Torsha Sarkar, Project Manager at Centre for Communication Governance, NLU Delhi (CCG-NLUD)
• Snehashish Ghosh, TechNiti

Key Questions: 

• What specific compliance gap is Rule 3(4) attempting to address, and does the proposed approach go beyond that stated objective?
• What is the current legal status of MeitY-issued advisories, clarifications, and directions, and how would the amendments change their enforceability?
• By linking safe harbour to compliance with a wide range of executive instruments, does Rule 3(4) effectively convert conditional immunity into a continuous compliance obligation?
• How do these changes interact with the principles established in Shreya Singhal, particularly the requirement of a judicial order for content restriction?
• What operational challenges do platforms face with evolving and potentially unclear compliance requirements, especially when combined with shortened takedown timelines?
• Taken together with existing tools such as Sahyog and reduced response timelines, do these amendments contribute to a broader censorship infrastructure, and what are the implications of that shift?
   

3:25 PM – 4:15 PM | Session 3: MIB’s Expanded Reach: The IDC, Part III, and Government Oversight of News Content and impact on users online.

• Moderator: Nikhil Pahwa, Founder, MediaNama
• Apar Gupta, Founder of Internet Freedom Foundation
• Jatin Gandhi, Vice-President Press Club of India
• Sneha Jain, Partner at Saikrishna & Associates
• Abhishek Malhotra, Managing Partner at TMT Practice

Key questions:

• What does expanding MIB’s code of ethics to user-generated content mean in practice for users who post, share, and react to news online?
• What are the implications of allowing the government to refer matters directly to the Inter-Departmental Committee without a prior complaint?
• Do these changes risk altering the nature of online public discourse by bringing individuals within a regulatory framework designed for institutional publishers?
• If a user posts about a government-blocked documentary or shares a news clip online, does that now fall under MIB’s oversight regime?
• How does one define “news and current affairs” in the age of social media, and who gets to decide where the line is?
• What does extending IDC jurisdiction to user-generated content mean for platforms that host millions of news-related posts daily?

Note: We have also curated a reading list to help you prepare for the discussion.

Also read

• Govt. defends 4 PM YouTube ban, cites foreign influence and ‘digital lobbying’ in Delhi HC
• ECI orders 3-hour takedown rule for AI and fake content in elections
• Draft IT Rules explained: What MeitY’s draft amendments mean for platform liability, content creators, content takedowns and data retention