Opposition parties had argued that the amendment would give more power to the police and also restrict freedom of the press, a charge that was rejected by Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan saying the decision had been made on the basis of factors such as abuse of the press. social networks to tarnish the image of individuals.
The state cabinet, last month, had decided to strengthen the Police Act by recommending the addition of Section 118-A.
It stipulates a prison sentence of up to five years or a fine of up to 10,000 rupees or both to those who produce, publish or disseminate content through any means of communication with the intention of intimidating, insulting or defameing any person through the networks social.
Expressing concern about the rise in the crime graph, false propaganda and hate speech on social media since the COVID-19 outbreak, the LDF government had said that since cyberattacks are a major threat to private life, it has been decided to amend the Police Law as the existing legal provisions were inadequate to combat these crimes.
He said that while the Supreme Court had struck down section 66-A of the Information Technology Act and section 118 (d) of the Kerala Police Act as being against freedom of expression, the Center it has not introduced any other legal framework.
“In this scenario, the police cannot effectively deal with crimes committed through social media,” the government had said.
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