- In the beginning, newspapers and journals aimed to cater to the needs of Europeans and Anglo Indians and were hardly a threat to Company’s rule. But the company’s officers were apprehensive about these newspapers exposing their misdoings to the home authorities.
- They enforced pre-censorship of newspapers in 1799, and the Regulating Act of 1823 completely extinguished the freedom of unlicensed printing. But the New Press Act, 1835 of Metcalfe, liberated the Indian press.
- Before the Revolt of 1857, the press was fiercely involved in rallying the masses, and the British were more apprehensive about press freedom. So, they enacted the Licensing Act of 1857 and Regulating Act of 1867 to keep the press in check.
- Lytton’s Vernacular Press Act of 1878 (gagging act) prevented the vernacular press from criticizing government policies. Ripon repealed it in 1881. Later, more stringent anti-press laws were enacted as the freedom movement gained momentum. Amendments to the IPC in 1897, the Official Secrets Act of 1904, the Indian Newspapers (incitement to offences) Act of 1908, and the Indian Press Act of 1910 are classic examples. In 1921, on the recommendations of a press committee, the Press Acts of 1908 and 1910 were repealed.
- Indian Press (Emergency Powers) Act, 1931 to suppress propaganda for the Civil Disobedience Movement, and the restrictions during the Second World War curtailed press freedom. Press Enquiry Committee of 1947 recommended repeal of the Indian Emergency Powers Act, 1931, amendments in the Press and Registration of Books Act, and modifications in Sections 124-A and 156-A of IPC, among others.
Acts & Regulations
| Act/Regulations | Key Points |
| Censorship of Press Act, 1799 | Enacted by Lord Wellesley. |
| Licensing Regulation Act, 1823 | Enacted by John Adams. |
| Press Act of 1835/ Metcalfe Act | Seen as ‘liberator of Indian Press.’ |
| Registration Act, 1867 | Replaced Metcalfe’s Act. It was regulatory but not restrictive in nature. |
| Vernacular Press Act, 1878 | Nicknamed a ‘gagging act.’ It came as discrimination against vernacular press over English press. No right of appeal was given to the Vernacular press. It was repealed by Rippon in 1882. |
| Officials Secret Act, 1904 | Enacted during Lord Curzon’s time to restrict freedom of press. |
| Newspaper Act, 1908 | Aimed against extremist nationalist activity. |
| Indian Press Act, 1910 | Revived the worst features of the Vernacular Press Act. |
| Indian Press (Emergency Powers) Act, 1931 | Gave sweeping powers to the provincial government to suppress CDM. |
Important Newspapers
| Newspaper | Founder |
| Bengal Gazette (1780) Calcutta | James Augustus Hickey (1st newspaper in India) |
| Sambad Kaumdi in Bengali (1821) Mirat-ul-Akhbar in Persian (1822) | Raja Ram Mohan Roy |
| Bombay Times (from 1861 Times of India), 1838, Bombay | Thomas Bennett |
| Rast Goftar (1851) | Dadabhai Naoroji (Gujarati fortnightly) |
| Hindu Patriot (1853) (Calcutta) | Girish Chandra Ghosh |
| Indian Mirror (1862) (Calcutta) | Devendranath Tagore (first Indian daily newspaper in English) |
| Som Prakash, 1859 | Ishwar Chandra Vidyasagar |
| Bengalee (this along with Amrita Bazar Patrika were the 1st vernacular papers), 1862, Calcutta | Girish Chandra Ghosh (taken over by S N Banerjea) |
| Amrita Bazar Patrika (1868), Jessore district, undivided Bengal | Sisir Kumar Ghosh & Motilal Ghosh |
| The Hindu (1878) (Madras) | G.S. Aiyar, Viraraghavachari & Subba Rao Pandit |
| Kesari and Maharatta, (1881) (Bombay) | Tilak, Chiplunkar & Agarkar |
| Swadeshamitram, Madras | G.S. Aiyar |
| Paridasak,1886 | Bipin Chandra Pal (publisher) |
| Yugantar, 1906, Bengal | Barindra Kumar Ghosh and Bhupendra Dutta |
| Bande Mataram (Paris) | Madam Bhikaji Cama |
| Bombay Chronicle (1913) | Pherozshah Mehta Editor: B.G Horniman |
| The Hindustan Times, 1920, Delhi | K M Panikkar |
| Mook Nayak (1920) Bahishkrit Bharat (1927) (Marathi) | B R Ambedkar |
| Bandi Jivan, Bengal | Sachin Sanyal |
| National Herald, 1938 | Jawaharlal Nehru |
| Young India, Harijan | Mahatma Gandhi |
Impacts of Press on National Movement
- Economic Critique of Colonialism:Press presented theEconomic critique of British economic policies which showcased India’s real economic conditions and fuelled anti-British agitations. E.g., Poverty and Un-British Rule in India by Naoroji mentioned the Drain of Wealth theory, Economic History of India by R.C. Dutt examined the entire economic record of colonial rule since 1757.
- :Vernacular and Anglo-Indian press educated the masses by tracking local, national and international events. It provided an ideological basis for revolts and mobilising public opinion. E.g., Hindoo Patriot by H. C. Mukherji is a nationalist publication known for its active role in exposing the oppression of indigo planters in Bengal.
- Political Awakening: Press became a forum for the airing of different viewpoints and debates, which contributed to the intellectual and ideological development of the independence movement. It also served as a platform for the airing of grievances and the articulation of demands for self-governance and led to the formation and promotion of political organisations.
- Develop National Consciousness:Press provided a means for national leaders to communicate with masses and mobilize them for independence struggle by fostering a sense of national unity and purpose. E.g., During Non-Cooperation Movement of the 1920s, the press was used to disseminate Gandhi’s message and mobilize supporters for the cause.
- Spearhead Socio-Religious Movements: Indian press helped the formation of reformist ideas by debating on issues like female infanticide, widowhood, child marriage, prostitution, untouchability, superstitions etc. to spearhead socio-religious movements.
