With section 66A of Information Technology Act gone, stronger law on cards

The Union Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) has recommended the strengthening of sections 153A and 505 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) instead of modifying section 66A of the Information Technology Act, 2000.

The Supreme Court had in March 2015 struck down section 66A of the IT Act that made posting "offensive" comments online a crime punishable by jail. But the jubilation among defenders of free speech might soon be over with the MHA's move, experts say.

Section 153A of the IPC prohibits hate speech and punishes any form of action or communication that leads to disharmony or feelings of enmity, hatred or ill-will among people. The maximum punishment is three years in jail.

Section 505, on the other hand, punishes statements that amount to public mischief. Both sections have the ramifications similar to section 66A, but unlike it, are non-bailable offences.

In a meeting, held earlier this week, of an expert committee under TK Vishwanathan, the MHA suggested that instead of modifying the controversial section 66A of the IT Act, amendments to sections 153A and 505 of the IPC will prove to be more effective.

It is also learnt that the Union Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeiTY) supported the idea mooted by the MHA.

The MHA's recommendations hint at the possibility of heightened censorship, which was not what the panel was set out to achieve, experts say.

The Cyber Regulation Advisory Committee (CRAC) was formed by the MHA to study the Supreme Court's judgment that called section 66A "unconstitutional" and "draconian".

In reply to a Parliament question in August, 2015, IT Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad said that the expert committee was formed to recommend a road map with measures and amendments to the present laws for consideration of the government. He also said that the committee will look at ways of restoring section 66A of the IT Act with "suitable modifications and safeguards to make it fully compatible with constitutional provisions".

On the other hand, the Women and Child Development (WCD) Ministry, also part of the committee, was opposed to the idea of not restoring section 66A. The ministry has, it is learnt, recommended that 66A must be amended.

Since the IT Act was originally formed to promote the IT industry, it should be amended to allow for preventive measures, it said.

The WCD Ministry's areas of concerns are the cyber security of women and children. As part of its prescriptions of a comprehensive overhaul, it has mooted the idea of a green channel for raising cyber crime cases on a real-time basis, where the abusive content can be taken down immediately.