Women are a minuscule minority of those arrested under the IT Act.
The Supreme Court on Friday directed the Maharashtra government to explain the circumstances under which its police arrested two girls from Palghar in Thane district for posting comments on Facebook on the November 18 shutdown for Shiv Sena supremo Bal Thackeray's funeral.
Nearly 70 per cent of urban users access the internet for social networking in India.
The Palghar Judicial Magistrate on Thursday accepted the closure report filed by the police in connection to the Facebook case.
The police on Tuesday dropped all charges against two girls from Palghar whose arrest over a Facebook post criticising shutdown in Mumbai during Shiv Sena chief Bal Thackeray's funeral last month had sparked an uproar.
A Facebook post resulted in the arrest of two young girls. Rediff.com's A Ganesh Nadar met them and others present there to find out what actually happened.
Eminent lawyer Abha Singh on Tuesday filed a complaint before Maharashtra State Commission for Women, alleging human rights violation in the arrest of two girls who wrote comments on Facebook in regard to shutdown in the city for the funeral of Shiv Sena Chief Bal Thackeray.
Nine suspected Shiv Sena workers have been arrested for allegedly vandalising a clinic in Thane district after the niece of the owner posted a comment on Facebook questioning the shutdown in the city for Shiv Sena patriarch Bal Thackeray's funeral. Two girls -- Shaheen Dhada and Renu -- were arrested over their post opposing the Mumbai shutdown but were granted bail after they furnished personal bonds, said the police.
Nationalist Congress Party on Thursday came to the defence of Maharashtra Home Minister R R Patil, saying that he could not be blamed for the arrest of two girls by the Palghar police over a Facebook comment.
The Supreme Court on Wednesday directed no citizen can be prosecuted under Section 66A of the Information Technology Act, 2000, which it had scrapped way back in 2015.
Calling a "matter of serious concern" the registration of FIRs under Section 66A of the Information Technology Act it had scrapped in 2015, The Supreme Court on Tuesday asked the chief secretaries of states concerned to take back the cases within three weeks.
He may have been in the news for all the wrong reasons but the greater irony is that Muslim stand-up comic Munawar Faruqui's best jokes ridicule Muslims, and are wolfed down by Muslims, who form the majority of his 177,000 Instagram followers, notes Jyoti Punwani.
Extreme political views and decent humour in the cyber world cannot be prohibited, Centre told the Supreme Court on Tuesday while making out a case for blocking outrageous and offensive contents hurting religious sentiments.
'The cases have not reduced because the prosecution has found some other way to stop people from using their right to free speech.'
When a university allows a small group of students to prevent classes being held; when the professor selected to hold those classes gives up and goes back to his hometown; what conclusion can be drawn, asks Jyoti Punwani.
The Supreme Court on Monday termed as 'amazing' and 'shocking' that people are still being booked under the Section 66A of the Information Technology Act, which was scrapped by the apex court verdict in 2015.
One would not think that a Facebook status or a tweet could land you in jail, at least not in India -- the world's largest democracy. However, the reality is a lot more brutal in India, which has a shameful history of locking up its citizens for dissenting viewpoints. According to Mint, at least 50 people have been arrested through 2017 and 2018 for posts on social media. Syed Firdaus Ashraf/Rediff.com presents some of the most prominent cases.
'Victims' who bore the brunt of the controversial section 66A of Information Technology Act for posting allegedly "offensive" content online heaved a sigh of relief as the Supreme Court on Tuesday, in its landmark verdict, scrapped the provision dubbing it "unconstitutional".
The Supreme Court on Friday sought explanation from the Uttar Pradesh police on the circumstances leading to the arrest of a boy for allegedly posting on Facebook objectionable comments against senior Samajwadi Party leader Azam Khan.
Before the Supreme Court struck down Sec 66A of the IT Act, it was used with devastating effect against anyone posting critical comments online.
In what is the first ever verdict in India on the right to freedom of speech on the Internet, the Supreme Court has scrapped Section 66 A of the IT Act. Justices J Chelameswar and Rohinton F Nariman said that 66 A cannot be properly implemented as governments come and go.
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