India News | Editors Guild Terms Draft Broadcast Services Bill 'vague', 'excessively Intrusive'

New Delhi, Jan 15 (PTI) The Editors Guild of India (EGI) has said the draft Broadcast Services (Regulation) Bill circulated by the government is "vague and excessively intrusive".

In a letter to Union Information and Broadcasting Minister Anurag Thakur, the Guild said the new bill would prove "adverse to the spirit of freedom of speech and freedom of the press guaranteed by the Constitution" and lay the ground for the creation of an "overarching censorship framework" through the establishment of a broadcast advisory council.

Also Read | OYO Plans To Expand Presence in Spiritual Destinations Including Ayodhya With 400 Properties by Year-End.

Outlining four major concerns, the Guild said the bill would result in an "overbearing system of self-regulation" mandating the creation of content evaluation committees in a manner that allows the government to have a greater degree of control on those committees.

The press body said the bill allows the government to regulate, or even prohibit, the transmission of channels or programmes on vague grounds.

Also Read | 24.82 Crore People Lifted Out of Multidimensional Poverty in India Over Nine Years, Says NITI Aayog Report.

"Provisions that allow government excessive delegation of rule-making are also problematic as they lead to uncertainty for the stakeholders who may be impacted by the draft bill and prevent individuals from being fully informed so as to meaningfully engage in the consultation process," the Guild said in the letter dated December 7, 2023, which was made public on Monday.

(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)