Regulating social media:
- Section 69A of IT Act: empowers the group to direct an intermediary to block info for public access in interest of sovereignty, defense, seurity, friendly relations, public order
- Shreya singhal vs UoI 2015 upheld S69A
- Prajwala case v/s UoI: SC ordered govt to frame guidelines/SOP - implement them to eliminate child pornography etc
- Tehseen Poonawalla case 2018 - SC gave govt full freedom to curb dissemination of irresponsible messages on various platforms
Regulating OTT:
- Information Technology (Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media Ethics Code) Rules 2021 - for digital content on OTT and digital media
- Admn powers to be with Min of I&B
- 3-tier governance redressal:
- At level of each OTT provider
- Self-regulatory body collectively estb by OTTs
- Headed by retired SC/HC judge or independent eminent person
- would have censuring powers
- Overriding powers in form of an ‘Oversight mechanism’ with govt. Inter-ministerial committee
- Safe harbour provision under Section 79 of IT ACt (immunity from legal persecution for content posted on their platforms) will not be applicable if they fail to follow due diligence
- Grievance redressal:
- Grievance officer, resolve complaint within 15 days
- A resident grievance officer with office in India, and Indian passport holding citizen
- Chief compliance officer-be present in india, ensure compliance with IT Act
- Nodal contact person - available round the clock for coordination with law enforcement agencies.
- Identify and disclose info of first originator of a message ‘only for purposes related to sovereignty and integrity, security, friendly relations with foreign states,public order.
- Give users a fair opportunity to be heard before remocing access to their account
- Emergency powers- with Secy, Min of I&B- give orders to block access without opportunity to be heard
- Code of ethics for companies for content, under IB ministry
- Esp for OTT:
- Self-classify content in 5 categories:
- U (universal), U/A 7+, U/A 13+, U/A 16+, A
- Age verification for content in A category
- Social media: monthly complaince reports, grievance redressal <15days, first originator
Draft Cinematograph Amendment Bill 2021:
- Certificate for eternity. Currently, valid for 10 yrs
- Currently, no provision to check piracy
- Censorship: born in India in 1918 with the enactment of the Censorship Act. Gave the DM the power to issue licences to exhibitors, and the government to appoint inspectors to examine and certify films as “suitable for public exhibition”
Civil service reforms:
- Transfers:
- Civil Service Survey Report: frequent transfrs a majr concern - job security, children’s education, family togetherness etc.
- Govt database -bureaucrats average only about 15 months in a posting (SUPREMO database of Dept of Personnel and training)
- Ashok Khemka and Pradeep Kasni : transferred more than 50 and 65 times in their careers respectively
- Critical case of J&K: frequent transfers affect morale and efficiency of officers => effect impacts development and governance and acts as a collective punishment to the population of that place
- 2nd ARC recommended following transfer guidelines
- 5th Pay Comm - no premature transfers be allowed. Fixation of min tenure for each post
- Hota Committee: argued against frequent transfers;
- Frequent transfers lead to tardy implementation of policies, lack of accountability, impact civil services neutrality and impartiality
- Create an efficient transfer policy. Minfized tenure of 2-3 yrs.
- Article 311- a civil servant cannot be dismissed/removed by an authority subordinate to one that appointed him.
- Dismissal can be challenged in State/CATs
- Lateral entry: Recommended by NITI, in 3 yr action agenda
- No reservation for SC, ST etc
- Mission Karmayogi:
- 'on-site learning' to complement 'off-site' learning
- shared training infra
- calibrate all civil services to a Framework of Roles, Activities and competencies
- Wholly owned SPV- own and operate online learning platform
- Capacity building Commission - harmonize training standards
- PM-led HR council - aprprove and monitor capacity building
RTI:
- S4- suo moto disclosure
- S8(1) - exemptions against furnishing info
- S8(2) - disclosure of info exempted under Official Secrets Act if larger public interest served
- Rajasthan State Info Commission recently fined 5 officials for not providing info to applicants
- Info to be supplied within 30 days. If concerning life and liberty, within 48 hrs.
- Pvt bodies:
- Not within ambit directly
- CIC in Sarabjit Roy vs Delhi Electricity regulatory commission - privatized public utility companies within RTI’s ambit
- CIC -Pol parties are public authorities and fall within RTI.
- Currently pol parties are not within RTI’s ambit
- SC - CJI public authority under RTI
Police reforms:
- TN-govt:one-day-weekly-off-to-police-personnel
- Work-life-balance:
- Model-police-Act:max-8-working-hours-a-day
- 2019-survey:80%-on-duty-for-more-than-8-hours-a-daye
- Undertrials: 70% of total prison population
- Wrongful persecutions:
- Law Comm 277th report, Delhi HC in Babloo Chauhan case - relief and rehab to victims of wrongful persecutions and incarceration.
- Prakash Singh:
- Fixing tenure and appointment of DGP
- MINIMUM tenure for IGP ( pol interference)
- Postings by Police estb board
- State police complaints authority for common people to approach with grievances
- State Security Commission with members from civil society
- National Security Commission
- Present: not a single state fully compliant with above guidelines
- SC-2020:night-vision-cameras-in-all-police-stations
- LC-113th-report:if a person sustains injuries in custody, it is presumed that the injuries were inflicted by the police.
Criminal Justice system:
- What is an Act of terror
- UAPA Section 15 defines - threatens/likely to threaten unity, integrity, sovereignty or security of India. Intent to strike terror in people.
- Ram Manohar Lohia (1966):
- Largest circle - Law and order. Within it - Public order. Within it - security of state
- (Simple violation of law and order not threat to security of state/act of terror)
- PUCL judgement (2003):
- Razing of constitutional pricniples we hold dear
- tearing apart of secular fabric
- promoting prejudice/bigotry
- Karta Singh (1994)
- Mere disturbance of public order not an act of terror
- Hitendra Vishnu Thakur (1994):
- Terrorism - use of violence hwere most imp result is not merely physica;/mental damage, but prolonged psychological effect on society as a whole.
- Need for reform:
- 2015-2019: ~7800 people arrested under UAPA, only 152 convicted by trial courts. Even of these, most acquitted by higher courts.
- Montesquieu: Criminal law should only be used as 'last resort' and for 'most reprehensible' wrongs
- Delhi HC Judgement recently - releasing on bail 3 university students - charged under UAPA
- Torture:
- Mendez principles - replace torture with 'rapport-based' interviews
- 2019 study by Common Cause and Lokaniti:
- 3/4 police personnel: violence towards 'criminals' justified
- 4/5 - nothing wrong in beating criminals to attract confessions
SHGs/NGO:
- 90% are exclusively women
- Disaster mgmt:
- Swayamsidha SHG of Odisha, members were imparted skills to save themselves and others during disasters
- Dissemination of warnings - Jeevika platform, Bihar
- Deep community penetration => first response
- Kerala, the Kudumbashree network, with 4.4 million members, helped deliver free ration and grocery kits - during COVID lockdown
- Evacuation: Ganjam district in coastal Odisha women SHG helped mobilize communities
Cooperatives:
IFFCO - A 3rd in market share in fertilizers
Legal sanction began- 1904, colonial law