SC stays Centre’s notification on establishing Fact Check Unit to address fake news

Centre established FCU with the purpose of overseeing content on social media related to its operations

March 21, 2024

Centre’s Fact Check Unit put on hold, SC pauses notification

The Supreme Court has put a hold on the operation of the March 20 notification concerning the Fact Check Unit (FCU) by the Central government, under the Information Technology (Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media Ethics Code) Amendment Rules 2023 (IT Amendment Rules 2023).

This comes a day after the Centre notified the Fact Check Unit under the Press Information Bureau to “address the challenge of fake news.

The FCU was established with the purpose of overseeing content on social media related to its operations, in accordance with the recently amended IT Rules.

The Supreme Court has decided to keep the notification on hold until the Bombay High Court makes a decision on the challenges to the Information Technology Rules Amendment 2023.

A bench of Chief Justice of India D Y Chandrachud, Justice J B Pardiwala, and Justice Manoj Misra said the matter concerns freedom of expression. The court, however, did not comment on the merits of the case.

Stand-up comedian Kunal Kamra and the Editors Guild of India had approached the Bombay High Court, seeking a direction to restrain the Centre from notifying the Fact Check Unit.

The Centre responded that the rules were issued in the public interest to crack down on fake news. It also said the fact-check will be based on evidence and such decisions can be challenged in courts.

The Centre also said political opinions, satire, and comedy are not linked to government business; the petitioners have argued that ‘business of the Central government’ is a “vague” area.

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