'Not our domain, you do something': SC notice to Centre on plea to ban obscene content on OTT

NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court on Monday issued a notice to Centre on a plea seeking restrictions on streaming sexually explicit content across OTT platforms and social media.
A division bench comprising Justices BR Gavai and Augustine George Masih emphasized that implementing measures to control indecent content falls under the purview of the Executive and Legislature. The Centre informed the court that while some regulations already exist, additional restrictions are being considered.
"As it is, there are allegations that we are encroaching upon the legislature and executive power," Justice Gavai said.
"It is not our domain, you do something," he added.
Meanwhile, the government told the apex court that some regulations on explicit content are in existence while certain more curbs are in contemplation.
This comes after the petitions were filed urging the apex court to direct the Centre to establish a National Content Control Authority aimed at regulating and preventing the display of pornographic and sexually explicit material online.
The PIL argue that the absence of strict rules has led to widespread sharing of explicit material online and allege that certain OTT platforms are broadcasting content that could amount to 'child pornography'.
Earlier the ministry of information and broadcasting has issued an advisory to OTT platforms urging stricter age-based classification of content and compliance with the Information Technology (IT) Rules 2021.
The advisory comes amid row over an episode of YouTube show 'India's Got Latent' by Samay Raina, featuring podcaster and influencer, Ranveer Allahbadia, who made an "inappropriate" comment during his guest appearance.
The advisory outlined six key points aimed at online content publishers and self-regulatory bodies of OTT platforms, emphasising adherence to existing laws and ethical guidelines.