The War On News

A record of government actions against journalism and fact-based reporting, from the first press laws to today

Incident

Bombay High Court strikes down India's government 'fact check unit' rule

IndiaRSF 2026 rank: 157th of 180

Engraving of an empty press briefing room with a lectern and rows of chairs

India's 2023 amendment to its Information Technology Rules empowered a government-run Fact Check Unit to label online content about the central government 'fake' or 'false' and require its removal; comedian Kunal Kamra and media groups challenged it, and the Bombay High Court struck the rule down as unconstitutionally vague.123

What happened

In 2023, India's government amended its Information Technology Rules to create a Fact Check Unit empowered to identify online content about the central government's own affairs as "fake, false or misleading" and require platforms to remove it or lose their legal protection from liability for user content. Comedian Kunal Kamra, the Editors Guild of India and the Association of Indian Magazines challenged the rule, arguing there was no constitutional "right to the truth" that could justify a government body policing facts about itself. India's Supreme Court stayed the unit's operation while the case proceeded. After a split verdict, a tie-breaking judge on the Bombay High Court struck down the rule in September 2024, finding its key terms "vague and overbroad" and the government's own definition of misinformation legally unsound.123

What reason was given

Stated justification

The government said the Fact Check Unit was needed to address "misinformation concerning the Central Government's affairs" and to identify content that was "fake" or "false."1

What changed for reporting

Had it taken effect, the rule would have let a government body decide which online statements about its own policies counted as false and require platforms to remove them, a power that never came into force because of the legal challenge.2

Timeline

2024

March 2024
Bombay High Court strikes down India's government 'fact check unit' rule

Who acted

NameRole in this incidentOffice at the time
Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (India)enforcedMinistry that issued the IT Rules amendment creating the Fact Check Unit
Narendra ModiotherPrime Minister of India

Sources

  1. Sanity Prevails as Bombay High Court Strikes Down India Government's Fact Check UnitTech Policy Press, 2024-09-26, reporting. Source record
  2. IT (Amendment) Rules, 2023 struck down by the Bombay High CourtInternet Freedom Foundation, 2024-09-20, reporting. Source record

Claims and evidence

Each numbered claim quotes the source it rests on.

  1. The government's stated purpose was addressing misinformation about the central government's affairs.misinformation concerning the Central Government's affairsIT (Amendment) Rules, 2023 struck down by the Bombay High Court, Internet Freedom Foundation, 2024-09-20.Claim 421, checked 2026-09-22.
  2. Kamra's counsel argued there was no constitutional right to true information that could justify the rule.no fundamental right to true and correct information under Article 19(1)(a)IT (Amendment) Rules, 2023 struck down by the Bombay High Court, Internet Freedom Foundation, 2024-09-20.Claim 422, checked 2026-09-22.
  3. The tie-breaking judge found the rule's central terms for identifying false content were vague and overbroad.vague and overbroadSanity Prevails as Bombay High Court Strikes Down India Government's Fact Check Unit, Tech Policy Press, 2024-09-26.Claim 423, checked 2026-09-22.