Indian move to regulate digital media raises censorship fears

The Indian government has ordered that each one on-line news, social media and video streaming platforms like Netflix and Amazon Prime area unit to be subject to state regulation, raising fears of enlarged censorship of digital media. The Ministry of data and Broadcasting, that regulates and censors print newspapers, television, films and theatre, also will have jurisdiction, beneath the new order, over digital news and diversion platforms in Asian nation. The move is an element of a push by the ruling Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata party (BJP) to manage a digital realm seen as a lot of transgressive and giving an area for a lot of vital journalism and diversion than ancient media. According to the watchdog Freedom House, web freedom in India has declined for the past 3 years and there area unit fears the order signals the tip of the digital realm united of the ultimate bastions of inventive and print media dissent in India. it’s doubtless to be passed into law in parliament in the week. Nikhil Pahwa, a digital rights activist and founding father of on-line news portal MediaNama, said: “The concern is that with the Ministry of data and Broadcasting – primarily India’s Ministry of Truth – currently in an exceedingly position to manage on-line news and diversion, we’ll see a bigger exercise of presidency management, and censorship.”