Bengaluru: Karnataka’s proposed Misinformation Regulation Bill is intended as a framework to combat the “growing digital misinformation” and “malicious fake news” circulating online, state IT minister Priyank Kharge said on Friday. The minister stressed that the draft legislation is not aimed at criminalising free speech or penalising citizens, but at curbing false and harmful content while safeguarding legitimate expression.

Addressing concerns over potential overreach, Kharge said the Bill explicitly excludes satire, parody, opinion, art, and dissent, ensuring that “humour and creativity” are not curtailed. “Our focus is strictly on misinformation, disinformation, malinformation, and fake news. Nothing beyond that. The Bill is in no way an attempt to silence dissent or critiques of the government,” he added.

Kharge further clarified that the proposed law will not create any new offences. Instead, it will draw on existing legal provisions, including the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), to address the spread of false information while remaining within constitutional bounds.

The minister also addressed concerns stemming from a leaked 11-page draft circulated in June, which had drawn criticism for appearing to threaten censorship. Kharge dismissed that draft as fake and labelled it “an instance of misinformation in itself.” He assured that the final version of the Bill will withstand judicial scrutiny, unlike the Union government’s “Information Technology (Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media Ethics Code) Amendment Rules, 2023,” which were struck down by the Bombay High Court last year for being unconstitutional.

The Congress-led state government is reportedly finalising the draft, which is expected to be tabled in the Karnataka Assembly session in Belgavi next month. Kharge made these remarks at an event organised jointly by Ikagai Law and the National Law School of India University in Bengaluru.

The proposed legislation comes amid nationwide debates over regulating online content, balancing free expression with the need to prevent the spread of false information that can disrupt public order, mislead citizens, or threaten democratic processes.