Judicial overreach-on OTT Rules

Judicial overreach-on OTT Rules

Introduction

Allahabad High Court denied Aparna Purohit, India Commercial Head of the content streaming platform, the relief with a sweeping declaration that some offending scenes on a new series, constituted punishable offences.

Overreach of ‘soft-touch monitoring’

The Court went through the recently notified rules for digital media and intermediaries and observed that these lacked teeth.

It is quite unusual that a constitutional court should push for more stringent rules after finding that the Information Technology (Guidelines for Intermediaries and Digital Media Ethics Code) Rules, 2021, did not provide for punishment and fine.
Courts generally examine the validity of such curbs on free speech and decide whether they are reasonable or too restrictive.
- The new rules are essentially restrictions on free speech and expression through digital media.
It is unusual that the apex court should seek to go beyond what the executive describes as ‘soft-touch monitoring’, and press for inclusion of punishment clauses.
The Court seems to be concerned about obscenity and uncensored content on streaming services, the ostensible reason for its incursion into regulatory territory, when there was no challenge to the new rules before it.
While refusing pre-arrest bail, the High Court has made an unusual claim that the title ‘Tandav’ itself could hurt the sentiments of a majority of Indians because it is associated with Lord Shiva.
- It has observed that alluding to Lord Ram gaining popularity on social media is a reference to the Ayodhya dispute, and, therefore, offensive.
It has a sweeping claim that the Hindi film industry, in contrast to its southern counterparts, was generally disrespectful to the Hindu religion.

Conclusion

It would be unfortunate if the judiciary lets itself be seen as departing from its record of protecting individuals harassed by those claiming that their religious or cultural sentiments have been hurt by some work of art, or even remarks or gestures by celebrities.

Source: TH

Join Our Telegram

China to build dams on Brahmaputra River

International Women’s Day-Background

E-pharmacies

08 Mar, 23
SHARE

E-pharmacies The Ministry of Health sent "show cause" letters to at least 20 businesses in February 2023 for online drug sales, including Tata-1mg, Flipkart, Apollo, PharmEasy, Amazon, and Reliance Netmeds. What is e-pharmacy? E-pharmacy refers to the purchasing and selling of drugs and other pharmaceutical products through a

Punchhi Commission Report

08 Mar, 23
SHARE

Punchhi Commission Report The Punchhi Commission's report on relations between the federal government and its constituent states will now be reviewed for state responses, according to the Union Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA). Historical Background: A Commission on Centre-State Relations was established by the Indian government,

Indo-German Relations

08 Mar, 23
SHARE

Indo-German Relations Olaf Scholz, the Chancellor of Germany, recently paid a bilateral visit to India. It is Scholz's first trip to India after taking office as German Chancellor in December 2021, ending Angela Merkel's illustrious 16-year reign. About the news: The visit of the German chancellor is significant because i

India Denmark Cooperation

07 Mar, 23
SHARE

India Denmark Cooperation During the "India-Denmark: Partners for Green and Sustainable Development Conference" in New Delhi, the Union Minister for Environment, Forests, and Climate Change said that India and Denmark can work together to show that reaching ambitious climate and sustainable energy targets is possible. Since the Gr

Mob lynching and Cow Vigilantism

07 Mar, 23
SHARE

Mob lynching and Cow Vigilantism The recent lynching and burning of two men in Haryana on the basis of allegations of unlawful cow slaughter, smuggling, or transportation bring attention to the problem of mob lynching. About cow vigilantism: Mob attacks carried out in the guise of "cow protection" primarily target Mus