Following a joint public meeting of six press bodies at the Press Club of India (PCI), a resolution was passed opposing the recent and proposed changes to India’s digital regulations – specifically the draft IT Amendment Rules of 2026 – and outlining eight demands to protect digital creators, ensure due process, and uphold press freedom.
Attending this joint meeting on Saturday were members of the PCI, DIGIPUB, the Editors’ Guild of India, the Indian Women’s Press Corps, the Network of Women in Media, and the Delhi Union of Journalists.
As Nikhil Pahwa, founder and editor of Medianama, noted in his post on X, this resolution lasered in on the “infrastructure of censorship” built by the Centre.
One, the resolution sought the withdrawal of the draft IT Rules 2026 “in totality”, noting that the compliance framework for it is “financially terminal” for “independent creators and freelancers who operate solo podcasts, newsletters or have YouTube channels”
Moreover, it remarked that these rules will also have a “chilling effect” on creators who “may self-censor to avoid any risk of algorithmic misidentification.”
On Friday, a PCI delegation visited the Ministry of Electronic and Information Technology (MeitY) to submit its comments and suggestions on the draft amendments to the IT Rules 2026. You can also read more about what these draft rules mean for creators and journalists here.
This report was originally published in the Newslaundry and can be accessed here.