As many as 18 streaming platforms, 19 websites, 10 apps, and 57 social media accounts have been blocked by the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting (MIB) for publishing “obscene, vulgar, and, in some instances, pornographic content”.
The platforms have been blocked under Section 4 of the Indecent Representation of Women (Prohibition) Act, 1986, Section 292 (sale of obscene books, etc.) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC), and Sections 67 and 67A of the Information Technology Act, 2000.
The blocked platforms include Besharams, Hunters, Dream Films, MoodX, NeonX, XtraMood and others as these companies are engaged in producing sexually explicit content.
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“A significant portion of the content hosted on these platforms was found to be obscene, vulgar, and portrayed women in a demeaning manner. It depicted nudity and sexual acts in various inappropriate contexts, such as relationships between teachers and students, incestuous family relationships, etc. The content included sexual innuendos and, in some instances, prolonged segments of pornographic and sexually explicit scenes devoid of any thematic or societal relevance,” the statement from MIB said.
MIB said that one of the apps had more than 10 million downloads while two others had over five million downloads each on Google Play Store.
Of the ten blocked apps, seven were on Google Play Store while three were on Apple’s App Store.
The social media accounts of these platforms, where trailers, specific scenes and external links were shared, had a cumulative following of over 3.2 million users.
12 Facebook accounts, 17 Instagram accounts, 16 X (formerly Twitter) accounts and 12 YouTube accounts were blocked, the statement read.
In June 2023, a self-regulatory board set up under Part III of the IT Rules had passed an adverse order against Ullu, another streaming platform that is not a part of the current list, on grounds of obscenity.
In his final order in June 2023, former SC judge AK Sikri, chairperson of the grievance redressal board of the Digital Publisher Content Grievances Council, had instructed Ullu to remove the four web series that had been complained against or to edit them (”if even possible”, the council noted in the order) to remove “the offending and objectionable scenes”.
In his order, Sikri noted that the right to freedom of speech and expression granted under Article 19 of the constitution has certain restrictions, including that “art or culture should not be obscene”.
“Obscenity is treated as penal offence as well as per the provisions of Section 292 of the IPC. Restriction can also be imposed in the interest of public order, decency and morality,” the order said.
In its order, Sikri noted, “The Council finds that there is no social message in any of these series and the sole purpose is to depict sex and nudity likely to deprave the corrupt those whose minds are open to influence of this sort.”
