Social media users, don't worry. Facebook, WhatsApp And Twitter will not be banned in India. The new IT rules clearly mentioned that the platforms may face legal proceedings for non-compliance but will not be banned.
New Delhi: As there was massive panic among social media users that Facebook, WhatsApp And Twitter will be banned in the country, the new IT rules have addressed their concern. As per the new IT rules, these social media platforms will not be banned in the country anytime soon. The new Information Technology (Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media Ethics Code) Rules 2021, also known as the new IT Rules 2021, has come into effect from today. This new rule came into effect after a three-month window was given to large social media networks to comply with these guidelines, which were first released in February.
As per the new rules, the large social media platforms are clearly defined as those having more than 50 lakh registered users, which means Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and the made in India Koo app, all get categorized as large social media platforms. The new IT rules stress that the social media platforms need to appoint a resident grievance officer as part of a larger grievance redressal mechanism, active monitoring of content on the platform, monthly compliance reports for Indian users and self-regulation mechanisms.
There was absolute panic among social media users that if these platforms don’t comply with the new IT Rules 2021, then they would be getting banned in India. This is where the subsection 1 of the section 79 of the IT Rules 2021 comes into play. This subsection clearly mentioned in the new IT Rules 2021 which says when an intermediary fails to observe these rules, the provisions of sub-section (1) of section 79 of the Act shall not be applicable for such intermediary and the intermediary shall be liable for punishment under any law for the time being in force including the provisions of the Act and the Indian Penal Code.
Moreover, the section 79 of the new IT rules specifically gives digital media platforms such as Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and WhatsApp immunity against liability for posts made on their networks, third party information or data.
In such cases, if the social media platforms do not comply with the new IT Rules 2021, it has been clearly mentioned that the this legal immunity will be withdrawn and digital media platforms will be part of the legal proceedings.
The sub-section 1 of section 79 of the IT rues also stated that notwithstanding anything contained in any law for the time being in force but subject to the provisions of sub-sections (2) and (3), an intermediary shall not be liable for any third-party information, data, or communication link made available or hosted by him.