Senior executives from Meta, the parent company of Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp, appeared before India's child rights body, NCPCR, for questioning regarding alleged advertisements promoting child sexual exploitative and abuse material (CSEAM) on its platforms. This follows a BBC report and a stern notice from the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) to Meta over the issue.
Top Meta India executives, including chief Arun Srinivas, appeared before the National Commission for Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR) for the second time in a week regarding alleged Child Sexual Exploitative and Abuse Material (CSEAM) related advertisements on its platforms. Meta has committed to reporting child safety matters directly to India's I4C cybercrime portal, a significant shift from its previous practice of reporting to a US-based centre. The government is pushing for stronger safeguards and accountability from social media platforms to ensure online child safety.
The company's India head, Arun Srinivas, has been summoned by the child rights body on Thursday.
Government sources state that Meta, due to its algorithmic amplification of content, can no longer be considered a "simple intermediary" but rather a "service provider," implying greater responsibility and potential loss of legal immunity. This shift comes as Meta commits to directly reporting child abuse content to Indian law enforcement, amidst increasing government scrutiny over harmful online content and algorithmic bias.
Meta has agreed to report child safety-related matters, including child sexual abuse cases, to appropriate law enforcement agencies in India, government sources confirmed, emphasising that online safety for children is a "non-negotiable" fundamental principle for social media platforms operating in the country.
The Rajasthan government has issued an order restricting the entry of outsiders into government schools and barring photography and videography without prior permission, a move that follows protests over poor conditions and an announced inspection by the Cockroach Janta Party (CJP).
Private schools failing to provide these facilities risk de-recognition
The enquiry committee pointed out several lapses on the part of the school, noting the relentless bullying faced by the girl, and mentioned that her parents had first raised the issue with teachers in July 2024. The panel observed that the class teacher failed to act on the child's distress, even when the girl approached the teacher five times in the final 45 minutes of her life.
The ban is aimed at curbing the easy availability of pornographic material, particularly to minors, and ensuring that digital content remains within the bounds of decency and the law, they said.
The apex child rights body NCPCR on Monday sought an FIR against Shiv Sena leader Aaditya Thackeray for allegedly using children in his party's campaign to save Mumbai's Aarey forest.
Contradictory statements from officials have surfaced regarding the post mortem examination in the case of two infants who died after being bitten by rats at a government-run hospital in Indore, Madhya Pradesh. The incident has triggered investigations and disciplinary actions.
The study found that the Muslim community contributes a share of 22.75 per cent to the religious minority schools and has the lowest percentages of non-minority population among their minority schools at 20.29 per cent.
The top court said the NCPCR was empowered to conduct enquiry and take action in accordance with law under the Commission for Protection of Child Rights (CPCR) Act, 2005.
The organisation has challenged the action of Uttar Pradesh and Tripura governments directing that students of unrecognised madrassas should be shifted to government schools.
The report indicates that the miscreants forcibly entered her house and physically assaulted her. Shockingly, they also snatched her infant daughter and callously threw her away, the commission said.
The police said the woman works as a pilot with a private airline while her husband is deployed with the ground staff in another private airline.
The National Commission for Protection of Child Rights with the Association of Voluntary Action, also known as Bachpan Bachao Andolan, led the crackdown at Som Distillery on Saturday, a release stated.
Seeking to make changes in the process of granting recognition to madrassas, Uttar Pradesh Minority Welfare Minister Om Prakash Rajbhar has said that two universities will be opened in the state and all madrassas will be affiliated to them.
Stand-up comedian Kunal Kamra has once again found himself at the center of a controversy, this time for his comments about Maharashtra's Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde. Kamra has been a controversial figure for years, with his comedy often targeting politicians and other public figures. This latest incident has led to a backlash from Shinde's supporters, who have vandalized the venue of Kamra's show. Kamra has a history of making controversial remarks, including heckling a TV anchor on a flight and making comments about the judiciary.
The Delhi high court on Thursday asked Congress leader Rahul Gandhi to take down his social media post which revealed the identity of a minor Dalit girl, raped and murdered in 2021, so that the child's identity is protected worldwide.
Police have already arrested the teacher, and the principal of the school.
Police have taken into a custody an autorickshaw driver in connection with the rape of a girl, who was found bleeding on a street in Madhya Pradesh's Ujjain city, and five others are also being questioned in the case, a senior official said on Thursday.
The notice came after a social media influencer sparked a row by posting a video alleging that Bournvita has high sugar content.
The police, however, rubbished Kanoongo's allegation and said officers had cooperated with him, and it was the NCPCR chief who "misbehaved" with them.
A bench of Chief Justice Satish Chandra Sharma and Justice Sachin Datta issued notice to National Commission for Protection of Child Rights (NCOCR) and granted it four weeks to file a counter-affidavit in response to the petition.
The Delhi high court on Thursday directed an 'X' user to apologise to Alt-News co-founder Mohammad Zubair for his "offensive" comment against him on the social media platform.
Taking note of the submissions of the Delhi police, the court asked the probe agency to place the chargesheet filed in the case before it.
The National Commission for Protection of Child Rights demanded Sony Pictures Networks take down an episode of the dance reality show Super Dancer Chapter 3 where judges were allegedly seen asking a minor 'vulgar and sexually explicit' questions regarding his parents on stage.
The then Uttar Pradesh chief secretary, Durga Shankar Mishra, in an order dated June 26 and issued to all the district magistrates of the state, cited a letter from the National Commission for Protection of Child Rights dated June 7.
Indian laws permit an individual to adopt a child irrespective of marital status, the Supreme Court said on Wednesday while asserting that the law recognises there may be situations apart from an "ideal family" having its own biological children.
In her defence, the teacher, Tripti Tyagi, has said that the video has been tampered with in order to stoke tensions.
National Commission for Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR) chief Priyank Kanoongo, who is in Jharkhand with his team to probe the death of two minor girls in Dumka, claimed on Monday that the state government was "trying to obstruct investigations".
The Delhi Police has registered a first information report (FIR) against Twitter for allegedly allowing access to child pornography on the microblogging platform on a complaint by the National Commission for Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR), officials said.
The Delhi Police has sent a notice to micro-blogging site Twitter seeking details about steps taken by it against circulation of child pornographic content on its platform, officials said.
A case was registered by the police after the teen lodged a formal complaint.
NCPCR chairperson Priyank Kanoongo also asked the Directorate General of Civil Aviation to initiate an inquiry in the matter and take necessary action against the airline and its manager.
In the letter to Gandhi, Facebook said, "A post you uploaded through your Instagram account is unlawful under Section 74 of the Juvenile Justice Act, 2015; Section 23 of the POCSO Act, 2012; and Section 288A of the Indian Penal Code. In accordance with NCPCR's Notice, you are requested to remove this post expeditiously."
During the inspection of the child care centre in Raisen (on Saturday), it has come to light that its manager changed the religion of three children and their names are also changed, National Commission for Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR) chairperson Priyank Kanoongo said in a tweet.
Of the four assistant sub-inspectors, three are from Kaliaganj Police Station and one is from Raiganj Police Station.
Sources said his residence and NGO offices located in south Delhi's Vasant Kunj, Adchini and Mehrauli areas are being searched under the provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA).
