Recently, The news reports are suggesting that the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting has withdrawn the new draft Broadcasting Services (Regulation) Bill, 2024.
The draft bill has raised several questions on the freedom of speech and expression, and the government’s powers to regulate online content. However, “The MIB’s request for stakeholders to return the Broadcast Bill May only go to show that they are considering substantial revisions before moving in the legislative process”, said Alay Razvi, Partner, Accord Juris.
On August 12, the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting said in a statement on ‘x’ that it would publish a fresh draft after detailed consultations and invited comments until October 15, hours after it had asked stakeholders to return watermarked physical copies of an updated version that was circulated between July 24 and 25. The fact that the bill is in consultation stage. “There can be no timeline for finalizing the bill and enacting it into law. It can take from several months to years, depending on the extent of revision needed and in furtherance thereto, the consensus required among the stakeholders and lawmakers. This only will delay the legislative process as the MIB will be reassessing the bill’s provisions before introducing for approval”, said Alay Razvi.
The consultation process on the bill has been on since November 2023, when the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting released first draft. There can only be speculations as to why the ministry has withdrawn the draft of Broadcast Bill. “It is difficult to speculate why the bill was asked to be returned. Broadly speaking, the process of seeking consultation is not unknown to the process of law making. Especially for legislations that have far reaching consequences and have interplay with other areas like technology (read big tech) and more importantly constitutional issues like freedom of speech,” said Sudarshan Singh Shekhawat, Founder, Shekhawat Law.There is no time-bound commitment with regard to process of law-making, “It can take months easily and in several instances can take years. It really depends on the length and breadth of the implications, and the number of stakeholders. In this case the conventional broadcast industry alone is one of the largest in the world. Since now the discussions also pertain to digital/online platforms including content creators, it is bound to take time,” said Sudharshan Singh Shekhawat.
The legislative process starts with the introduction of the Bill in either House of Parliament-the Rajya Sabha or the Loksabha. However, “Bills and therefore, legislations cannot be made in silos. Every consultation with a wider group is a welcome step provided transparency is also maintained. It is also possible that some feedback is taken prior to drafting the bill in such cases so that some time can be saved,” said Sudharshan Singh Shekhawat.
However, considering larger issues like national security, law and order, elections, freedom of speech also getting impacted by such laws, it is not surprising that the Government wants to have the first word before going to stakeholders.Sudharshan Singh Shekhawat, Founder, Shekhawat Law.
The criticism around the draft bill is also around the undefined thresholds for online content creators to intimate the government about their work and setting up a content evaluation committee. Thus, “Considering the hype around the bill and presumably several interesting issues such as those of online content creators being raised, it is safe to say, the Government may come back with a fresh draft or an amended version,” said Sudarshan Singh Shekhawat.While adding, “It is difficult to speculate as of now if the Government will seek inputs from stakeholders again or present the revised bill in parliament directly.”
There is a legitimate expectation from the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting to undertake the consultation process in a transparent manner after facing criticism for the opaque manner in which the second draft of the Broadcast Bill was circulated with certain stakeholders at the end July. The “Request for the return of the bill copies of the Broadcast Bill by the Government comes after various groups raised their concerns and dissent on the same. The request may serve several purposes. Primarily, in regards to this case the request may be aimed to ensure confidentiality of the Bill during the period of review, amendments and revisions. This may help the Government in preventing the dissemination of inaccurate, false or outdated information. Another reason for the same may also be to address various stakeholder doubts, incorporate feedback and in general address the negative perception of the public discourse. This move shall also mitigate the risk of false or unauthorized versions being circulated,” said Kunal Sharma, Partner, Singhania & Co.
The timeline for finalizing a bill and enacting it into a law is not fixed and can be highly variable. While there is a timeline for lapsing of a bill but finalizing of bill does not have a fixed timeline.Kunal Sharma, Partner, Singhania & Co.
The released draft stated that “the Bill has been drafted in a plain and simple language” for the purpose that any citizen is able to understand its provisions. The draft was accompanied by an explanatory note which provided a brief overview of the Bill to facilitate further consultations. “The request for the return of bill copies, the government is likely to proceed and work out a draft with feedback received from it. Further revisions and internal discussions may take place at this phase. Thereafter, it will go through the formal legislative process, which also involves further reviews and debates. Ultimately, the objective should be to finalize the bill with an accurate reflection of the intended policy objectives before enactment,” said Kunal Sharma.
The Bill is sought to replace the 1995 Cable Television Networks (Regulation) Act which deals with television broadcasting. However, the new draft will was criticised for expanding the applicability of the power to regulate social media accounts and online video creators which sought to define a “digital news broadcaster” while also requiring prior registration with the government. “It is being reported by various news agencies that there were a lot of concerns being raised by the stakeholders on the draft. One of the major sore points was that the social media influencers would also come under the umbrella of broadcasters, which will create a lot of challenges. Accordingly, it appears that the ministry decided to have a re-look at the bill and take a call, whether the bill requires minor amendments or it needs to be redrafted from the scratch. The bill has therefore been recalled, and it is expected that a revised draft will be released,” said Rohit Jain, Managing Partner, Singhania & Co.
Further additional time is being provided to solicit suggestions till 15th October, 2024 after which a fresh draft will be published after detailed consultations. “It is very difficult to accurately predict the next steps but considering that a version has already been prepared, it is more likely that there will be amendments to the current draft rather than redrafting ground up. In case there are only few amendments specially around social media influencers, we may expect the revised draft soon. But in case if the ministry is considering major amendments, we may have to wait longer to see the revised draft,” said Rohit Jain, Managing Partner, Singhania & Co.
Considering that this is the second attempt at the bill, a more substantial delay will be quite disappointing. This issue has been going on for quite some time, especially, with the advent of OTT platforms and needs to be addressed sooner than later.Rohit Jain, Managing Partner, Singhania & Co.
The Union Ministry of Information and broadcasting invited comments on the Broadcasting Services (Regulation) Bill, 2023 noting that the Cable Television Networks (Regulation) Act of 1995 has been in effect for three decades, serving as the primary legislation overseeing content on linear broadcasting, including cable networks. However, the broadcasting landscape has undergone significant changes in the interim.
The Ministry laid down “a growing need to streamline the regulatory framework” as a fundamental objective while undertaking the policy while extending its purview to cover the Over-the-Top(OTT) content and digital news, and introduces contemporary definitions and provisions for emerging technologies.Thus, proposing a draft Broadcasting Services (Regulation) Bill, 2023 which provided a consolidated framework to regulate the broadcasting services in the country and sought to replace the existing Cable Television Networks (Regulation) Act, 1995 and other Policy Guidelines currently governing the broadcasting sector in the country.