MUMBAI - India does not intend to censor
online social networks such as Facebook, a minister said Tuesday, but he
demanded that they obey the same rules governing the press and other media.
"I want to say once and for all, without
any obfuscation, no government in India will ever censor social media,"
Telecoms Minister Kapil Sibal said at an IT summit in Mumbai.
"I never wanted to censor social media
and no government wants to do so. But like the print and electronic media, they
have to obey the laws of the country," Sibal told the gathering.
Sibal held a number of meetings with leading
Internet companies late last year in which he asked about the possibility of
pre-screening content posted online by users.
He reportedly showed executives examples of
obscene images found on the Internet that risked offending Muslims or defaming
politicians, including the boss of the ruling Congress party, Sonia Gandhi.
Since then, 19 Internet firms including
Google, Yahoo! and Facebook have been targeted in criminal and civil cases
lodged in lower New Delhi courts, holding them responsible for content posted
by users of their platforms.
The Indian government has given its sanction
for the firms to be tried for serious crimes such as fomenting religious hatred
and spreading social discord, offences that could land company directors in
prison.
Google and Facebook said earlier this month
that they had removed the allegedly offensive content used as evidence in the
court cases.
The groups have appealed to the Delhi High
Court asking for the cases against them to be quashed on the basis that they
cannot be held responsible for the actions of their clients.
The comments of a judge hearing the case
raised further fears that freedom of expression online could be restricted.
"You must have a stringent check.
Otherwise, like in China, we may pass orders banning all such websites,"
the judge said during a hearing in January.
AFP
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