Section 8 in The Meghalaya Maintenance Of Public Order Act, 1947
8. Control of publications etc.
The State Government, if satisfied that such action is necessary for the purpose of preventing any activity which undermines the security of or tends to overthrow the State or any part thereof, may-(a)by order in writing prohibit either absolutely or for a specified period the bringing into or sale or distribution or circulation within the State of any newspaper, periodical, book, leaflet or other document specified in the order;(b)by an order in writing addressed to any printer, publisher or editor or generally to all printers, publishers or editors or to such class of printers, publishers or editors as may be specified therein -(i)prohibit either absolutely or for a specified period the printing or publication of any matter relating to a particular subject or class of subject in any particular issue or issues of a newspaper or periodical or in any book or in any other document whatsoever;ii) require that the matter relating to or arising out of any matter published in any previous issue of any newspaper or periodical be published in any particular issue of such newspaper or periodical in such manner as may be specified in the order;(iii)prohibit either absolutely or for a specified period the publication of any newspaper, periodical, book or any other document whatsoever or the use of any Press.(2)The officer referred to in sub-clause (iii) of clause (b) of sub-section (1) may after scrutiny of the matter, issue a direction either prohibiting its publication or permitting its publication with such modification as he may deem necessary.(3)If any person contravenes any order made or direction given under this section, he shall one conviction; be punishable with imprisonment for a term, which may extend to one year or with fine or with both.(4)Where it appears to the State Government that an order made or direction given under this section is contravened, the State Government may, without prejudice to the penalty prescribed in sub-section (3), direct that any copy wherever found of the newspaper or periodical or any issue thereof, or book or other documents; in respect of which the order or direction appears to have been contravened or any printing press or other instrument or apparatus used in the printing or production of any such newspaper, periodical, book or document shall be sized and detained.Explanation :- For the purpose of this section "printer" includes a "keeper of a printing press" and the "press" shall have the same meaning as is assigned to that word in the Indian Press (Emergency Powers) Act, 1931.
