Monday 28 October 2013

EC brings social media under ITS net

The Election Commission brought on 25 October the social media and Internet use for elections under its purview, issuing a detailed order for regulating them.
It decreed that the legal provisions and orders issued by the Commission regarding the election campaigning shall equally apply to the social media alike any other media, so far as the candidates and political parties are concerned.

Most of the campaigning on the net, however, is done by supporters having no authorisation from candidates or parties and it is here that the commission dithered in formulating any policy.
Instead, it said the matter was being considered “in consultation with the Ministry of Communication and Information Technology on practical ways to deal with the issue, in so far as they relate to, or can be reasonably connected with, the election campaigning of political parties and candidates.”

A four-page communication sent out to all recognised national and state political parties and the chief electoral officers clarifies the regulations that will apply to Internet and social media. The model code of conduct will also apply to them.
The affidavit, filed by candidates at the time of filing nominations, will have columns under Para 3 to provide contact telephone numbers, email IDs and social media accounts.
Pointing out that the social media websites are also electronic media by definition and hence the instructions for pre-certification of political advertisements on TV and other electronic media by the state and district media certification and monitoring committees will also apply to the social media websites.
As regards the need for a candidate to maintain a separate and correct account of expenditure, authorised by him or his election agent from the date of filing of the nomination, the EC order says the expenditure on election campaign through any advertisement in social media is also a part of such an expenditure.

Source:
http://cablequest.org/news/national-news/item/3380-ec-brings-social-media-under-its-net.htmlSource: http://cablequest.org/news/national-news/item/3380-ec-brings-social-media-under-its-net.html

No comments:

Post a Comment

Aadhaar leak: EPFO discontinues services provided through Common Service Centre

Following fear of Aadhaar data leak, the Employees Provident Fund Organisation (EPFO) on May 2 said it has discontinued services provided t...