New Rules For Digital Media Platforms And Intermediaries

1.INTRODUCTION

The last decade has witnessed a mass proliferation of internet facilities across the country. The digital economy has been made accessible to nearly every person thanks to the relatively unregulated sector and the 'Digital India' programme. As a natural consequence of this and the outbreak of the COVID-19 global pandemic, people from all walks of life took to social media platforms to share their opinion, glean information and be a part of the virtual world that left no opinion unheard and no voice unrecognised. While, on one hand, there was an increase in the spread of 'fake' news due to the lack of censorship and inbuilt safeguards on social media platforms, that contributed to mob lynchings and riots, on the other hand, voices that spoke up against oppression were muzzled through heavy-handed internet shutdowns and police action. While the user base of social media platforms grew, so did the discontentment and apprehension about the lack of