Adversitement
Bombay High Court Rejects Stay on Notifying Fact Check Units Under IT Rules
Published On : 2024-03-12T12:22:13+0530 [ IST ] |
Author : Mayur_Tembhare
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Maharashtra / Mumbai :
The Bombay High Court, presided over by Justice AS Chandurkar, has declined to grant further stay on the notification of Fact Check Units (FCU) under the Information Technology (IT) rules. Justice Chandurkar emphasized that the notification of FCUs would not cause irreversible harm and noted the absence of a demonstrated grave and irreparable loss.
The petitions challenging Rule 3(1)(b)(v) of the IT Rules, filed by stand-up comic Kunal Kamra and others, were referred to Justice Chandurkar after a division bench, comprising Justices Gautam Patel and Neela Gokhale, delivered a split verdict. While Justice Gautam Patel deemed the rules unconstitutional, Justice Neela Gokhale upheld them.
The final decision on interim applications will now be placed before the referral division bench of Justices Patel and Gokhale.
The Centre's assurance last year that it would not notify the FCU until a final verdict on the issue was considered by the court. However, Solicitor General Tushar Mehta argued that this assurance only extended until the matter was taken up by a third judge, prompting the petitioners to file interim applications seeking a stay on FCU notification.
The IT rules, amended in April 2023, include provisions for FCUs to identify and flag fake or misleading online content related to the government's business. If flagged, social media intermediaries must either remove the content or provide a disclaimer, forfeiting their immunity if they choose the latter option.
Tags : Information Technology Rules , constitutional challenge , Justice AS Chandurkar. , interim stay , Kunal Kamra , Fact Check Units , Bombay High Court ,
Summary : The Bombay High Court, with Justice AS Chandurkar presiding, declined to grant further stay on notifying Fact Check Units (FCU) under the Information Technology (IT) rules. Justice Chandurkar emphasized that the notification of FCUs would not cause irreversible harm and noted the absence of a demonstrated grave and irreparable loss. The petitions challenging Rule 3(1)(b)(v) of the IT Rules, filed by stand-up comic Kunal Kamra and others, were referred to Justice Chandurkar after a split verdict by a division bench. While Justice Gautam Patel deemed the rules unconstitutional, Justice Neela Gokhale upheld them. The final decision on interim applications will be placed before the referral division bench of Justices Patel and Gokhale.
Adversitement