Mehbooba welcomes India, Pakistan commitment to border peace
Srinagar, May 30: Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti on Wednesday welcomed the decision of Indian and Pakistani army commanders to uphold the 2003 bilateral ceasefire agreement in "letter and spirit".
Reacting to Tuesday's development in which the Director Generals of Military Operations (DGMOs) of the two countries decided to ensure that the ceasefire holds on borders and the Line of Control (LoC), Mehbooba Mufti wrote on Twitter: "Wholeheartedly welcome the reiteration of the commitment to the ceasefire on the border by both DGMOs.
"This brings great relief to the people residing in the vicinity (of the borders). Peace on our borders is the first essential step to a larger understanding and I truly hope it sustains."
Jammu and Kashmir has been the worst victim of border hostilities between India and Pakistan. Hundreds of families on the two sides of the LoC and the International Border have been living on the edge as mortars fired from across the border claim human lives, cattle, houses and agricultural fields.
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Bombay High Court strikes down Centre's plan to set up Fact-Check Unit
Mumbai: The Bombay High Court has struck down the central government's plan to establish a fact-checking unit (FCU) under the Information Technology Amendment Rules, 2023. The decision comes in response to a petition filed by standup comedian Kunal Kamra, challenging the constitutional validity of the Centre's move.
Justice A.S. Chandurkar, delivering the final verdict, declared that the proposed IT Amendment Rules violated key provisions of the Indian Constitution, namely Articles 14 (right to equality), 19 (freedom of speech and expression), and 19(1)(g) (right to profession).
“I have considered the matter extensively. The impugned rules are violative of Articles 14, 19, and 19(1)(g) of the Constitution of India,” Justice Chandurkar said in his judgment. He further remarked that terms like "fake, false, and misleading" in the IT Rules were "vague" and lacked a clear definition, making them unconstitutional.
This judgment followed a split verdict issued by a division bench of the Bombay High Court in January. The bench, consisting of Justices Gautam Patel and Neela Gokhale, was divided in their opinions. While Justice Patel ruled that the IT Rules amounted to censorship and struck them down, Justice Gokhale upheld the rules, arguing that they did not pose a "chilling effect" on free speech, as the petitioners had claimed.
The matter was then referred to a third judge, leading to today's decision. The Supreme Court had previously stayed the Centre's notification that would have made the fact-checking unit operational, stating that the government could not proceed until the Bombay High Court ruled on the case.
Kunal Kamra and other petitioners had argued that the amendments posed unreasonable restrictions on freedom of speech and expression. They contended that the provisions would lead to government-led censorship, effectively granting the government unchecked powers to determine what constitutes 'truth' online. The petitioners further claimed that such powers would turn the government into "prosecutor, judge, and executioner" in matters of online content.
With the Bombay High Court’s ruling, the Centre's move to create fact-checking units has been effectively halted, reaffirming the importance of protecting freedom of speech and expression in the digital space.
