Parliamentary panel asks I&B ministry to suggest amendments in laws by February 17 amid Ranveer Allahbadia remark row

At the meeting of the Standing Committee on Communications and Information Technology, members from different parties voiced concern over Allahbadia's crass comments and called for stringent measures to punish him and to ensure that such an incident does not recur.

New Delhi: A parliamentary panel Thursday asked the Information and Broadcasting Ministry to submit a note by February 17 on the amendments needed in existing laws to clamp down on controversial content like the one involving Ranveer Allahbadia amid bipartisan concern from MPs over the issue.

At the meeting of the Standing Committee on Communications and Information Technology, members from different parties voiced concern over Allahbadia's crass comments at a YouTube programme and called for stringent measures to punish him and to ensure that such an incident does not recur.

Sources said the committee's chairperson and BJP MP Nishikant Dubey shared their concerns at the meeting attended by Information and Broadcasting Secretary Sanjay Jaju and other senior ministry officials.

The committee later dispatched a communication to Jaju under the subject "review of implementation of laws related to all forms of media", sources said.

The letter said, "With the examination of the subject "Review of Implementation of Laws related to all forms of Media", and in the light of recent episode of controversy generated by the vulgar remarks of YouTuber Ranveer Allahbadia in a YouTube short, the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting is requested to provide a brief note regarding the amendments required in all the laws (Act, Code, Guidelines, etc) related to media due to the emergence of new forms of technology and media platforms." Most members at the meeting, the sources added, were of the view that the existing laws should be amended to regulate content on social media and Over The Top (OTT) platforms. They said the extant laws should be used to take action against those airing controversial content like Allahbadia.

BJP's Anil Baluni, V D Sharma, Lahar Singh Siroya, BJD MP Sasmit Patra and Shiv Sena (UBT) MP Priyanka Chaturvedi were among those who raised the issue.

Patra told PTI that several members cutting across party lines raised the Allahbadia issue and stressed the need to take strong stringent measures. The committee's chairperson Dubey has also taken a very strong view on the issue, he added.

Police have registered a criminal case against the social media influencer, who has apologised for his comments. Though his remarks have received all-round criticism, there has been a debate on whether comments like these should be criminalised or be instead subject to better regulations.

The parliamentary committee has been engaged in a keen discussion over the need to amend the existing laws to bring social media and OTT platforms under the legal scrutiny applicable to print media and linear TV programmes.

The efficacy of the existing laws, which were drawn up long back before the explosion in the media space, has also been subject to much discussion.

Dubey had, in the committee's meeting on January 31, pitched for strengthening laws related to the media and bringing news portals and OTT platforms under their ambit as he raised issues like "rampant" paid news and some news channels turning to sensationalism for television rating points (TRPs).

He had said that serious news was being ignored as media platforms chased TRPs.