To
The Secretary
Perss Council Of India
Delhi

Dear Sir,

I am Naavi (Na.Vijayashankar), founder of http://www.naavi.org. I am also the
Chairman of Digital Society of India, Chairman of the Legal
Enablement Committee of NIC on G2C transactions and other Cyber Law
related initiatives in India.

I request you to kindly clarify on the following issues which confront
me as well as the Cyber Society.

1. As you are aware, Indian law recognizes electronic documents as
equivalent to written paper. Accordingly, what is published in the
Cyber space has as much relvance in law as a printed publication.

2. On the Internet, there are websites which are owned by somebody
while the contributions are made by others. There are also copies of
traditional press operating as an independent media. There are also
news letters and Blogs. Of these, Blogs are publications where the
author, editor and publisher may be the same person. In this context,
I would like to know if a blogger can seek registration of the Press
Council as a “Journal” and if so, what is the procedure.

3. I also draw your attention to the raging controversy in the
Blogosphere where a Blogger who wrote a comment critical of the
Coverage of the Mumbai Terrorist attacks on November 26th and 27th
(2008) by MS Barkha Dutt, Managing Editor of NDTV (Details available
here: http://www.bloggernews.net/119566), and was apparently silenced
by a threatening legal notice alleging defamation.

4. Most observers consider that the action of NDTV in launching a
legal action (as is apparent from the apology letter published by the
blogger) was an unfair assault on the freedom of expression of the
blogger.

5. I would like to know if it is within the scope of activities of
Press Council to advise its own members like NDTV that one of the
norms to be followed by journalists is to respect the freedom of
expression of others or come in support of the victim of such an
alleged oppression.

6. In many cases of publication of an article in the Press, whenever
there is a clash of opinion, the practice is to publish a counter view
in the same space as the original publication as a sufficient remedy
against alleged defamation. Withdrawal of an already published
material is not feasible and not expected. In the case of blogs
therefore, the appropriate remedy when there is a controversy is to
publish the counter view in the same blog and not demand withdrawal of
the blog post itself as NDTV has forced the blogger to do. I would
like Press Council to come out with a clarification on the same.

7. Additionally, I suggest that the Press Council take a suo motu
action of setting up a sub committee to address the issue of “Blogging
in India” and come up with suggestions for itself or the Government on
how Blogs can be regulated or provided normal freedom associated with
the Press along with the privileges.

I look forward to your reply at the earliest.

Thanking you

Yours sincerely

Na.Vijayashankar
Editor, Contributor, http://www.naavi.org
No 37, 20th Main, B S K First Stage
Bangalore 560050
+91 9343554943