NEW DELHI : Social media users upset by adverse actions of online platforms may soon be able to approach a government-appointed panel for relief if a draft proposal to this effect makes it to the final stage. As of now, users can challenge such actions only in court.
According to a draft proposal by the Union ministry of electronics and information technology (Meity), any aggrieved person can appeal against a decision of the social media company’s grievance officer before the new grievance appellate committee.
The committee, which will have a chairperson and members appointed by the central government, will look into these appeals and decide on them within 30 days, and its decision will be binding on the company. The amendments are open for comments from stakeholders till 22 June.
The complainant will continue to have the right to seek judicial remedy.
The proposed amendment to the Information Technology (Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media Ethics Code) Rules, 2021, was published on 1 June on the MeitY website but was later removed and wasn’t republished until press time.
Prasanto Kumar Roy, a tech policy analyst, said the Meity proposal has received “a lot of flak" since being notified.
“Government control over decisions made by private platforms is a ridiculous idea, and it is entirely unprecedented worldwide," he added.
The move comes after social media firms blocked, suspended or otherwise acted against several social media handles, some of them belonging to celebrities and other high-profile individuals, for alleged violation of community guidelines.
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Spokespeople for Facebook and Twitter did not respond to requests for statements on the proposed amendment.
Prateek Waghre, policy director for digital rights advocacy organization Internet Freedom Foundation, said the exact way in which such a committee would be put to work remains unclear.
“There doesn’t seem to be a legal basis for the amendment in terms of how they are asserting themselves in this process. It’s unclear in terms of how the committee would function, but it looks like they are creating executive oversight, through which users can make content moderation appeals," he said.
Waghre added that there is little to no precedent of such committees in liberal democracies.
India’s new rules for social media companies took effect on 26 May last year, mandating platforms to enable the identification of the ‘first originator’ of the information that undermines the sovereignty of India, the security of the state, or public order.
The rules mandate intermediaries with over five million users to appoint a grievance officer, a nodal officer and a chief compliance officer, all Indian citizens.
Intermediaries have to acknowledge suspension, removal or blocking of any user or user account or any complaint from its users in the nature of the request for the removal of information or communication link within 24 hours and dispose of the complaint within 15 days.
In the case of any complaint in the nature of the request for the removal of information or communication link carrying defamatory, obscene, pornographic, invasive of another’s privacy, libellous, false and untrue information, those should be redressed within 72 hours of the reporting, according to the May 2021 rules.
Also, the intermediary concerned will be required to take all reasonable measures to ensure accessibility of its services to users along with a reasonable expectation of due diligence, privacy and transparency.
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