"Surveillance Of Citizens": Editors Guild's On Data Protection Bill

The Editors Guild of India on Sunday expressed concerns over certain provisions of the Digital Personal Data Protection (DPDP) Bill, saying they can have an adverse impact on press freedom.

In a statement, the Guild said the DPDP Bill creates an enabling framework for surveillance of citizens, including journalists and their sources.

The Guild has asked Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla to refer the Bill to a parliamentary standing committee. It has also written about its concerns on the Bill to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Rajya Sabha Chairman Jagdeep Dhankhar, IT Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw and leaders of political parties in Parliament.

The government tabled the DPDP Bill in Lok Sabha on August 3 with an aim to protect the privacy of Indian citizens while proposing a penalty of up to Rs 250 crore on entities for misusing or failing to protect digital data of individuals.

The Bill comes six years after the Supreme Court held that right to privacy is a fundamental right.

Under Section 36 of the DPDP Bill, the Guild said, the government can ask any public or private entity (data fiduciary) to furnish personal information of citizens, including journalists and their sources.

It also voiced concerns over clause 17(2)(a) that allows the Union government to issue a notification exempting any "instrumentality of the State" from the provisions of this Bill, thereby out of the ambit of data protection restrictions, including internal sharing and processing of data.

Section 17(4) allows the government and its instrumentalities to retain personal data for an unlimited period of time, it added.

"We note, with dismay, that while the Bill, ostensibly to promote data protection, has failed to make any provisions that bring about the surveillance reform that is urgently needed, and in fact creates an enabling framework for surveillance of citizens, including journalists and their sources," the Guild said.

It said it is deeply concerned about the lack of exemptions for journalists from certain obligations of the law where the reporting on certain entities in public interest may conflict with their right to personal data protection.

The Justice Srikrishna Committee had provided a framework for balance between personal data protection and public interest, which is missing from the current bill, it said.

"This will lead to a chilling effect on journalistic activity in the country," the Guild said.

It said certain provisions of the Bill also shift the balance in favour of non-disclosure of information, including information sought by journalists in public interest, thereby reducing accountability.

The Guild has also flagged concerns over the composition of the Data Protection Board and stressed the need for it to be independent of the government.

The government has listed the DPDP Bill for consideration and passage in Lok Sabha on Monday.

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Ex Bengal Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee On Ventilator Support

Former West Bengal Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee continued to remain on intermittent non-invasive ventilator support on the eighth day since he was admitted, the hospital informed on Saturday.

The former Bengal Chief Minister was admitted to Woodlands Hospital in Kolkata on July 29 with a lower respiratory tract infection and Type ll respiratory failure.

Woodlands Hospital, while giving an update about the health of the former Chief Minister, said that he is alert and is speaking to doctors and visitors.

"On the eighth day of admission, Former Chief Minister of West Bengal Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee remains on intermittent non-invasive ventilatory support. He is alert and is speaking to doctors and visitors," read a press release of Woodlands Multispeciality Hospital.

The multidisciplinary medical team treating him is keeping a close watch on his progress, said Dr Rupali Basu, Managing Director and CEO of Woodlands Hospital.

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Polio Vaccination Team Fired At In Pakistan's Balochistan Province

A polio vaccination team and two policemen escorting it were attacked by three unknown assailants in Pakistan's restive Balochistan province, the police said. The attack occurred in Quetta's Qambrani road area.

The vaccine workers, some of them women, and the policemen were unhurt. However, one of the attackers was injured when the policemen opened fire on them, the police said, adding that the three managed to flee.

"They were three armed men on a motorcycle. As they came near the polio vaccination team and were about to open fire, the policemen suspecting something was wrong fired first. One attacker was injured, while the two others panicked. The three managed to flee from the scene," senior police official Rahim Khan said.

The attack came just a few days after two policemen escorting a polio vaccination team were gunned down in Quetta's Nawan Killi area on Tuesday.

Pakistan regularly witnesses attacks on polio vaccination teams. Its polio vaccine campaign has been hit by such terrorist attacks in many parts of the country, notably in Balochistan and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province.

Even in Pakistan's biggest city, Karachi, polio vaccine workers, and the policemen escorting them have come under fire.

Many religious leaders and terror groups have accused the polio vaccine teams of working under a Western agenda and claim that polio drops make children infertile.

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PM Modi To Lay Foundation Stone For Redevelopment Of 508 Railway Stations

In a historic initiative, Prime Minister Narendra Modi will lay the foundation stone for redevelopment of 508 railway stations across the country on August 6 via video conferencing, his office said.

These 508 stations are spread across 27 states and union territories, including 55 each in Uttar Pradesh and Rajasthan, 49 in Bihar, 44 in Maharashtra, 37 in West Bengal, 34 in Madhya Pradesh, 32 in Assam, 25 in Odisha, 22 in Punjab, 21 each in Gujarat and Telangana, 20 in Jharkhand, 18 each in Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu, 15 in Haryana and 13 in Karnataka.

The redevelopment, which will cost Rs 24,470 crore, will provide modern passenger amenities along with ensuring well designed traffic circulation, inter-modal integration and well designed signage for guidance of passengers, the Prime Minister's Office (PMO) said, adding that the design of station buildings will be inspired by local culture, heritage and architecture.

Noting that PM Modi has often laid stress on provision of state-of-the-art public transport and that railways is the preferred mode of transport of people, the PMO said he has prioritised the importance of providing world-class amenities at railway stations.

Guided by this vision, the 'Amrit Bharat Station Scheme' was launched to redevelop 1,309 stations, it said. As part of this scheme, the foundation stone for redevelopment of 508 stations is being laid by the prime minister.

"These stations will be redeveloped at a cost of more than Rs 24,470 crore. Master Plans are being prepared for development of these stations as 'City Centres', with proper integration of both sides of the city. This integrated approach is driven by the holistic vision of overall urban development of the city, centred around the railway station," the PMO said.

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Defining Hate Speech "Fairly Complex": Supreme Court Flags "Free Speech" Concern

Defining hate speech is complex but the real problem in tackling them lies in the implementation and execution of law and judicial pronouncements, the Supreme Court said on Friday, days after parts of Haryana were rattled by communal violence.

A bench of Justices Sanjiv Khanna and SVN Bhatti, which was hearing a plea against the rallies to be organised by right-wing outfits Vishva Hindu Parishad and Bajrang Dal in Delhi-NCR region over the communal clashes in Haryana along with other petitions against hate speeches, asked about whether the events were peaceful.

Senior advocate CU Singh, appearing for petitioner Shaheen Abdullah, said hate speeches were made at the rallies but no violence was reported.

The bench told Mr Singh that a solution to hate speeches can be found through collective efforts alone.

"Why don't you sit together and try to find a solution? You see, the definition of hate speech is fairly complex and it needs to be ensured that it does not transverse into the area of free speech.

"There is my 2020 judgement in the case of Amish Devgan versus Union of India which deals with balancing of competing interests of free speech and the need to prevent the spread of hatred and communal disharmony. There are several other verdicts of the top court. You see the main problem is implementation and execution," Justice Khanna told Singh and Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, who represented the Centre.

Mr Mehta said the top court has specified what hate speech is in the 2018 verdict in the Tehseen Poonawalla case and no one can justify hate speech against any community.

"The law is very clear that if any hate speech is made, one can lodge an FIR and, if FIR is not registered, then one can approach the court," Mehta said.

He, however, said some individuals and organisations were now approaching the Supreme Court directly instead of the police station concerned with complaints about hate speeches and seeking contempt action by the top court over violation of its orders. Also, he said, a new practice has emerged where people approach the court voicing apprehension about the possibility of hate speeches being made at an event and seeking advance ruling.

Mehta was referring to the April 28 order of the top court that directed all states and union territories(UTs) to register cases against those making hate speeches even without any complaint, terming these speeches as a "serious offence" capable of affecting the secular fabric of the country.

Extending the scope of its 2022 order beyond three states--Uttar Pradesh, Delhi and Uttarakhand, the top court had made it clear to authorities that any hesitation to act against hate speeches will be viewed as contempt of the top court and appropriate action will be taken against the erring officers.

The bench said there should be a mechanism so that no one has to come to the top court time and again. Social tension is in nobody's interest, it said.

"Everyone will have to find a solution as there has to be some way to deal with hate speeches. Everybody should not be coming to court and there should be some mechanism. We have thought of something and we will let you all know," the bench said and posted the matter for a resumed hearing after two weeks.

Mr Mehta said he has also received some video clips of hate speeches and the petitioner should be directed to amend his petition because he is selectively targeting only one community and ignoring the hate speeches made by others.

On August 2, with communal clashes claiming six lives in parts of Haryana close to Delhi, the top court had ordered enhanced deployment of security personnel in sensitive areas and a crackdown on hate speech but refused to stop the proposed rallies by VHP and Bajrang Dal in the NCR.

On October 21 last year, the top court directed Uttar Pradesh, Delhi, and Uttarakhand to crack down hard on those making hate speeches, calling them shocking for a country that is religion-neutral.

Holding that the Constitution of India envisages a secular nation, the court had directed the three states to promptly register criminal cases against the offenders without waiting for a complaint to be filed. 

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ISIS Confirms Leader Killed In Clashes In Syria, Announces Next-In-Line

The Islamic State group announced on Thursday the death of its leader Abu al-Hussein al-Husseini al-Qurashi, who it said was killed in clashes in northwestern Syria.

The leader "was killed after direct clashes" with jihadist group Hayat Tahrir al-Sham in Idlib province, an IS spokesman said in a recorded message on its channels on the Telegram messaging app, without specifying when he was killed.

The spokesman announced the group's new leader -- its fifth -- as Abi Hafsan al-Hashimi al-Qurashi.

After a meteoric rise in Iraq and Syria in 2014 that saw it conquer vast swathes of territory, IS saw its self-proclaimed "caliphate" collapse under a wave of offensives.

The Sunni Muslim extremist group's austere and terror-ridden rule was marked by beheadings and mass shootings.

It was defeated in Iraq in 2017 and in Syria two years later, but sleeper cells still carry out attacks in both countries.

In November last year, IS said its previous leader, Abu Hasan al-Hashimi al-Qurashi, had been killed.

His predecessor, Abu Ibrahim al-Qurashi, was killed in February last year in a US raid in Idlib province.

The group's first "caliph", Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, was killed, also in Idlib, in October 2019.

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French News Agency AFP Sues Elon Musk's X Over Copyright

AFP news agency launched a copyright case in France on Wednesday against social media giant Twitter, recently rebranded X, part of a global struggle to get tech firms to pay for news.

Media groups have long argued that their stories and images bring value to platforms like X, Facebook and Google, meaning they should get a slice of the profits.

Their cause was boosted by a 2019 EU law that allowed for payments for sharing content under a regime called "neighbouring rights", and Google and Facebook eventually agreed to pay some French media outlets.

But AFP has accused X, owned by billionaire tycoon Elon Musk, of a "clear refusal" to engage in discussions on neighbouring rights.

AFP said in a statement it had lodged a case with a judge in Paris to force the platform to hand over data that would allow the French news agency to estimate a fair level of compensation.

"As a leading advocate for the adoption of neighbouring rights for the press, AFP remains unwavering in its commitment to the cause," the statement said.

"The Agency will continue to employ the appropriate legal means with each relevant platform to ensure the fair distribution of the value generated by the sharing of news content."

Although media groups in France have won some victories, big tech firms have pushed back hard in other regions.

Meta blocked users of Facebook and Instagram in Canada from seeing posts from news organisations this week over a law that mandates compensation for the content.

Google has threatened to take similar action.

Meta and Google also opposed similar proposals in Australia.

The two firms dominate online advertising and stand accused of draining cash away from traditional news organisations while using their content for free.

X, as a much smaller platform, has not faced the same level of scrutiny.

 

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