The Editors Guild of India (EGI) on Saturday urged the Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha(LoP) Rahul Gandhi to raise issues of press freedom and right to information in the Parliament.
In a letter, the EGI highlighted how the fundamental freedom of the press has come under “increasing threat due to several legislative measures passed by the government”. It added that these measures were “taken without adequate stakeholder consultation and parliamentary scrutiny in the drafting and passing of these laws”.
“They carry provisions that are vague and overboard, which could be misused to restrict legitimate journalistic activities,” the EGI further said.
Sharing the letter on social media platform X, the EGI said it has written to leaders of opposition parties, expressing concerns on “legislative measures taken to control media- print, broadcast, and digital’ and calling for renewed debate and consultations.”
EGI has written to leaders of opposition parties, expressing our concerns on legislative measures taken to control media- print, broadcast, and digital, over last few years, calling for renewed debate and consultations.
Here is letter written to LOP in Lok Sabha @RahulGandhi pic.twitter.com/u2bSCGsFlp
— Editors Guild of India (@IndEditorsGuild) July 20, 2024
The letter expressed various concerns about the legislative measures including the Digital Personal Data Protection Act (2023), the Broadcasting Services Regulation Bill(2023), the Press and Registration of Periodicals Act (2023) and the IT Rules 2021 with subsequent amendments to it in 2023.
Through the letter, the EGI sought parliamentary debate and stakeholder consultation on important issues affecting press freedom and to safeguard it in any new legislative measures. It further requested Gandhi to raise these issues in Parliament and ensure protection of press freedom and right to information by advocating for amendments. “We believe that a free and independent press is vital for the health of our democracy and it is imperative that these legislative measures are revisited to safeguard these fundamental principles,” the EGI said.
[ad_2]
Source link
