James Augustus Hickey in 1780 started The Bengal Gazette or Calcutta General Advertiser, the first newspaper in India which was seized because of outspoken criticism of government in 1872. Later more newspapers/journals came out-The Bengal Journal, Calcutta Chronicle, Madras Courier, Bombay Herald. Company’s officers were worried that these newspapers might reach London and expose their misdeeds.

Early regulations

Censorship of Press Act (1799) - Lord Wellesley enacted this, anticipating French invasion of India. It imposed almost wartime press restrictions including pre-censorship. These restrictions were relaxed under Lord Hastings, who had progressive views, and in 1818, pre-censorship was dispensed with.

Licensing Regulations (1823) - The acting Governor-General, John Adams, who had reactionary views, enacted these. According to these Regulations, starting or using a press without license was a penal offense. These restrictions were directed chiefly against Indian language or Indian edited newspapers. Rammohan Roy’s Mirat-ul-Akbar had to stop publication.

Liberation of Indian Press (1835) - Metcalfe (Governor-General-1835-36)-repealed the obnoxious 1823 ordinance and earned the epithet, “Liberator of Indian Press”.

-      Lord Macaulay also supported the cause of a free press in India.

-      A new Press Act (1835) required a printer/publisher to declare precise account of premises of publications and cease functioning, if required by a similar declaration.

-      The result of a liberal press policy was a rapid growth of newspapers.

Licensing Act (1857) - Due to emergency caused by 1857 revolt and in addition to already existing registration procedure laid down by Metcalfe Act, this act imposed licensing restriction and government reserved the right to stop publication, circulation of any book, newspaper or printed matter.

This replaced Metcalfe’s Act of 1835 and was of a regulatory, not restrictive, nature-

1.   Every book/newspaper was required to print name of printer and publisher and place of publication

2.   Within one month of publication of book-a copy was to be submitted to local government.

Struggle by early nationalists to secure press freedom

Right from early nineteenth century, defence of civil liberties, including the freedom of the Press, had been high on nationalist agenda. As early as 1824, Raja Rammohan Roy had protested against a resolution restricting the freedom of the Press.

The early phase of nationalist movement from around 1870 to 1918 focussed more on politicization, political propaganda and education, formation and propagation of nationalist ideology and arousing, training, mobilization and consolidation of public opinion, than on mass agitation or active mobilization of masses through open meetings. For this purpose the Press proved to be a crucial tool in the hands of the nationalists. The Indian National Congress in its early days relied solely on the Press to propagate its resolutions and proceedings.

Many newspapers emerged during these years under  distinguished and fearless journalists, such as Hindu and Swadesamitran under G. Subramaniya Aiyar, Bengalee under Surendranath Banerjee, Voice of India under Dadabhai Naoroji, Amrit Bazar Patrika under Sisir Kumar Ghosh and Motilal Ghosh, Indian Mirror under N.N. Sen, Kesari (Marathi) and Maharatta (English) under Balgangadhar Tilak, Sudharak under Gopal Krishna Gokhale, Hindustan and Advocate under G.P. Verma, Tribune and Akbhar-i-am in Punjab, Gujrati, Indu Prakash, Dhyan Prakash and Kal in Bombay and Som Prakash Banganivasi and Sadharani in Bengal.

These newspapers were not established as profit-making business ventures but were seen as a national and public service. In fact, these newspapers had a wide reach and they stimulated a library movement. Even beyond  cities and towns, these newspapers reached the remote villages, where each news item and editorial would be read and discussed thoroughly in the ‘local libraries’ which would gather around a single newspaper. In this way, these libraries served the purpose of not only political education but also of political participation. In these newspapers, government acts and policies were put to critical scrutiny. This way, they acted as an institution of opposition to government.

The Government on its part had enacted many strident laws, such as section 124 A of Indian Penal Code which provided that anyone trying to cause disaffection against the British Government in India was to be transported for life or for any term or imprisoned upto three years. But the nationalist-minded journalists had evolved many clever stratagems to subvert these legal hurdles. For instance, writings hostile to the government used to be prefaced with sentiments of loyalty to the government or critical writings of socialists or Irish nationalists from newspapers in England used to be quoted. This was a difficult task which required intelligent mix of simplicity with subtlety.

The national movement, from the beginning, stood for freedom of Press. The Indian newspapers became highly critical of Lord Lytton’s administration especially regarding its inhuman treatment to victims of famine of 1876-77. The government struck back with the Vernacular Press Act (1878).

Vernacular press act (1878)

A bitter legacy of 1857 revolt was the racial bitterness between ruler and the ruled. After 1858, European Press always rallied behind Government in political controversies while vernacular press was critical of government. There was a strong public opinion against imperialistic policies of Lytton, made restive by terrible famine (1876-77) on one hand and lavish expenditure on Imperial Delhi Durbar, on the other.

Vernacular Press Act was designed to better control the Vernacular press and effectively punish and repress seditious writing.

1.   The District Magistrate was empowered to call upon printer and publisher of a press to enter into a bond with government undertaking not to cause disaffection against government or antipathy between persons of different religions, caste, race through published material; could also require to deposit security which could be forfeited if the regulation were contravened, press equipment could be seized if the offense re-occurred.

2.   Magistrate’s action was final and no appeal could be made in a court of law.

3.   A vernacular newspaper could get exemption by submitting proofs to a government censor.

The Act, nicknamed “gagging act”, had as its worst features:-

1.   Discrimination between English and vernacular press

2.   No right of appeal.

Under VPA, proceedings were instituted against Som Prakash, Bharat Mihir, Dacca Prakash, Samachar,

Later, the pre-censorship clause was repealed, and a Press Commissioner was appointed to supply authentic and accurate news to the press.

There was strong opposition to the Act and finally Ripon repealed it in 1881.

In 1833, Surendranath Banerjee became the first Indian journalist to be imprisoned while performing his duty as a journalist. He had criticized a judge of Calcutta High Court for being insensitive to religious sentiments of Bengalis in one of his judgments. Banerjee did so in an angry editorial in Bengalee.

Balgangadhar Tilak is most frequently associated with the nationalist fight for freedom of Press. Tilak had been building up anti-imperialist sentiments among the public through Ganapati festival (started in 1893), Shivaji festival (started in 1896) and through his newspapers Kesari (Marathi) and Mahratta (English). He was among the first to advocate bringing the lower middle classes, the peasants, artisans and workers into the Congress fold. In 1896, he organized an all-Maharashtra campaign for boycott of foreign cloth in opposition to imposition of excise duty on cotton. In 1896-97 he initiated a no-Tax campaign in Maharashtra, urging farmers to withhold the payment of revenue if their crop had failed. In 1897, plague occurred in Poona. Although Tilak supported government measures to check plague there was large-scale popular resentment against heartless and harsh methods such as segregation and house searches. The popular unrest resulted in murder of the chairman of the Plague Committee in Poona, by Chapekar brothers. Also, the government policies on tariff, currency and famine had been behind this popular resentment.

The government had been looking for an opportunity to check this militant trend and hostility in the Press. They decided to make Tilak an example to the public. Tilak was arrested after the Rand murder on basis of publication of a poem in Kesari, ‘Shivaji’s  utterances’ and of a speech which Tilak and delivered at the Shivaji festival, justifying Afzal Khan’s murder by Shivaji. Tilak’s defence of Shivaji’s killing of Afzal Khan was portrayed by the prosecution as an incitement to kill British officials. Tilak was held guilty and awarded rigorous imprisonment of eighteen months. Simultaneously several other editors of Bombay presidency were tried and given similar harsh sentences. There were widespread protests against these measures. Overnight Tilak became a national hero and was given the title of ‘Lokmanya’ (respected and honored by the People)-a new leader who preached with his deeds.

In 1898, the government amended section 124 A and added another section 153 A which made it a criminal offense for anyone to bring into contempt the Government of India or to create hatred among different classes, that is, vis-a-vis Englishmen in India. This also led to nation-wide protests. During Swadishi and boycott movements and due to rise of militant nationalist trends, several repressive laws were passed.

Newspaper (Incitement to Offenses) Act 1908 Aimed against extremist nationalist activity-magistrates were empowered to confiscate Press property which published objectionable material likely to cause incitement to murder/acts of violence.

Indian Press Act 1910 revived worst features of VPA-Local government empowered to demand a security at registration from printer/publisher and forfeit/deregister if it was an offending newspaper and printer of a newspaper was required to submit two copies of each issue to local government free of charge.

Tilak as the leader of militant nationalists was tried on charges of sedition and transported to Mandlay (Burma) for six years. This led to countrywide protests. In Bombay, textile workers and railway workshop workers took on the army on streets and struck work for days. Lenin hailed this as the entrance of the Indian working class on the political stage.

During first world war

Defences of India Rules were imposed for repression of political agitation and free public criticism. In 1921, on recommendations of a Press Committee chaired by Tej Bahadur Sapru, Press Acts of 1908, 1910 were repealed.

Indian Press (Emergency Powers) Act 1931 gave sweeping powers to provincial governments to suppress propaganda for Civil Disobedience Movement. It was further amplified in 1932 to include all activities calculated to undermine government authority.

During Second World War

Under Defence of India rules, pre-censorship was imposed and amendments made in Press Emergency Act and Official Secrets Act. At one time, publication, of all news related to Congress activity was declared illegal. Special powers ended in 1948.

Press Enquiry Committee (1947) To examine Press Laws in light of Fundamental rights formulated by Constituent Assembly-recommended repeal of Indian Emergency Powers Act (1931), amendments in Press  and Registration of Books Act, modifications in Sections 124-A, 156-A, of IPC, among others.

Press (Objectionable Matters) Act, 1951 along with amendment to article 19(2) of Constitution. Then Act empowered the government to demand and forfeit security for publication of “objectionable matter”. Aggrieved owners and printers were given right to demand trial by jury. It remained in force till 1956.

1954-Press Commission under Justice Rajadhyaksha recommended All India Press Council, Price-page schedule system for newspapers, banning crossword puzzle competitions, a strict code of advertisements by newspapers, desirability of preventing concentration in ownership of Indian newspapers.

Further Acts After than Govt. passed

-      Delivering of Books and Newspapers (Public Libraries) Act 1954.

-      Working Journalists (Conditions of Services) and Misc. Provisions Act 1955.

-      Newspaper (Price and Page) Act 1956.

-      Parliamentary Proceedings (Protection of Publication Act 1960).