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What is the story about?
The Supreme Court of India on Thursday indicated that users may soon have to verify their age via Aadhaar or PAN before accessing certain categories of online content, including material considered “obscene”, derogatory towards persons with disabilities, or potentially “anti-national”.
The observations were made by a bench of Justices Surya Kant and Joymalya Bagchi during ongoing hearings on digital-content regulation.
The bench suggested that age-verification could accompany or replace standard warnings. As Indian Express quoted Justice Bagchi saying: “The warning can be for a few seconds… then perhaps ask for your Aadhaar card, etc., so that your age can be verified and then the programme starts.”
The notion is that children might not unintentionally view adult or explicit content if there is a brief notice and an age check is required, according to Bar and Bench.
Origin of the case
The matter stems from petitions filed by content creators, including Ranveer Allahbadia (BeerBiceps), challenging FIRs over allegedly offensive remarks made on a digital show.
A disability-rights organisation, Cure SMA India Foundation, also petitioned the court, alleging that some comments mocked or demeaned persons with disabilities.
Push for an autonomous regulator
The Supreme Court said that existing “self-styled” industry-led regulatory bodies are insufficient and stressed the need for an independent, autonomous authority to oversee online and social-media content.
The court asked the Union government to prepare a draft regulatory framework and place it in the public domain for consultation.
As reported by Indian Express and ET, the framework may include:
Concerns around 'anti-national' and derogatory content
The court questioned whether ambiguous references to “anti-national” behaviour can serve as grounds for sweeping restrictions.
Indian Express reported that the bench stressed the need to protect legitimate criticism and academic discussion while still permitting reasonable limitations under Article 19(2) of the Constitution.
It also said that the dignity of people with disabilities should be protected like that of the SC/ST (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989, which forbids discriminatory treatment of scheduled castes and tribes. Tushar Mehta, the Solicitor General, agreed that amusement should not compromise someone's dignity.
The government has been directed to file its proposed framework within four weeks. The matter will next be heard after the draft is placed in the public domain.
The observations were made by a bench of Justices Surya Kant and Joymalya Bagchi during ongoing hearings on digital-content regulation.
The bench suggested that age-verification could accompany or replace standard warnings. As Indian Express quoted Justice Bagchi saying: “The warning can be for a few seconds… then perhaps ask for your Aadhaar card, etc., so that your age can be verified and then the programme starts.”
The notion is that children might not unintentionally view adult or explicit content if there is a brief notice and an age check is required, according to Bar and Bench.
Origin of the case
The matter stems from petitions filed by content creators, including Ranveer Allahbadia (BeerBiceps), challenging FIRs over allegedly offensive remarks made on a digital show.
A disability-rights organisation, Cure SMA India Foundation, also petitioned the court, alleging that some comments mocked or demeaned persons with disabilities.
Push for an autonomous regulator
The Supreme Court said that existing “self-styled” industry-led regulatory bodies are insufficient and stressed the need for an independent, autonomous authority to oversee online and social-media content.
The court asked the Union government to prepare a draft regulatory framework and place it in the public domain for consultation.
As reported by Indian Express and ET, the framework may include:
- Age-verification for adult or obscene content via Aadhaar or PAN
- A new, stricter law to penalise content that mocks or demeans persons with disabilities
- Clear definitions of what qualifies as “anti-national” content to prevent misuse
- An autonomous digital-content regulator for oversight during the interim
Concerns around 'anti-national' and derogatory content
The court questioned whether ambiguous references to “anti-national” behaviour can serve as grounds for sweeping restrictions.
It also said that the dignity of people with disabilities should be protected like that of the SC/ST (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989, which forbids discriminatory treatment of scheduled castes and tribes. Tushar Mehta, the Solicitor General, agreed that amusement should not compromise someone's dignity.
The government has been directed to file its proposed framework within four weeks. The matter will next be heard after the draft is placed in the public domain.
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