Regulating internet is Centre’s domain, social media ban imposed by A.P., Karnataka may hit jurisdictional barrier
GS2Polity · Governance · IR· Federalism & Centre-State relations· Mains·
Why in news
The states of Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh announced social media bans for children under 16 and 13 respectively
Background
Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh proposed age-based social media bans for children under 16 and 13. The Union government is currently discussing similar age-based restrictions while Indonesia's Digital Minister conducted spot checks at Meta offices to enforce a ban for those under 16.
Facts for Prelims
- FactKarnataka proposed social media ban for children under 16
- FactAndhra Pradesh proposed social media ban for children under 13
- PlaceIndonesia's Digital Minister conducted spot checks at Meta offices
For Mains
Q. Examine the constitutional validity of state-level regulations on internet access and social media usage in the context of the federal distribution of powers in India.
Dimensions to cover in your answer
- Jurisdictional conflict: Overlap between State police powers and Union's exclusive domain over telecommunications
- Enforcement gap: Technical difficulty for states to enforce age-gating on private platforms without Union-level infrastructure
- Federal friction: Potential for conflicting state-level regulations creating a fragmented digital regulatory environment
Keywords: Federalism · Jurisdictional overlap · Digital governance · Constitutional validity · Regulatory framework
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This note is generated automatically from SatyaDheesh's news feed and mapped to the UPSC CSE syllabus. Check facts against the original report or PIB before using them in an answer.