"Vague And Excessively Intrusive": Editors Guild On Draft Broadcast Services (Regulation) Bill (image: twitter.com/ianuragthakur)

In a letter to Union Information and Broadcasting Minister Anurag Thakur, the Editors Guild of India (EGI) has said the draft Broadcast Services (Regulation) Bill circulated by the Central government is “vague and excessively intrusive”. The letter dated 7 December 2023, was made public on 15 January.

Guild claimed that the new bill would establish “adverse to the spirit of freedom of speech and freedom of the press guaranteed by the Constitution” and added that through the formation of a broadcast advisory council it would set the base for the creation of an “overarching censorship framework”.

EGI has submitted a representation on the draft Broadcasting Services Bill to @MIB_India
Primary concerns are Centre’s powers to monitor and block content, prohibit transmission on vague grounds, and a system of self regulation that allows govt great control. pic.twitter.com/pRvtFg2UbC

— Editors Guild of India (@IndEditorsGuild) January 15, 2024

EGI, listing the four major concerns, argued that the Bill would culminate in an “overbearing system of self-regulation” sanctioning the formation of content evaluation committees. The press body added that it grants the government to have greater control on those committees.

Continuing further Guild said that bill allows the government to manage, or even restrain the transmission of channels or programmes on indefinite grounds.

“Provisions that allow government excessive delegation of rule-making are also problematic as they lead to uncertainty for the stakeholders who may be impacted by the draft bill and prevent individuals from being fully informed so as to meaningfully engage in the consultation process,” the Guild said in the letter.

The bill proposed by the ministry of Information and Broadcasting in last November plans to replace the Cable Television Networks (Regulation) Act, 1995 and other policy directives currently guiding the broadcasting sector in the country. The bill put forth a unified and single framework to regulate broadcasting services, including over-the-top (OTT) content and digital news. The Ministry has invited comments and feedback on the bill from all stakeholders since November 10 the previous year.

(With inputs from PTI)