Neha Kapoor v. Ministry of Information and Broadcasting
In the High Court of Delhi
WP(C) 4319/2021
Before Chief Justice S.C. Sharma and Justice S. Prasad
Decided on January 24, 2023

Relevancy of the Case: Petition seeking directions for the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting to set up a dedicated authority to review or censor non-film songs

Statutes and Provisions Involved

• The Information Technology Act, 2000 (Section 2(w), 79, 87)
• The Information Technology (Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media Ethics Code) Rules, 2021 (Rule 2, 3, 4, 7) (“IT Rules, 2021”)

Relevant Facts of the Case

• The petitioner, appearing in person, filed a petition to direct the respondents to constitute a regulatory authority to review/censor non-film songs, their lyrics, and videos. Further, composers must receive certifications for their non-film songs.
• Moreover, the petitioner seeks a direction from the second respondent to set up a body for screening every non-film song and its contents before its release on the Internet. If non-film songs contain vulgar content, the body shall ban it immediately.
• The Central Government, in the exercise of its powers, introduced the IT Rules, 2021 to regulate the nature of the content on OTT platforms.

Opinion of the Bench

• There is a clear regulation to regulate the content available on OTT platforms.
• Moreover, laws like the Cinematograph Act, 1952, and the Cable Television Networks (Regulation) Act, 1995, among others, regulate television content.
• Moreover, the court cannot amend any statute as it will violate the concept of separation of powers.

Final Decision

• The court dismissed the petition.