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हिन्दी — Read in HindiMedia, online content and its regulation
The State and the media: the press, broadcasting, online content and the power to block or shut down.
All 3 articles shown; the 1 that changed from 1 to 31 August 2026 are marked.Show only these
Internet shutdowns
Copy link to Internet shutdownsPrelims and Mains
An internet shutdown is an order suspending internet access in an area; it now rests on Section 20 of the Telecommunications Act, 2023.
What changed
22 Jul 2026Briefnewly addedMobile internet was suspended in parts of central Delhi during the Chalo Sansad protest on 20 July 2026, the opening day of the Monsoon Session. The Telecommunications Suspension Rules, 2024 replaced Section 5(2) of the Telegraph Act, 1885, and allow a shutdown only for a public emergency or public safety, by a reasoned, published order. Anuradha Bhasin (2020) requires a shutdown to be necessary, proportionate and reviewed. The Hindu, 22 Jul 2026: Delhi Internet shutdown during CJP protest: Where does the law stand? | Explained (opens in a new tab)
Safe harbour and the Meta takedown
Copy link to Safe harbour and the Meta takedownPrelims and Mains
Safe harbour is the protection that Section 79 of the Information Technology Act, 2000 gives a platform from liability for what its users post.
- In Shreya Singhal the Supreme Court held that a platform need remove content only on a court order or a government notification tied to Article 19(2).
- Blocking orders under Section 69A are confidential.
What changed
10 Aug 2026Newnewly added
- A video posted by the Prime Minister became inaccessible on Facebook for some hours on 28 July with a notice citing a legal request, and was restored as an operational error.
- A parliamentary committee demanded an apology and spoke of withdrawing safe harbour, which only Parliament can do by amending the law.
Mains: safe harbour fits hosting but not paid advertising, where the platform picks the audience and earns from each view, which is the case for independent audits of algorithms as the European Union requires of very large platforms.
Frontline, 10 Aug 2026 · Frontline, 18 Jul 2026
Deepfake labelling rules
Copy link to Deepfake labelling rulesPrelims and Mains
India reaches artificial intelligence through the platform that carries the content rather than the model that made it. The Information Technology (Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media Ethics Code) Rules, 2021 place duties on intermediaries, with a significant social media intermediary defined as a platform with 50 lakh registered users or more, which must use automated tools against child sexual abuse material and the like. The amendment of 10 February 2026 brought synthetically generated information, audio, image or video created or altered so it appears real, under the rules: permitted AI content must carry clear labels and traceable metadata, takedown on a court order or a reasoned government intimation falls from 36 hours to three, a grievance must be settled in 36 hours rather than 72, and a sensitive case such as nudity or impersonation in two hours rather than 24. Thirteen responsible AI projects run under the IndiaAI Mission, including Saakshya, a deepfake detection framework from IIT Jodhpur and IIT Madras.