REGULATION OF FREE SPEECH IN THE PHYSICAL AND CYBER WORLD

Abstract:

The right to freedom of speech, like many other individual freedoms, has some inherent restrictions. The Constitution of India guarantees the fundamental right to freedom of speech and expression and also provides for the grounds on which this right can be curtailed. Various legislations and regulatory mechanisms have been used to give effect to these restrictions. These mechanisms took shape to cater to the forms of speech and the media of mass dissemination that developed during the 20th Century. This paper examines the traditional legislations governing free speech and their development over the decades. As the nature of personal and mass communication is evolving in the internet age, these traditional mechanisms are proving unsuitable. This paper discusses some of the new trends emerging in the cyber world and the challenges in adopting these regulatory mechanisms to the cyber world. Two of the policies employed by governments to curtail speech on the internet - internet shutdown and intermediary liability - are analysed. Finally, some suggestions are presented which may be useful in responding to these emergent challenges of the cyber world.