High Court questions inaction in removing ‘obscene content’
The High Court yesterday questioned the inaction and apathy of the authorities concerned to remove obscene and immoral video contents from the OTT (over-the-top) web-based platforms across the country.
In response to a writ petition, the court issued a rule asking respondents to explain in four weeks why their inaction to this effect should not be declared illegal.
In the rule, the HC asked them to show cause why they should not be directed to formulate a guideline to monitor the operations of OTT platforms.
Secretaries to ministries of posts and telecommunications, home and information, inspector general of police, chairman and director concerned of Bangladesh Telecommunication and Regulatory Commission (BTRC), director general of Bangladesh Shilpakala Academy and deputy inspector general of Cyber Police Bureau were made respondents to the rule.
The HC bench of Justice JBM Hassan and Justice Md Khairul Alam came up with the rule after hearing a petition filed by Supreme Court lawyer Tanvir Ahmed, seeking necessary directives to this effect.
The petitioner told The Daily Star following a similar petition, a virtual HC bench of Justice M Enayetur Rahim on July 15 directed the authorities concerned to remove such contents in seven days.
On that day, the bench also asked BTRC to submit a report before it in a month on how the government collects revenue from the platforms. The HC directives were not implemented as those were not communicated to the respondents properly, he said.
The HC yesterday kept the HC's July 15 directives intact, lawyer Tanvir said.
He submitted the petition as a public interest litigation to the HC in July saying that several OTT platforms contain questionable and obscene contents and films from Bangladesh and India. Those contents through internet cause moral degradation of people, particularly the juvenile and young generation.
The lawyer in the petition prayed to the HC to deliver order on the authorities concerned to remove those contents.
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