Are tougher laws the answer to check online abuse?

Following widespread criticism, the Kerala government decided early this week to put on hold an Ordinance that gives unbridled powers to the police to arrest anyone expressing or disseminating any matter that it deems defamatory. However, the move to introduce such a law in the first place shows that State governments believe that existing laws are not adequate to deal with social media abuse. We discuss to what extent is this true. Guests: Rishab Bailey, a lawyer working with the National Institute of Public Finance and Policy, an autonomous research institute established by the Ministry of Finance; Vrinda Bhandari, a litigating lawyer in Delhi. She is Of-Counsel for the Internet Freedom Foundation, and specialises in the field of digital rights, technology, and privacy Host: Jayant Sriram You can now find The Hindu’s podcasts on Spotify, Apple Podcasts and Stitcher. Search for Parley by The Hindu. Write to us with comments and feedback at [email protected]