Madras high court appalled by monstrous men, orders Centre to delete obscene pictures of young lawyer

CHENNAI: “A man can become a monster,” said Justice N Anand Venkatesh of Madras high court, empathising with a young woman lawyer whose dignity was battered after her non-consensual intimate images and videos were circulated on the internet by the man she had trusted.

Her intimate images — recorded and shared without consent by the man who promised to marry her — were uploaded online and distributed across more than 70 websites, including pornographic platforms and social media, leading to severe personal and professional distress for her.

Justice Anand Venkatesh, who was visibly moved during the hearing, said, “What if it happened to my daughter?” He then directed the Union govt to invoke its authority under the Information Technology Act and ensure the removal of all such content from the internet within 48 hours.

“In the considered view of this court, it is the duty of a constitutional court to safeguard the fundamental rights guaranteed to all persons and not limited to just citizens when it comes to gross violations of Article 21. The right to privacy and the right to dignity are guaranteed under Article 21, and the same is being violated every second insofar as the petitioner is concerned,” the judge said.

“Therefore, this court has to exercise its power and ensure that the untold agony faced by the petitioner is at least mitigated by removing those contents as early as possible and to ensure that the petitioner can lead a normal life at least in the future,” he added.
Representing the petitioner, senior advocate Abdu Kumar Rajaratnam brought to the notice of the court a judgment passed by Delhi high court in 2023, setting guidelines to be followed by the authorities to deal with such cases.

“Delhi high court made tremendous efforts in somehow trying to find a solution for this problem faced by young girls across the country,” Justice Anand Venkatesh said.

This lengthy exercise undertaken by Delhi high court must be followed up by the authorities, since it is the duty of the state to safeguard the fundamental rights of its citizens. It is only the Union authorities who are vested with the power, even as per their own stand taken before Delhi high court, to initiate action under the IT Act for the removal of the contents from the internet and social media platforms, he added.

In order to create awareness among the Tamil Nadu police, the court suo motu impleaded the DGP as a party respondent to the petition. The court then adjourned the hearing to July 14 for reporting compliance.