On Friday, the Kerala High Court passed an interim order in favor of the News Broadcaster Association in their challenge to the Centre’s new IT rules, as per reports. The News Broadcaster Association, as earlier reported has filed a petition in the Kerala High Court on the grounds of the new IT Rules, 2021.
The Single-Judge bench of Justice PB Suresh Kumar has issued a notice directing that no coercive action shall be taken against the news organization that is a part of the NBA for non-compliance of provision under the new IT rules to the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology and Ministry of Information and Broadcasting.
The News Broadcaster Association in their petition asserted that the new rules provided government authorities an excessive power to unreasonably restrict media rights. Maninder Singh, who turned up for the NBA notified the High Court that the IT Rules 2021 were ultra vires to the parent Act. Furthermore, he explained that the actions permitted to the government under the new rules are against the IT Act in the first place. He further challenged the three-tier oversight mechanism brought into place through the new rules. He claimed that the government should not be allowed to enter the domain of Judicial powers, with the joint secretary-level official sitting over a decision of a retired Supreme Court or a High Court judge.
Advocate Maninder Singh brought to notice, a similar order that had been passed by the Kerala High Court earlier where protection against coercive action was granted to other digital media houses, before the bench.
