Institute Of Communication Studies

Indian Press (Emergency Powers) Act 1931 Within two decades the British Administration in Indian felt the need for a most powerful legislative weapon to deter and detain the speech and expression. Indian Press ( Emergency Powers) Act 1931 is another piece of draconian legislation aimed at curbing the journalistic right and containing the expressions of thoughts by the journalists who were mostly the leaders of the nationalist movement. This Act has been enacted apparently for curbing the writing which incites murder or other crimes or violence. This Act also provides for deposit of security by the keepers of the printing presses. The Provisional Government was empowered to forfeit the security under certain circumstances. It also provided for deposit of value not less than Rs 1000 and not more than Rs 10,000 as a security in advance, at the time of seeking fresh declaration to start a newspaper as decided by the magistrate. If even after the forfeiture of the security and the deposit of new security, the newspaper published objectionable matter, the provisions were made equally applicable to the publisher of newspapers also. Section 11 penalized keeping of press or publishing of newspaper without making the deposit as required by the provincial Government or Magistrate. If a press did not deposit the security but when on doing its work, it could be forfeited to His Majesty and the declaration of the publisher was liable to be cancelled. This Act marks the return of heavy deposit of money as security and other regulations, which made the newspaper publisher and editor subject to the executive order of executive officer, A magistrate may authorize any person to publish a newspaper or news-sheet from time to time. Any police officer is empowered for that purpose by the Provincial Government could seize any unauthorized news-sheet or unauthorized newspaper wherever found .The unauthorized news-sheet or newspapers were to be