The High Court of Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh has issued a notice to authorities regarding a contempt plea filed by a non-governmental organisation (NGO) concerning the proliferation of news portals without adhering to legal procedures.
The division bench, comprising Chief Justice (acting) Tashi Rabstan and Justice Puneet Gupta, issued the notice after hearing the counsel for the Jammu and Kashmir Peoples Forum, an NGO.
In June 2022, the High Court left it to the government's discretion to decide on regulating and controlling social media news channels, networks, pages, and portals in Jammu and Kashmir.
The court had disposed of the Public Interest Litigation (PIL) filed by the Jammu and Kashmir Peoples Forum through its General Secretary M. M. Shuja in 2021.
The court had asked the government to consider the NGO's representation regarding the regulation and control of social media networks and to take appropriate action promptly.
“The petitioner may submit detailed representations and suggestions regarding regulating and controlling the social media network to the Principal Secretary of the Information Department in the manner in which he wants social media news channels to be permitted and regulated,” the court said.
“If the petitioner submits the representation and suggestions, the Government and the Principal Secretary, Information Department would be free to consider the same and take appropriate action as may be permissible by law,” the court added.
In 2021, the Jammu and Kashmir Peoples Forum had filed the PIL, seeking directions for the government to designate a regulatory authority for granting permission to social media news channels, networks, pages, and portals.
The forum had also sought directives to prohibit any social media news network, agency, page, or portal from operating without proper licensing and permission.
The PIL stated that every individual “hanging a camera and holding a microphone poses as a journalist, regardless of whether they are authorised and permitted to work as journalists.”
These “pseudo-journalists,” the Forum argued, have not only “tarnished” the image of genuine journalists but also resorted to “blackmailing government officers, contractors, and politicians.”
The petitioner further asserted that it was the authorities' duty to scrutinise the credentials and backgrounds of every individual holding any direct or indirect position in any media house, media channel, or social media group and to identify government employees to ensure they choose either their employment in the government or in the media house.
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