Madras High Court tells Centre to act with same urgency as Operation Sindoor to block websites sharing women’s private content. Says women’s dignity is as vital as national integrity.
Chennai: On August 5, the Madras High Court has strongly urged the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) to show the same level of urgency and seriousness in blocking websites that spread private videos and images of women, as it did during Operation Sindoor where over 1,400 URLs were swiftly taken down for spreading false and harmful information.
Justice N. Anand Venkatesh made this significant observation while hearing a writ petition filed by a woman lawyer whose private videos and images were leaked and are now circulating widely across the internet.
The petitioner, represented by senior advocate Mr. Abudu Kumar Rajaratnam, sought a direction to MeitY to block porn websites and digital platforms hosting such content.
Agreeing with the counsel’s submissions, the court stressed the importance of safeguarding women’s dignity in the digital age.
The judge said:
“The dignity of every woman in the country must be considered as important as the dignity of the whole nation put together.”
Mr. Rajaratnam informed the court that although it had earlier ordered the blocking of six specific video links, the number of such links had now grown to thirteen.
He added that some of the previously blocked websites had even resurfaced, showing that the existing efforts were insufficient to permanently remove the content and prevent further harm to the victim.
On behalf of the Central Government, senior panel counsel Mr. A. Kumaraguru stated that MeitY had taken the High Court’s observations seriously and had already started working on a Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) aimed at resolving digital complaints, especially those affecting women.
He told the court that MeitY was planning to set up an expert committee to draft this SOP and had also laid down its terms of reference.
He assured the judge that MeitY had already blocked all 13 video links shared by the petitioner’s counsel and that they were no longer accessible from Delhi and Mumbai. However, he acknowledged that these links could still be accessed in Tamil Nadu.
He explained:
“It appeared to be a coordination issue with the local service providers,”
and added that the expert committee would also examine such technical challenges before finalising the SOP and submitting it to the court.
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Mr. Rajaratnam also referred to Operation Sindoor, during which the Central Government had taken swift and decisive action by blocking over 1,400 URLs found to be spreading false, anti-India, and communally sensitive content — most of which came from social media accounts based in Pakistan.
These URLs were blocked under Section 69A of the Information Technology Act, 2000, which allows the Centre to block access to information in the interest of the sovereignty and integrity of India, security of the State, and maintenance of public order.
He highlighted that:
“The government had issued orders, under the Section 69A of the Information Technology Act 2000, for blocking all websites, social media handles and posts that were found to be against the interests of sovereignty and integrity of the country, security of the State as well as maintenance of public order.”
According to him, the Centre had shown strong resolve then, and it is only fair to expect similar seriousness when a woman complains that her private content is being circulated online.
He added:
“It was expected of the Centre to exhibit the same intensity of seriousness when a woman approaches the Ministry with a complaint that her private videos/images were being circulated in the internet and ensure the offending websites do not resurface even after blocking.”
The case has highlighted the urgent need for stronger mechanisms and faster coordination between central and local authorities in removing harmful online content, especially in cases involving personal dignity and privacy of women.
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The High Court is expected to continue monitoring the matter closely and has signaled a strong message to both government and digital platforms about the importance of protecting individuals, especially women, in digital spaces.
The matter has been posted for further hearing, and the court has asked MeitY to submit the SOP after consulting with the expert committee.
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