Chandrasekar on Grievance Appellate panels: doing reluctantly | If plaints not addressed, social media cos may be penalised

Minister of State for Electronics and IT Rajeev Chandrasekar on Saturday said the government may consider penalising social media companies, if needed, for not addressing user grievances and shying away from accountability to make the internet a safe and trusted place.

The comments come a day after the government’s amendment to the IT Rules 2021, which included setting up of grievance appellate committees (GAC) to look into complaints by users of social media. These committees will adjudicate complaints by users relating to blocking of content or accounts, after the complaints are not addressed or the users get an unsatisfactory response from the redressal officers of the social media firms concerned. However, the user will have the right to seek judicial remedy at any time.