Ministry directed the intermediaries to remove unlawful information under the Information Technology Act, 2000 (IT Act, 2000), and the Information Technology (Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media Ethics Code) Rules, 2021.
- The websites were in violation of various laws:
- Section 67 and Section 67A of the IT Act, 2000,
- Section 294 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), 2023,
- Section 4 of The Indecent Representation of Women (Prohibition) Act, 1986.
- Obscenity refers to content that is offensive, disgusting, or morally degrading by society’s accepted standards of decency and morality.
Why There is a Need to Ban Obscene Content?
- Article 19(2) of the Constitution of India: Allows State to impose "reasonable restrictions" on free speech in the interests of “decency and morality”.
- Case law: Ranjit D. Udeshi v. State of Maharashtra, SC upheld the conviction under Section 292 of IPC (Section 294 of BNS, 2023) holding that obscenity does not enjoy protection under free speech.
- Protection of Women and Children: Early exposure to explicit content distorts children's understanding of relationships and objectifies women, perpetuating gender inequality and violence.
- Obscenity Erodes Cultural and Moral values: Hence, justifies restriction under Mill’s Harm Principle (from ‘On Liberty, 1859’), which permits limiting liberty when it causes harm to others or degrades societal well-being.
