Press Council of India

Polity & Governance glossary

Topic: Civil Society, Pressure Groups, NGOs and Self-help Groups · NCERT: Beyond NCERT

Meaning

The Press Council of India (PCI) is a statutory (set up by an Act of Parliament), quasi-judicial body under the Press Council Act 1978. It protects the freedom of the press and keeps up the standards of newspapers and news agencies. It can warn, admonish or censure (formally blame) them, but it cannot penalise them.

It matters because it is India's main check on the ethics of print media. Its weak powers and print-only reach are also at the centre of the debate on how to regulate the media.

Explanation

How it came about

  • First Press Commission (1952–54): recommended a press council.
  • Press Council Act 1965: the PCI was set up under it in 1966.
  • Abolished in 1976, during the Emergency, when the press was censored.
  • Re-established under the Press Council Act 1978. This is the law it works under today.

Composition and nature

  • Members: a chairperson and 28 members.

  • By convention, the chairperson is a retired Supreme Court judge.

  • Quasi-judicial: it is not a court, but it holds court-like inquiries and hears both sides before deciding.

  • Civil court powers: during an inquiry it can:
  • summon people to appear;
  • call for documents.

What it can do (s.14)

  • Grounds for an inquiry:
  • a newspaper or news agency has broken the standards of journalistic ethics or public taste; or

  • an editor or journalist has committed professional misconduct.

  • Steps:

  • It holds an inquiry and gives the newspaper or journalist a hearing first.
  • It may then warn, admonish or censure them [2].

  • It may also record its disapproval of their conduct.

  • Code of ethics: it issues the Norms of Journalistic Conduct for print media.

Its limits

  • Cannot penalise: it cannot fine anyone or cancel a licence. Its decisions mostly work through public shame.
  • Print only: it has no say over TV or digital media, including OTT and online news.
  • So big problems such as paid news (money paid for "news" that is really advertising) and trial by media (the media declaring someone guilty before the court decides) are largely left unchecked.

In the Constitution and practice

  • Constitutional basis of press freedom:
  • The Constitution has no article that names the press.
  • Courts read press freedom into Art. 19(1)(a), the freedom of speech and expression.

  • The state can limit it only by law, and only on the grounds listed in Art. 19(2): sovereignty and integrity of India, security of the State, friendly relations with foreign States, public order, decency or morality, contempt of court, defamation and incitement to an offence.

  • Legal basis of the PCI: it is a body created by statute (the Press Council Act 1978). It is not a constitutional body.

  • Court cases on press freedom that the PCI is meant to protect:
  • Romesh Thappar v. State of Madras (1950): the freedom to circulate a journal is part of free speech. This case led to the 1st Amendment (1951), which added "public order" to Art. 19(2).
  • Sakal Papers v. Union of India (1962): the state cannot fix a newspaper's pages or price to cut its circulation.
  • Bennett Coleman v. Union of India (1973): a newsprint policy that limited pages broke Art. 19(1)(a).

  • Indian Express Newspapers v. Union of India (1985): too high a tax on newsprint can be challenged, because the press is at the heart of democracy.

  • In practice:

  • The Emergency (1975–77) brought press censorship, and the PCI itself was abolished in 1976. This shows how an independent press body depends on political will.
  • The Law Commission's 200th Report (2006) looked at trial by media. The PCI cannot stop this with real penalties.
  • The PCI is one part of a split system of regulation. Print is under the PCI, private TV is under the Cable Television Networks (Regulation) Act 1995 and the self-regulator NBDSA, and digital news is under the IT Rules 2021.

Don't confuse with

  • News Broadcasting and Digital Standards Authority (NBDSA): a self-regulator for TV and digital news that can order fines, but it binds only members of the NBDA. The PCI is statutory and covers print only, but it cannot fine.
  • Press Registrar General of India (PRGI): it handles registration of periodicals under the PRP Act 2023 and can suspend a registration for 30–180 days [1]. The PCI deals with ethics and standards, not registration.
  • Prasar Bharati: India's statutory public broadcaster (Doordarshan, Akashvani) under the Prasar Bharati Act 1990. It is a broadcaster, not a regulator. The PCI regulates newspapers and does not publish anything.
  • Three-tier system under IT Rules 2021: this covers digital news and OTT, with MIB oversight at the top level. The PCI has no role in digital media.

Prelims Hooks

  • PCI was re-established under the Press Council Act 1978. It was first set up in 1966 under the 1965 Act and abolished in 1976 during the Emergency.
  • The idea of a press council came from the First Press Commission (1952–54).
  • Composition: chairperson (by convention a retired SC judge) + 28 members.
  • s.14: the PCI can warn, admonish or censure [2]. It cannot fine or cancel licences.
  • Trap: the PCI covers print only. A statement that it regulates TV news or OTT platforms is wrong.
  • Press freedom is not named in the Constitution. It is read into Art. 19(1)(a) and limited only by Art. 19(2).

Mains Points

  • A "toothless" watchdog:
  • The PCI can only censure, so paid news and trial by media go largely unpunished.
  • But giving the government stronger powers over the press risks censorship, as the Emergency showed.

  • The balance lies in independent regulation, not regulation by the state.

  • Split regulation across media:

  • Print is under the PCI, TV is under NBDSA (members only), and digital news is under the IT Rules with MIB oversight.
  • This leaves gaps and uneven standards.

  • Reform: a single statutory and independent Media Council covering print, TV and digital media, with the power to fine.

  • Free press and accountability: any stronger powers for the PCI must pass the Art. 19(2) test, which needs a clear ground, reasonableness and proportionality. The aim is to stop unethical journalism while keeping the press free to question the government.

Related concepts

Read more

Sources

  1. 1The Press and Registration of Periodicals Bill, 2023 (PRS)prsindia.org · tier 1
  2. 2The Press Council Act, 1978 (India Code)indiacode.nic.in · tier 1