The tussle between Twitter, WhatsApp and Facebook and the Union government has reached its nadir, and the fact is that an absence of a stricter personal data protection law is forcing the concerned authorities to take routes like sending cops to closed Twitter offices in the pandemic or writing heaps of notices that have resulted in zero action to date, while social networking giants continue to take the country for a ride.
In between the ruckus, with the deadline to comply with the new IT rules meant for big social media platforms in India ending on Tuesday, Facebook said that the company aims to comply with the provisions of the new intermediary guidelines and will continue to discuss the few issues "which need more engagement" with the government.
The Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) had asked the social media platform to abide by the Information Technology (Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media Ethics Code) Rules, 2021 by May 25, or face strict action.
A Facebook spokesperson said that the company is putting operational processes in place to meet the new IT rules.
In a statement, the spokesperson said the social media platform remains committed to people's ability to "freely and safely express" themselves on its platform.
"We aim to comply with the provisions of the IT rules and continue to discuss a few of the issues which need more engagement with the government. Pursuant to the IT rules, we are working to implement operational processes and improve efficiencies," said a Facebook spokesperson in a statement.
Twitter was yet to speak officially on the May 25 deadline.
The MeitY had announced its draft new IT (Intermediary Guidelines) Rules for social media platforms on February 25, in the exercise of powers under section 87 (2) of the Information Technology Act, 2000 and in supersession of the earlier Information Technology (Intermediary Guidelines) Rules 2011.
The new guidelines issued by the government of India mandated a grievance redressal system for over the top (OTT) and digital portals in the country.
Briefing the media about the new rules on February 25, Union Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad had said that though the government welcomes criticism and the right to dissent, "but it is very important for the users of social media to have a forum to raise their grievance against the misuse of social media."
Under the new rules, social media platforms will have to have a grievance redressal mechanism, they will also have to name a grievance officer who shall register the grievance within 24 hours and disposal in 15 days.
The government had said that if there are complaints against the dignity of users, particularly women - about exposed private parts of individuals or nudity or sexual act or impersonation etc - social media platforms will be required to remove that within 24 hours after a complaint is made.
As per the guidelines, first, the social media platforms will have to have a chief compliance officer residing in India responsible for ensuring compliance with the act and the rules.
Second is a nodal contact person who should reside in India for 24X7 coordination with law enforcement agencies. Also, social media platforms have to appoint a resident grievance officer who shall perform the grievance redressal mechanism as indicated. They also will have to publish a monthly report about the number of complaints received and the status of redressal.
