Synopsis
India is proposing new rules for internet platforms. Advisories and clarifications from the IT ministry will now be legally binding. This means platforms like Meta, Google, and X must comply. Failure to do so could remove their legal shield. These changes aim to strengthen enforcement and improve legal certainty. Public feedback is invited until April 14.Prime Minister Narendra Modi's government this year compressed the timeline for platforms to take down content flagged by authorities to three hours, from 36 hours previously, and has imposed new obligations around AI-generated content and deepfakes.
Currently, the IT ministry's advisories to platforms - on issues ranging from deepfake labelling to content takedown practices - have functioned as guidance without explicit legal consequences.
In new proposed rules on Monday, the government said non-compliance with advisories or guidelines issued by the IT ministry would be treated as a failure to meet the conditions for safe harbour - the legal shield that protects platforms from liability for content posted by their users.
The changes were being proposed to "strengthen enforceability" of directions and "improve legal certainty", the ministry said in a notice inviting public feedback by April 14.
Meta, Google and X did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
