Terms of Use

(A) Age Requirement

The Site is intended for users aged 18 or over. Users below 18 may access the Site only with verifiable parental or guardian consent under Section 9 of the DPDP Act, 2023. CDC reserves the right to require proof of age or parental consent and to suspend any Account for which such verification cannot be provided.

(B) Geographic Access

The Site is operated from India. Users accessing the Site from outside India do so on their own initiative and are responsible for compliance with their local laws.

(C) Account Registration

To access certain features You may need to create an Account. You represent that all registration information is true, accurate, and current. You are solely responsible for maintaining the confidentiality of your login credentials and for all activity conducted through your Account. Notify CDC immediately at debatingcirclecalcutta@gmail.com of any unauthorised access.

(D) Right to Refuse Access

CDC reserves the right to refuse registration, suspend, or terminate any Account at any time, without prior notice, where CDC reasonably believes a User has violated these Terms or Applicable Law.

(A) Ownership

All content on the Site — including debate recordings, photographs, videos, graphics, event archives, motion papers, adjudication materials, programme notes, logos, and the selection, arrangement, and presentation of such content — is owned by or licensed to CDC and is protected under the Copyright Act, 1957 and the Trade Marks Act, 1999.

The names "Calcutta Debating Circle" and "CDC", the CDC logo, and all associated marks are the exclusive property of CDC. Nothing in these Terms grants any licence to use these marks without the prior written consent of the Trustees.

(B) Permitted Use

You may access and view Site content for personal, non-commercial purposes only. You may not:

• reproduce, republish, redistribute, broadcast, or transmit any Site content without CDC's prior written consent;
• use any CDC content for commercial purposes;
• remove or alter any copyright notice, watermark, or attribution on CDC content;
• create derivative works from CDC content, including edited debate recordings or re-dubbed audio or video.

(C) Debate Recordings and Media Rights

All recordings, transcripts, and photographs of CDC events are the exclusive property of CDC. Participants in CDC events irrevocably consent to being recorded and to CDC using such recordings for any non-commercial purpose connected with CDC's objects, including broadcast on platforms such as YouTube, without further consent or payment, except as required by law.

Unauthorised recording of CDC events is strictly prohibited and may constitute an infringement under the Copyright Act, 1957 and the IT Act, 2000.

(A) Licence Grant

By submitting User Content to the Site, You grant CDC a royalty-free, perpetual, irrevocable, non-exclusive, worldwide licence to use, publish, reproduce, adapt, translate, distribute, and create derivative works from such content, in any medium, for any non-commercial purpose connected with CDC's objects.

You represent and warrant that You own or control all rights in the User Content You submit and that such content does not infringe any third-party rights.

(B) Prohibited Content

You agree not to submit, post, or transmit any User Content that:

• is defamatory, false, or misleading within the meaning of Sections 356–357 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023;
• constitutes hate speech or incitement contrary to Articles 14, 15, and 21 of the Constitution of India;
• infringes any right under the Copyright Act, 1957 or the Trade Marks Act, 1999;
• is obscene or sexually explicit contrary to Sections 67, 67A, or 67B of the IT Act, 2000;
• violates any person's right to privacy as affirmed in Puttaswamy v. Union of India (2017) 10 SCC 1;
• constitutes unsolicited commercial communication in violation of TRAI regulations;
• introduces malware or harmful code contrary to Sections 43 and 66 of the IT Act, 2000;
• impersonates any person or entity, including CDC or any Trustee;
• discloses the Personal Data of any third party without their consent.

(C) Monitoring and Moderation

CDC is an intermediary under Section 2(1)(w) of the IT Act, 2000. CDC reserves the right to screen, edit, remove, or refuse to post any User Content at any time without notice. Grievances may be directed to the Grievance Officer in Section 12. CDC will acknowledge grievances within 24 hours and resolve them within 15 days as required under Rule 3(2)(d) of the Intermediary Rules, 2021.

(A) Responsible Speech

CDC is committed to the highest standards of responsible public discourse, consistent with the protections of Article 19(1)(a) of the Constitution subject to the reasonable restrictions under Article 19(2). All Users and participants are expected to exercise freedom of expression responsibly.

(B) Defamation

Users must not submit content that is defamatory within the meaning of Chapter XVII of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023 or that would give rise to a civil claim in defamation. Debate motions are chosen for educational and public interest purposes. A debater arguing a position in a structured debate does not thereby adopt that position as a personal belief; this shall not constitute grounds for a defamation claim against CDC or the individual debater.

(C) Press Freedom

Where CDC publishes digital content in the nature of journalism or commentary on public affairs, such content is published in exercise of the right to freedom of the press under Article 19(1)(a) of the Constitution. Any person who believes CDC has published content infringing their legal rights should contact the Grievance Officer in Section 12 before initiating legal proceedings.

(A) As-Is Basis

THE SITE AND ALL CONTENT ARE PROVIDED ON AN "AS IS" AND "AS AVAILABLE" BASIS WITHOUT WARRANTIES OF ANY KIND, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, TO THE FULLEST EXTENT PERMISSIBLE UNDER APPLICABLE INDIAN LAW. CDC DOES NOT WARRANT THAT THE SITE WILL BE ERROR-FREE OR UNINTERRUPTED.

(B) No Warranty as to Accuracy

Debate content, speaker opinions, and motion papers represent the views of individual speakers and not the views of CDC or its Trustees. CDC makes no warranty as to the accuracy, completeness, or currency of any content on the Site.

(C) Limitation of Liability

TO THE FULLEST EXTENT PERMITTED BY APPLICABLE INDIAN LAW, CDC, ITS TRUSTEES, EMPLOYEES, VOLUNTEERS, AND AGENTS SHALL NOT BE LIABLE FOR ANY INDIRECT, INCIDENTAL, SPECIAL, CONSEQUENTIAL, OR PUNITIVE DAMAGES ARISING FROM YOUR USE OF THE SITE. CDC'S AGGREGATE LIABILITY SHALL NOT EXCEED THE AMOUNT PAID BY YOU TO CDC IN THE 12 MONTHS PRECEDING THE CLAIM.

(D) Non-Excludable Rights

Nothing in these Terms excludes or limits any liability that cannot be excluded under Applicable Law, including the Consumer Protection Act, 2019.

(A) Good-Faith Resolution

Users are encouraged to raise concerns with the Grievance Officer before initiating formal proceedings. CDC will use its best efforts to resolve all disputes promptly and amicably.

(B) Mandatory Arbitration

Subject to sub-clause (C), any dispute arising out of or in connection with these Terms or the Site shall be referred to binding arbitration under the Arbitration and Conciliation Act, 1996 (as amended). The arbitration shall be:

• conducted by a sole arbitrator mutually appointed by the parties within 30 days, or by the Calcutta High Court on application;
• held in English in Kolkata, West Bengal, India;
• on an individual basis only — class arbitrations are not permitted.

The arbitral award shall be final and binding and enforceable under Part II of the Arbitration and Conciliation Act, 1996.

(C) Injunctive Relief

Nothing in sub-clause (B) prevents either party from seeking urgent injunctive relief from a court of competent jurisdiction to protect intellectual property rights or prevent irreparable harm.

(D) Class Action Waiver

YOU AND CDC EACH AGREE THAT ANY DISPUTE RESOLUTION PROCEEDINGS WILL BE CONDUCTED ON AN INDIVIDUAL BASIS. YOU WAIVE ANY RIGHT TO PARTICIPATE AS A CLAIMANT OR CLASS MEMBER IN ANY CLASS ACTION AGAINST CDC.

(E) Governing Law and Jurisdiction

These Terms are governed by Indian law. Subject to the arbitration clause, the parties irrevocably submit to the exclusive jurisdiction of the courts of Kolkata, West Bengal. All disputes, whether or not subject to arbitration, shall be subject to the jurisdiction of the courts at Kolkata, West Bengal, India, and no other court shall have jurisdiction to entertain any such dispute.

(F) Limitation Period

Any claim under these Terms must be initiated within 3 (three) years of the date the cause of action arose, subject to any non-excludable statutory limitation period.

(A) Entire Agreement

These Terms, together with the CDC Privacy Policy and any event-specific terms, constitute the entire agreement between CDC and You regarding the Site.

(B) Severability

If any provision is held invalid or unenforceable, the remaining provisions continue in full force.

(C) Waiver

No failure by CDC to exercise any right constitutes a waiver of that right.

(D) Force Majeure

CDC shall not be liable for delay or failure resulting from circumstances beyond its reasonable control, including acts of God, pandemic, civil unrest, government action, or failure of third-party infrastructure.

(E) Assignment

You may not assign rights under these Terms without CDC's prior written consent.

(F) Language

These Terms are in English. In the event of conflict between English and any translation, the English version prevails.