Coming down heavily on the kind of content that is streamed online across platforms, Bombay High Court issued a notice to the Ministry of Information & Broadcasting over a plea seeking regulation of the content of ‘web series’ or other programs which are broadcast directly through the internet.

A Public Interest Litigation (PIL) was filed by Adv Divya Gontiya requesting the High Court to issue orders aimed at curbing the deluge of vulgarity, violent scenes and crude language on web series. “The screening of pornographic contents, vulgar gestures and talks are overriding the Indian culture and morality,” Adv Gontiya stressed in her PIL.

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Advocate Shyam Dewani, the petitioner’s lawyer, said, “We cited before the court various examples of uncontrolled vulgarity, obscenity in such shows and sought a direction to concerned authorities to take appropriate action against all such web service providers.”

The court stressed, "Take care that no series, national or international, is directly published on any platform if the websites are found violating provisions of Cinematograph Act, Indecent Representation of Women Prohibition Act 1986 and other similar Acts, then act tough against the guilty,".