NEW DELHI: The National Investigation Agency (NIA) is learnt to have collaborated with intelligence and cyber security agencies to formulate tougher mechanisms to take action against anti-Indian content on online platforms, sources said on Monday.
Sources said that the decision to tighten control over online content was made following increasing reports of terror outfits using social media platforms for radicalisation. Recently, online videos of Khalistani separationist Gurpatwant Singh Pannu, gangster Goldie Brar, and other anti-national elements have been blocked by Indian authorities.
The move is aimed at tackling the spread of provocative and misleading material online, sources further said, adding that social media platforms will be "formally informed of their responsibilities under the new framework".
"Under the new joint plan, social media platforms will be required to actively monitor and curb the circulation of anti-national and misleading content through their internal mechanisms. Additionally, they will need to regularly update the government on the action taken against such material at their end," a source said, adding that it also covers content uploaded from abroad.
"Action will be taken under Indian law not only against those posting such content from outside India but also against individuals and networks that circulate it within the country," he said.
He also said that a mechanism to block such videos has already been put in place and now the focus is on "taking strong legal action against those who amplify or share them".
Senior officials from the Union Ministries of Home, Law, Electronics & Information Technology, and Communications have held several rounds of high-level meetings and finalised the mechanism for coordinated response.