Fears in India grow over state-run ‘fact-checking’ units threatening freedom of speech and democracy

More states in India are setting up fact-checking units, a development that activists say will lead to overreach by authorities and the police

Related legislative amendments have led to challenges from activists and others including a case before the Bombay High Court

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A man holding a mobile phone. Fears are growing in India over the moves by several states to set up fact-checking units, which activists say could threaten freedom of speech. Photo: Shutterstock

Published: 7:12pm, 10 Nov 2023Updated: 7:19pm, 10 Nov 2023

A move by several Indian states to set up fact-checking units aimed at countering media misinformation has raised concerns among activists about a potential administrative overreach and threat to free speech.

The Tamil Nadu government is the latest state to establish such a unit. At least four other states – Karnataka, Kerala, Telangana, and Uttarakhand – are at various stages of running fully-fledged fact-checking entities under their administrations.

Notably, Uttarakhand’s fact-checking department will directly fall under the police administration, its government said.

These state-level initiatives follow the fact-checking unit instituted by Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s central administration. The central government modified existing legislation to establish an exclusive department dedicated to combating false information in the media.

Geeta Seshu, founder of the media watchdog Free Speech Collective, said: “We have a very alarming scenario before us. If there is a dispute between the state and central government’s fact-check units over allegedly misleading news, what will prevail? Will the media be caught in an information war between these governments, penalised by both?

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