AMN / New Delhi
The Supreme Court Wednesday asked the Union of India’s nodal agencies to convene a meeting with all stakeholders, including Internet giants – – Google, Yahoo and Microsoft – – within six weeks to remove the objectionable contents pertaining to sex determination tests.
A bench, headed by Chief Justice of India Dipak Misra and also comprising Justices A M Khanwilkar and D Y Chandrachud, disposed off the Public Interest Litigation (PIL) filed by petitioner, Sabu Mathew George, in the case.
The petitioner Sabu Mathew George, sought blocking of these sex determination tests videos on many advertisements on web portals, including, Google, Yahoo and Microsoft…..
Sanjay Parikh, appearing for petitioner Sabu Mathew George, said search engines Google, Yahoo and Microsoft, were competent to remove materials on sex determination from the websites on their own. The contention was vehemently opposed by the counsel for the search engines.
The apex court, while disposing of the PIL, said the Centre, its nodal agency and experts “shall take steps so that mandate of the Pre-Conception and Pre-Natal Diagnostic Techniques (PCPNDT) Act, 1994 are not violated”.
It directed the representatives of search engines shall also take part in the meeting which would endeavour to find a “holistic” solution to the problem of posting of such materials on websites which violate the PCPNDT Act.
“However, we make it clear that we have not expressed any opinion on merits,” the bench said, adding that the petitioner would be at liberty to file a fresh plea if he felt aggrieved in future.
Additional Solicitor General Pinky Anand, appearing for the Centre, said the nodal agency has been effectively dealing with complaints and getting them redressed with the help of search engines.
During hearing, senior lawyer A M Singhvi and advocate Anupam Lal Das, appearing for some search engines, said unless the URL address of websites hosting illegal materials on sex- determination was not brought to the notice of search engines, it is difficult to remove them.
Earlier, the government informed the court that it has set up a nodal agency to redress complaints seeking deletion of materials violating Indian laws prohibiting pre- natal sex determination, from search engines and websites.
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Parikh told the court that despite the setting up of the nodal agency by the Centre, it has not been effective in stopping the offending material being displayed on the internet and that the search engines were not removing the objectionable material on their own.
However, Additional Solicitor General Pinki Anand told the court that on receiving a complaint, the nodal agency takes steps and interacts with the representatives of search engines and objectionable materials are removed.
The counsel appearing for the search engines said that it was difficult for them to removd the objectionable material on their own without a complaint as there are several permutations and combinations available for search.
George had moved the top court seeking curbs on advertisement commercially promoting sex determination techniques/kits and other related things which has contributed to eschewed sex ratio.