Om Birla Nominates Sambit Patra and Two Others to the Press Council of India

Om Birla, the Speaker of the Lok Sabha, has appointed three members to the Press Council of India. Among them are BJP leader Sambit Patra, Shiv Sena's Naresh Mhaske, and Congress's Kali Charan Munda. This body serves as a quasi-judicial entity for overseeing the print media sector.

Press Council Composition and Roles

The Press Council of India consists of a chairman and 28 members. Thirteen members represent working journalists, with six being newspaper editors and seven being journalists other than editors. Additionally, six members are from those who own or manage newspapers, divided equally among large, medium, and small publications.

Furthermore, the Council includes a representative from news agency management. Five members represent Parliament, with three nominated by the Lok Sabha Speaker and two by the Rajya Sabha Chairman to advocate for readers' interests.

Recent Nominations to the Council

Rajya Sabha Chairman Jagdeep Dhankhar recently appointed BJP members Sudhanshu Trivedi and Brij Lal to the Press Council. The University Grants Commission (UGC) selected Ashwini K Mohapatra from Jawaharlal Nehru University, while Manan Kumar Mishra was chosen by the Bar Council of India. Sahitya Akademi nominated its Secretary K Sreenivasarao.

The Council also includes three members nominated from various sectors: education, law, and literature. These representatives come from the UGC, Bar Council of India, and Sahitya Akademi respectively.

This diverse composition ensures that different perspectives are considered in regulating the print media industry. The inclusion of professionals from journalism, management, education, law, and literature aims to balance interests and uphold standards within the media landscape.

With inputs from PTI