Speakers and agenda: 1:00 PM – 1:45 PM | Session 1: Victims of Censorship in India (in partnership with DIGI Pub) Moderator: Adrija Bose, Editor, Decode Internet Neeraj Jha, Chief Editor, Molitics Haseen Rehmani, Bolta Hindustan, Founder Ambuj Kumar, Lokhit India, Editor Sanjay Sharma, 4-PM, Editor in Chief10 Minute break Key questions: What does it actually feel like to have content taken down by the government, and what recourse does one have? What kinds of content are most at risk under the current takedown regime? Is online censorship in India getting worse, and if so, what is driving it?

How are independent journalists and small digital publishers disproportionately affected by content take down mechanisms compared to larger news organisations? How does the threat of content removal affect what journalists and content creators choose to publish in the first place? Are takedown orders being used to silence criticism of the government, and what does the evidence show? 1:55 PM – 2:45 PM | Session 2: MeitY’s Expanding Mandate: Rule 3(4), the timelines for content takedowns, and the Safe Harbour, in the context of Shreya Singhal and the IT Act.

Moderator: Aditi Agarwal, Independent Journalist, Tech Trace Rakesh Maheshwari, Former Sr. Director and Group Coordinator, MeitY Vasudev Devadasan, Lawyer and Master of Law Candidate at University of Melbourne Torsha Sarkar, Project Manager at Centre for Communication Governance, NLU Delhi (CCG-NLUD) Rahil Chatterjee, Principal Associate, Ikigai Law Snehashish Ghosh, TechNiti Key Questions: What specific compliance gap is Rule 3(4) attempting to address, and does the proposed approach go beyond that stated objective? What is the current legal status of MeitY-issued advisories, clarifications, and directions, and how would the amendments change their enforceability?

By linking safe harbour to compliance with a wide range of executive instruments, does Rule 3(4) effectively convert conditional immunity into a continuous compliance obligation? How do these changes interact with the principles established in Shreya Singhal, particularly the requirement of a judicial order for content restriction? What operational challenges do platforms face with evolving and potentially unclear compliance requirements, especially when combined with shortened takedown timelines?

Taken together with existing tools such as Sahyog and reduced response timelines, do these amendments contribute to a broader censorship infrastructure, and what are the implications of that shift? 3:25 PM – 4:15 PM | Session 3: MIB’s Expanded Reach: The IDC, Part III, and Government Oversight of News Content and impact on users online. Moderator: Nikhil Pahwa, Founder, MediaNama Apar Gupta, Founder of Internet Freedom Foundation Jatin Gandhi, Vice-President Press Club of India Sneha Jain, Partner at Saikrishna & Associates Abhishek Malhotra, Managing Partner at TMT Practice Key questions: What does expanding MIB’s code of ethics to user-generated content mean in practice for users who post, share, and react to news online?

What are the implications of allowing the government to refer matters directly to the Inter-Departmental Committee without a prior complaint? Do these changes risk altering the nature of online public discourse by bringing individuals within a regulatory framework designed for institutional publishers? If a user posts about a government-blocked documentary or shares a news clip online, does that now fall under MIB’s oversight regime?

How does one define “news and current affairs” in the age of social media, and who gets to decide where the line is? What does extending IDC jurisdiction to user-generated content mean for platforms that host millions of news-related posts daily? Note: We have also curated a reading list to help you prepare for the discussion. Also read Govt. defends 4 PM YouTube ban, cites foreign influence and ‘digital lobbying’ in Delhi HC ECI orders 3-hour takedown rule for AI and fake content in elections Draft IT Rules explained: What MeitY’s draft amendments mean for platform liability, content creators, content takedowns and data retention