by Aggarwals Associates | Sep 30, 2022 | General
The information technology sector is the fastest and the largest growing sector in India. It is irrefutable to say that life without technology in 21st century is impossible. The day starts with technology and ends with technology and being the most important part of life it needs to be amended with the change in circumstances. The law which specifically made for IT sectors is Information Technology Act, 2000; its basic purpose is to recognition to e-commerce and e-transaction and also to protect the users from digital crimes. Information Technology (Intermediaries Guidelines) Rules, 2011, was in 2018 and now these IT Rules repealed with Information Technology (Guidelines for Intermediaries and Digital Media Ethics Code) Rules, 2021
Why there is need to amend IT laws?
The main reason to amend the rules again and again is to keep the law updated with the changes, till now the Information Technology (Intermediaries Guidelines) Rules are amended three times including the recent one to make necessary changes with the evolution of new things and offence related to it. Section 79 of IT Act is a safe harbour provision for the intermediaries as it grants immunity to intermediaries with regard to third party information.
Recent amended Information Technology (Guidelines for Intermediaries and Digital Media Ethics Code) Rules, 2021 (hereinafter referred as IT Rules, 2021):
Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology released the IT Rules, 2021 on February 5, 2021. The rules replace the original IT Rules 2011 and are promulgated under the IT Act, 2000. The Rules mandate the companies to make necessary changes in the data and implement new notification procedure.
IT Rules 2021 is the recent updation in IT laws and the amendment clarifies the major crimes related to IT sector and the rules for managing digital media. The main objective of the rules is to avert:
- The spread of false news on digital platform.
- Widespread abuse of social media to share.
- Increase in harmful language.
- Disrespect the religious sentiments by many ways.
- Morphed images of woman (online).
- Revenge Porn
Definition of Intermediaries:
The word intermediary is defined by the Information Technology Act, 2000 (hereinafter referred as IT Act, 2000.) as “any person who on behalf of another person receives, stores or transmits that record or provides any service with respect to that record and includes telecom service providers, web-housing service providers, search engines, online payment sites, online auction sites, online market places and cyber cafes”.
Significant social media intermediary means a social media intermediary having number of registered users in India above such threshold as notified by the Central Government (Defined under sec 2(v) of IT rules, 2021).
Social Media Intermediary means s an intermediary which primarily or solely enables online interaction between two or more users and allows them to create, upload, share, disseminate, modify or access information using its services (Defined under sec 2(w) of IT rules, 2021).
What are the mandatory compliances for Intermediaries?
It is mandatory for all intermediaries to:
- Publish their rules and regulations, privacy policy and user’s application on their website or mobile application.
- Once in a year information must be given to user if they do not comply with rules and regulations or in change in the rules and regulations in it.
- Right to terminate user’s access and remove non submissive information.
- To retain information of registering person for 180 days even after the cancellation of registration.
- Must have to respond within 72 hours to the government if the matter is related to cyber security or protective investigation; information related to offences; information about identity verification; the intermediary control or processes.
New Appointments: According to the IT Rules, 2021, significant social media intermediaries are required to appoint Indian residents on three following posts: –
- Chief Compliance Officer: The Chief Compliance Officer must be appointed according to the new IT rules. The officer has to comply with the rules and regulations of IT Act, 2000 and IT Rules, 2021.
- Nodal Contact Person: The officer has to keep 24×7 contact with the law enforcement agencies.
- Grievance Officer: There must be a grievance officer to maintain the grievance redressal mechanism.
Conclusion:
The new Rules bring drastic change in the IT Sector since new mandatory compliances have been introduced. Now OTT platforms, online news, and digital media entities are required to follow a Code of Ethics. The latest rules’ primary objective is to empower regular users of social media platforms and OTT platforms with a mechanism for redressal and timely resolution of the grievances.
-Surbhi Singla
Associate at Aggarwals & Associates, S.A.S. Nagar, Mohali
by Aggarwals Associates | Sep 29, 2022 | General
The term start-up refers to a company in the first stage of their operation. Start-up is the idea of one or two entrepreneur who brings this into existence by view that the product has the huge demand in market and will be helpful for the development of the country. The start-up can be of any type such as one Person Company, Limited Liability Company, partnership firm etc.
The growth of every state is depends upon the developments in the business and country will grow consequently with the states. Start-ups and entrepreneurship are the key pillars for economic growth, job creation, competitiveness and wealth creation.
An initiative has been taken by the Government of Punjab to promote start-ups i.e. “Invest Punjab”, this is an one hand portal for contact of facilitation for investors. The mission to promote start-ups is to develop the State of Punjab in each perspective. The state gave financial and other assistance to the start-ups companies for the development of Punjab.
What is the main mission of Punjab to promote start-ups?
- At the very initial stage the state desires to create an industry linkage with academy for entrepreneurship skills in students.
- The state is trying to create infrastructure and environment that is necessary for new emerging businesses.
- To develop a conducive ecosystem by addressing the challenges in areas such as Market, Enterprise, Knowledge, Product, Ideas and Culture.
- Creating start-up friendly environment by enacting rules and regulations for start-up companies.
Stand Up India for SC/ST and women:
The scheme is launched for the uplifment of these people and some extra benefits are provided to them so that they feel motivated and come with the new ideas. The scheme was launched by Honourable Prime Minster of India on April 5 2016. The main objective of this scheme is to provide loan for setting up a green field enterprise to at least 1 SC, 1 ST and 1 women amounting rupees 10 lacs to 100 lacs each per bank branch of all scheduled commercial banks.
What are the laws applicable on start-ups?
- Taxation and Accounting Laws: The various exemptions are provided under the government schemes, one of those exemptions is tax. The start-up companies get tax exemption for the time period of 07 years and the additional 03 years liberty is given to the biotech industries. It is marked here that the turnover of the company must be less than 25 crores.
- Foreign Exchange Management Act (FEMA), 2000: Schedule 6 of the FEMA Act defines the procedure in which the foreign investment can be done in the start-ups. According to the schedule 100 % foreign investment can be done in the start-ups in return of equity or debt document instead of foreign remittance in a firm.
- Intellectual Property Rights: Start-up comes with the unique and different ideas and that is why it is important to protect that unique idea, therefore the patent fee are reduced by 80 % to ensure the protection of unique idea.
- Labour Laws: The start-up companies are exempted from the labour inspection if they follow all the guidelines provided under the various labour laws.
- Contract Laws: Various contracts have been drafted when any new company started such as employment contracts, non-disclosure agreements, and so forth that should be drafted while keeping in view the provisions of the Contract Act.
Start-up Punjab
The Government of Punjab launched with its own start-up Punjab portal to build a strong ecosystem of nurturing innovation of start-up. Start-up cell is established under the Head of Department of Industries and Commerce. The department take cares of all the matters of start-up and handles the entire matter single handed.
A single start-up portal is also opened on which a person can register himself to get the numerous benefits of start-up companies given by the state of Punjab. 60+ start-ups are already registered with start-up portal and a total 45 lacs is disbursed as a seed grant to start-ups.
What are the fiscal benefits provided by the Government of Punjab for start-up companies?
- Seed grant of INR 03 lacs for start-ups, routed through nodal agencies.
- 8% p.a. subsidy on interest up to INR 05 lakhs for 05 years.
- Reimbursement of 25% lease rental up to 03 lacs p.a. for 01 year.
- Full exemption from electricity and stamp duty.
- Financial assistance for access to technology, market and finance.
- All benefits which are guaranteed to MSME under Punjab Industrial and Business Development Policy, 2017 are available to start-ups also.
Conclusion:
The proper measures and initiative have been taken to promote start-ups in India at central as well as state level. The universities are linked with incubators so that the motivation of becoming an entrepreneur can be build in the students at university level and instead of searching jobs after degree. With this initiative students are able to contribute in the growth of economy by starting their own start-up and helps in generating employment opportunities in the nation.
-Surbhi Singla
Associate at Aggarwals & Associates, S.A.S. Nagar, Mohali
by Aggarwals Associates | Sep 28, 2022 | General
In the recent past years, the real estate industry has witnessed a paradigm shift in India. Remarkably, it is contributing 6-7% of the country’s economy, and continues to be the second largest employment generators in the nation. The Real Estate (Regulation and Development) Act, 2016 came into effect on May 1, 2016, but it came into implementation on May1, 2017. Undeniably, the legislation plays an imperative role in the development of this sector, by regularizing the various unchecked areas of this domain. There is an important provision in the Act that a Real Estate Regulatory Authority, hereinafter referred to as RERA, would be established in each state that deals with the real estate matters prevailing in the particular area.
RERA is responsible for transparency in the real estate industry. Every developer, builder and real estate agent needs to register themselves under RERA website; non registration will attract penalties for the same.
What are the compliances for builders under the RERA Act in Punjab?
- Updation on Website: The RERA regulation makes it mandatory for the developers and promoters to upload their agreements, plans, approval, advertisement, prospectus etc on their website regularly for the public.
- Escrow Account: It is mandatory for the developer and promoter to open an escrow as per RERA regulations and keep 70% of the amount received from allottees in that separate account in the schedule bank.
- Updating Quarterly Compliances with RERA: After the registration of a project on the website, it is necessary to update that project report on quarterly basis. Failure to do so will attract heavy fines and penalties according to the Act.
- Booking and Allotment: The developer must comply with the rules regarding the bookings and allotment of buildings and units. The transaction must be done with RERA registered agent and no developer will take advance more than 10% of the unit cost while booking flat. Moreover, copy of plan, layouts and other documents must be provided to all the buyers.
- Welfare association: It is mandatory to form a welfare association of promoters and developers and it will vary from state to state, as the rules for forming such association are governed by the state government.
- Timely completion and delivery including common area: Every builder/ association is under the obligation to complete the project on time and give possession within 3 months from the date of such completion. Moreover the common area will also be transferred to the association of allottees.
- Review: The developer and the promoters are under the obligation that they will review the quality of transferred building and if there is any defect in structural quality it should be repaired by the developer within 30 days of intimidation without any additional cost.
What penalties can be imposed on builders in Punjab in case of non-compliance?
- Non Registration: If any builder fails to register himself under the RERA Punjab then he is liable for the fine of 10 % of project estimated cost.
- False Information: If any builder gives false information regarding the projects then he is liable for the fine of 5% of project estimated cost.
- Violation of law: If any builder violates the law provided under the RERA Act then the imprisonment of up-to 3 year can be imposed or fine of 10% estimated cost of project or both.
Conclusion:
The main objective of RERA Act is to protect the interest of customers and making them free of fear of fraud and cheating from builders and developers. It can be said beyond a shadow of doubt that fully compliance with the necessary provisions of the law of land can help the business owners. Since as per RERA, the builders are strictly required to fulfil all the stipulations, and failure to do so can invite litigation. Therefore, it is highly recommended to fully adhere with all the prevalent rules and regulations in real sector, so that future legal hassles may be eliminated.
-Surbhi Singla
Associate at Aggarwals & Associates, S.A.S. Nagar, Mohali
by Aggarwals Associates | Sep 27, 2022 | General
Sports play a significant role in the routine life of people. All have different perspective for sports some equate it with entertainment and some has chooses it as their carrier and development. There are some sports which are based on physical strength such as badminton cricket etc. whereas some needs mental strength like chess.
Sports Law relates to the sporting activities in India. Sports law is the new introduction in the field of law as people are keeping it as a profession instead of source of entertainment. There are various laws which are provided by our Indian legislation and many are yet to come.
Why there is a need of Sports Law in India?
Every opportunity comes up with some difficulties and problems similarly the recent emerging career also brings some difficulties with it such as harassment in sports, injury liability of player, endorsement and advertising etc, therefore there is a need for sports law that can regulate all these activities.
National Sports Policy:
A resolution was passed to pass national sports policy in 1984 that will be reviewed after every 5 years so that the necessary changes can be done, but it was never implemented.
After that a new policy was drafted named National Sports Policy, 2001. The policy was drafted to regulate sports in India and it has primarily 3 objectives:
- To define the areas of responsibility for all those agencies who looked after the promotion.
- Find sports federation that can help in reaching the objective, moreover lays down the procedure followed by these federation.
- The criteria on which the grants will be release by the Government to these federations.
After the implementation of the policy various initiatives have been taken by Central Government such as making physical education as a compulsory subjects in school for making students aware about the importance of sports in our life, promotion was done on large scale.
Constitutional take on Sports Law:
As such there is no specific provision in Constitution of India regarding sports law; however, sports is included in the 7th schedule Entry 33 under the concurrent list i.e. state or centre can make laws regarding sports.
And also the right is guaranteed under Article 226 of Indian Constitution to approach High Court for the issues related to sports.
What are the authorities related to sports?
- Sports law and Welfare Association of India: The association is non profit organisation that works on smooth implementation of sports law in India. The organisation works at national level to promote ethical activities related to sports. Moreover it helps in resolving legal issues that a person might be going through by bringing legal practitioner and sports person together.
- Sports broadcasting Law in India: The Sports Broadcasting Signals Act came into existence in 2007 for mandatory broadcasting of sports event on Prasar Bharti that has national importance. The main purpose of this is to gather large crowd and promoting sport events.
- Sports authority of India: It is an apex body set up by the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports to promote sports activities in India. The authority lays down provisions for the youth to direct their energy to achieve excellence in sports.
- Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports: The Ministry is responsible for formulating polices on sports in India. Moreover the department is established under the ministry which is responsible for giving away awards related to sports.
National Sports Development Code, 2011: The enactment is done under the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports for regulating sports in India. Under this the provisions are made to regulate law in India, provisions for offences in sports, harassment of female players etc. and their punishments respectively.
Arbitration and Conciliation Act: Arbitration is the legal way in which parties can resolve their dispute out of the court involving third party of their choice known as arbitrator and the award given by arbitrator is binding on both the parties. There can be two types of arbitration one is national and another is international. In national the dispute is arise in India and the disputed parties are also from India whereas in international the concepts of other countries are involved.
The main purpose of resolving these cases in arbitration is to reduce the burden of court in respect to sports and also to ensure speedy trial. Following this purpose the Court of Arbitration for Sports 1983 is established. However the court proved ineffective in resolving dispute in Sushil Kumar v. Union of India case and therefore the introduction of Sports Arbitration Centre of India 2021 is established. The effectiveness of the new centre is yet to be adjudged.
Conclusion:
The scope of sports law is increasing day by day, various provisions are laid down by the Government of India but still there is a need of changes and introduction of new India in the concerned field. Various matters remain hidden on which there is no law such as fixing matches, bidding, sexual harassment of female players etc. Moreover there are a lot of discrimination in the star players and the new players therefore the laws should be made that protects the rights of sports person irrespective of the concept that they are star player or not.
– Surbhi Singla
Associate at Aggarwals and Associates, S.A.S. Nagar, Mohali
by Aggarwals Associates | Sep 26, 2022 | General
Indian Fintech is quickly becoming a worldwide success story as the country moves toward a digital economy thanks to its dynamic policy environment and infrastructure. The industry has experienced rapid growth and valuation rise due to a thriving ecosystem and surge in digital adoption. Partnerships involving large incumbents, non-bank companies, emerging and established Fintechs, aggregators, and data and technology service providers will develop as a result of a dynamic transformation in the financial services industry as a whole.
In this write-up, we will analyze the recent development in the fast-growing digital economy in India.
RBI’s Vision Statement:
Reserve Bank of India’s (RBI) released the ‘Payments Vision 2025’ for India’s payments and settlement systems on 17th June, 2022. Under this vision, the RBI stated some key initiatives including establishing a Digital Payments Protection Fund, revising PPI guidelines, forming regulatory framework for unregulated payment intermediaries, examining the possibility of geotagging of online payment transactions, and releasing instructions for Buy Now Pay Later products etc.
Digital Lending:
In its press release on 10th August, 2022, the RBI has set out a regulatory stance on digital lending in India by entities such as banks, non-banking financial companies. According to the press release, digital lenders have been divided into three categories: (a) entities regulated by the RBI (b) entities authorized to carry out lending in accordance with other statutory provisions, but not by RBI (c) entities operating lending outside the purview of any statutory provisions.
Payment Systems:
- Limitations on credit lines being loaded into prepaid payment instruments produced by non-bank companies.
- New regulatory clearance and notification requirements influencing M&A in the regulated payments sector.
- Declaration of new regulatory application window for non-bank payment aggregator licenses.
- Restrictions in relation to storage of customer card details on payment service providers and merchants.
Cards, Digital banking and others:
- Introduction of new regulatory framework with respect to credit, debit, and co-branded cards.
- Digital baking units and the upcoming times.
- Regulatory conditions for appointment of recovery agents.
Online Bond Trading Platforms:
Securities and Exchange Board of India proposed a regulatory framework for India’s digital bond platforms by releasing its consultation paper on 21st July, 2022. SEBI is committed to bring regulatory framework in online bond platforms to address issues emerging out of circumstances like lack of regulatory supervision and answerability for the bond platform, non-existence of standards for KYC norms, vagueness in redressing grievances of investors, issues regarding deemed public issuances, and so forth.
To recapitulate, in order to improve a sector’s efficiency, productivity, scope, and competitiveness and consequently create a cutting-edge, high-tech digital economy, digitalization, or the digital transformation of the economy, entails the introduction of information and communication technology. The adoption of digital technologies across a range of economic sectors, including healthcare, education, housing, social services, manufacturing, and services, is quickly altering these businesses’ faces. To make sure that everyone is taken care of and that no one is left behind, digital transformation must be deliberately inclusive and properly developed and implemented.
-Kiranpreet Kaur
Associate at Aggarwals & Associates, S.A.S. Nagar, Mohali
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