Delhi Event Examines MeitY Draft IT Rules Amendments

MediaNama will host a policy discussion on April 23, 2026 in New Delhi examining MeitY's draft amendments to the Information Technology (Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media Ethics Code) Rules, 2021. The event runs 1:00 PM to 4:15 PM at India Habitat Centre and is also accessible via Zoom for outstation participants. The draft amendments, described by MeitY as "clarificatory and procedural in nature," carry substantive reach. They expand the scope of executive directions that platforms must follow as a condition for retaining safe harbour under Section 79 of the IT Act, extend regulatory oversight to user-generated news and current affairs content, and allow direct government referrals to the Inter-Departmental Committee without a prior complaint. Separate amendments on synthetic content compress takedown timelines to as little as three hours, pushing platforms toward automated moderation at scale. Speakers include Rakesh Maheshwari, former Senior Director at MeitY; Apar Gupta of Internet Freedom Foundation; Sangeeta Barooah Pisharoty, President of the Press Council of India; and lawyers Sneha Jain and Abhishek Malhotra. Sessions will address Rule 3(4), the Shreya Singhal precedent, the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting's expanded reach, and the IDC framework. The core tension to watch: whether broadened executive compliance conditions effectively narrow safe harbour protections and reshape how platforms moderate Indian users.