MEET FOCUSES ON SOCIAL MEDIA ROLE

A Group of Ministers, headed by home minister Rajnath Singh, on Wednesday discussed recommendations of a panel set up to suggest ways to check incidents of lynching. One of the key recommendations is to put to task country heads of the social media platforms.

A Group of Ministers (GoM), headed by Home Minister Rajnath Singh, to examine the recommendations of a committee of secretaries to help check incidents of lynching in the country held its first meeting on Wednesday. The GoM will give its final report to Prime Minister Narendra Modi on the issues.

The committee, headed by home secretary Rajiv Gauba, had submitted its report to the GoM last week. One of the key recommendations made by the committee was to initiate action against topbrass of social media platforms in the country in case they fail to check spread of fake and hate messages or news.

In addition, the committee had also suggested some changes in the existing provisions of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC) making them more stringent to check incidents of lynching.

The committee however, sources added, has not recommended any new law to check the crime.

Sources claimed that the GoM which held its first meeting on Wednesday is likely to finalise its recommendations within this month before they are sent to the PMO to take a final decision on the issue as amendments to the existing criminal laws will have to cleared by the Parliament.

Apart from Mr Singh, who heads the GoM, other members of the important panel are External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj, Transport Minister Nitin Gadkari, Law Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad and Social Justice and Empowerment Minister Thawar Chand Gehlot.

Centre had constituted the committee of secretaries to suggest measures to check lynching after 40 people were killed in these incidents in at least nine states over a period of one year.