More Than 60 Platforms Blocked In Two Months: Govt
New Delhi, Feb 10: The government has blocked more than 60 social media platforms including Youtube channels sponsored from Pakistan in last two months, Minister of State for Information and Broadcasting Ministry Dr. L. Murugan told Rajya Sabha on Thursday.
He was responding to a supplementary query during Question Hour by BJP MP Lt Gen DP Vats on fake news and propaganda by communication agencies. The minister was talking about government’s action against a coordinated disinformation network operating from Pakistan.
Congress MP Vivek Tankha said that fake news did not just disseminate by Youtube channels, but by newspapers as well. Tankha demanded government to appoint Chairman of Press Council of India saying the post has been lying vacant for many months.
“Who should I complaint, if I want to complaint today. When are you going to constitute the Council,” he said.
The minister said, “Press Council of India is an autonomous statutory body which takes care of the ethics code of journalists. If the journalists don’t follow ethics, action has to be initiated and we have taken action in more than 150 cases.”
Responding to another query by AITC’s Mausam Noor regarding use of inactive Whatsapp accounts to send false news and manipulate social media algorithms to create fake trends, the minister said that the government has established a Fact Check Unit under the Press Information Bureau.
“Any citizen can write to this unit. It has responded 13,000 cases and it certifies if a news is fake,” the minister said.
Derek O’ Brien asked another question asking about government parameters to evaluate content as anti-India. The minister quoted Section 69A of the Information Technology Act, 2000 saying it empowers the Centre to issue directions to any government agency or an intermediary to block content in the interest of sovereignty and integrity of India, defence of India, security of the State, friendly relations with foreign States or public order or for preventing incitement to the commission of any cognizable offence relating to such matters.
