![Parliament nod to bill to simplify newspaper registration process](https://img.etimg.com/thumb/msid-106183584,width-300,height-225,imgsize-8350,resizemode-75/parliament-nod-to-bill-to-simplify-newspaper-registration-process.jpg)
Replying to a discussion in the Lok Sabha, information and broadcasting minister Anurag Thakur said: "The bill reflects yet another step of the Modi government towards jettisoning the mentality of slavery and bringing new laws for new India." Thakur said.
Thakur said the title registration process, which sometimes took 2-3 years, would now be done in 60 days.
Earlier, participating in the discussion, AIMIM MP Syed Imitiaz Jaleel, the only Opposition MP present in the House following mass suspension of Opposition members, said: "We should first see what the people who are directly affected by this bill have to say about it. The Editors Guild of India has expressed concerns and said there are draconian provisions which can have adverse impact on freedom of press." He said that it seemed "less of registration but more of regulation" by the government. He raised the issue of Urdu newspapers and said that they have been the worst hit in the post-Covid times. "We have started linking languages with a particular religion," said Jaleel, alluding to Urdu. He also said the bill was an attempt to finish press freedom.
Thakur denied all charges and said the Modi government was about opportunity and not regulation.
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