Under the amended rules, a government panel would be formed to hear complaints from users about content moderation decisions of social media platforms.
The decision to create the commission comes amid the development of amendments to information technology regulations. The rules, which took effect Friday, limit the influence of global IT companies in India.
Tension over social media content decisions has been a particularly thorny issue in India with companies often receiving takedown requests from the government or removing content proactively.
Under the amended rules, the companies would be required to acknowledge complaints from users within 24 hours and resolve them within 15 days or 72 hours in case of an information takedown request.
In June, the government had issued draft changes to the IT law that would require companies to "respect the rights accorded to the citizens under the constitution of India" and proposed setting up a government panel.
India's government is concerned that users upset with decisions to have their content taken down do not have a proper system to appeal against those decisions and that their only legal recourse is to go to court.
The government panel will comprise a chairperson and two full time members, of which two will be independent members.
Source: Reuters
