Apparently taking exception to the Vice-President Jagdeep Dhankhar and others in the ruling establishment questioning the April 8 Supreme Court judgment on setting a timeline for the President and Governors to give assent to the Bills enacted by the State legislatures, the top court said on Monday that it is being accused of “interfering with executive and legislative functions”.

The apex court was hearing a public interest plea (PIL) seeking direction to the Central government to frame regulations to prohibit the streaming of obscene content on Over The Top (OTT) platforms.

Advertisement

Telling the PIL petitioner that the issue raised by him is a policy matter falling within the domain of the central government, a Bench of Justice B R Gavai and Justice Augustine George Masih remarked, “… We are accused that we are interfering with the executive and legislative functions.”

It is for the Central government to frame regulations in this regard, the Bench told the petitioner.

As advocate Vishnu Shankar Jain, appearing for the petitioners, Uday Mahurkar and others, urged the Bench to hear the matter, the Bench asked him to serve a copy of the petition on the counsel of the central government and posted the matter for hearing in May, 2025.

Assailing the OTT platforms Netflix, Amazon, Alt Balaji and others for streaming of alleged obscene material, the PIL petitioner has sought direction to put in place regulation for curbing them.

The PIL has sought the constitution of an authority/committee headed by retired Supreme Court judge and consisting of eminent experts in the field to oversee and certify for the publishing, streaming of movies/shows/web series on OTT Platforms and social media on the lines of the CBFC (Central Board of Film Certification) until the appropriate legislature enacts a law for regulating such streaming.

It has sought the laying down of the guidelines by setting up a National Content Control Authority to prohibit sexually perverted content on OTT Platforms and various social media platforms, it also asked.

The petition has also sought direction to the Centre “to take appropriate steps to prohibit the streaming of sexually explicit, pornographic, paedophilic, incestuous and other content of similar nature including nudity, X-rated scenes, etc. on OTT Platforms like Netflix, Amazon Prime, Ullu, ALTT, etc. and social media platforms including X (formerly Twitter), Meta (formerly Facebook), Instagram, YouTube, etc.”

If left unchecked, this unregulated spread of obscene material could have severe consequences on societal values, mental health and public safety, says the PIL pointing out that they are compelled to raise this matter due to the rampant availability of pornographic, obscene, and sexually deviant content across digital platforms.

“The unchecked circulation of such material, including child pornography and softcore adult content, has contributed to a rising trend of crimes against women and children while negatively shaping the psychological development of young minds,” the PIL said.

The OTT platforms such as Netflix, Amazon Prime, Ullu, ALTT (formerly, ALT Balaji), etc. continue to stream highly explicit content, some of which violates child rights and safety due to such sexually deviant material, the PIL has stated.

The petitioner has further sought direction to the central government to stop access to the social media- X, Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, etc., as well as OTT platforms until they formulate a mechanism to ensure that all pornographic content is made inaccessible, especially to children and minors in India.