JUSTICE N. ANAND VENKATESH WP No. 25017 of 2025 X Petitioner(s) Vs 1.The Union Of India Rep By The Secretary to Government, Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology

IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT MADRAS

DATED: 22-07-2025

CORAM

THE HONOURABLE MR JUSTICE N. ANAND VENKATESH

WP No. 25017 of 2025

X Petitioner(s)

Vs

1.The Union Of India

Rep By The Secretary to Government,

Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology

6, Lodhi Road, CGO Complex,

Pragati Vihar, Electronics Niketan, New Delhi-110 003

2.The Director General of Police

Dr.Radhakrishnan Salai,

Mylapore, Chennai-600 004

Respondent(s)

[R2 suo motu impleaded vide Court order dated 09.07.2025, made in W.P.No.25017 of 2025]

PRAYER Writ Petition filed under Article 226 of the Constitution of India for issuance of a Writ of Mandamus, directing the respondent herein to act upon the petitioner representation dated 18.6.2025 by taking all appropriate measures, including but not limited to blocking/removing/issuing take down notices/issuing directions to all concerned intermediaries/websites/pornographic platforms/ telecommunication service providers to forthwith and on a continuing basis detect, remove, and block all content depicting the petitioners Non consensual intimate images and videos(NCII)which are being uploaded,shared re-uploaded, transmitted or distributed over the Internet and digital platforms, by employing technological solutions such as Hash Matching Technology, Artificial intelligence-based content recognition tools including Photo DNA, Google content safety Hash checkers, or any other similar tools or mechanisms, so as to ensure the effective removal of such content and to prevent its further dissemination on any Internet or digital platform at present and in the future.

For Petitioner(s):

Mr.Abudu Kumar Rajaratnam Senior Counsel

for Mr.Rajagopal Vasudevan

For

Respondent(s):

Mr.A.Kumaraguru

Senior Panel Counsel for R1

Mr.Hasan Mohamed Jinnah State Public Prosecutor Asst.by:

Mr.K.M.D.Muhilan

Additional Public Prosecutor and

Mr.V.Meganathan Government Advocate

 for R2 

ORDER

When the matter was taken up for hearing today, the learned Senior Counsel appearing on behalf of the petitioner submitted that as on date, the videos/intimate images continues in atleast six video links and the particulars of the same was also placed before this Court.  The learned Senior Counsel further brought to the notice of this Court the press release made by the Home Ministry emphasising the necessity for every city to appoint a Chief Information Security Officer [CISO] to safeguard data and systems against cyber threats. The Ministry has also urged States and city administratives to conduct regular security audits and to ensure protection of data and systems from cyber threats.

2.The learned Senior Panel Counsel appearing on behalf of the

1st respondent submitted that the Home Ministry and Women and

Child Welfare Department are in the process of finalising a Standard Operating Procedure as was suggested by this Court in the earlier order dated 15.07.2025 and that some more time is required to place the same before this Court.

3.Pursuant to the request made by this Court, the learned State Public Prosecutor appeared for the impleaded 2nd respondent.  He submitted that as per the directions given by this Court  on 15.07.2025, the name of the victim girl has been redacted from the FIR and all other documents where her name was shown.  The learned State Public Prosecutor further submitted that the directions issued by the Apex Court in Nipun Saxena and Another .vs. Union of India and Others reported in 2019 2 SCC 703 must be extended to all cases involving sexual offences against women.  He further submitted that for the present, it is only confined to Section 228-A IPC [Section 72 of BNS 2023] and to POCSO offences.  The learned State Public Prosecutor submitted that there are many more serious sexual offences against women which is not covered under the said provision and hence, this Court must consider extending the protection given in  Nipun Saxena to all sexual offences affecting women. The learned State Public Prosecutor further submitted that the Magistrates must insist for production of FIR in a sealed cover in all these cases to ensure that the name and identity of the victim is protected.

4.The submissions made by the learned State Public Prosecutor requires serious consideration and this Court requests the learned Senior Counsel appearing on behalf of the petitioner and the State Public Prosecutor appearing on behalf of the impleaded 2nd

respondent, to assist this Court in this regard.

5.There shall be a further direction to the 1st respondent to ensure that the six video links where the videos/intimate images continue to resurface is effectively blocked and it shall also be ensured that it does not resurface again. This direction shall be complied forthwith.  This Court wants to await for the Standard Operating Procedure to be evolved by the concerned department and once the same is filed before this Court, the same can be acted upon and a judicial order can be passed.

Post this writ petition on 05.08.2025 at 2.15 p.m.

22-07-2025

kp

 

 

  

To

1.The Union Of India

Rep By The Secretary to Government,

Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology

6, Lodhi Road, CGO Complex,

Pragati Vihar, Electronics Niketan, New Delhi-110 003

2.The Director General of Police Dr.Radhakrishnan Salai,

Mylapore, Chennai-600 004

N.ANAND VENKATESH J.

kp

WP No. 25017 of 2025

 

22-07-2025