The Supreme Court on Thursday directed tech giants like Google, Yahoo and Microsoft to comply with Indian laws and constitute an in-house expert panel that can identify and block all online advertisements for sex determination tests in India.
The apex court bench, headed by Justice Dipak Misra, has directed them to identify and block keywords indicative of sex determination. The court observed that the companies were not adhering to the Indian law and still allowing advertisements promoting sex determination tests.
"Google India, Yahoo India, and Microsoft India need to be more responsive. Earlier also, there were several examples of foreign jurisdictions banning similar content, so why not in India? They have not shown a proper attitude, by claiming that even content on illegal issues such as murder, rape cannot be blocked," the apex court bench said.
The tech giants responded to the court order saying that they were adhering to all Indian laws prohibiting sex determination in the country.
The central government has also been ordered to constitute a nodal agency within a week to keep a check on the three tech giants and take strict measures to remove such advertisements.
The Supreme Court order was based on a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) filed in 2008 by Sabu Mathew George. The PIL stated that several foreign websites were soliciting couples to undergo sex determination tests that are banned in India.
The next hearing on the matter is scheduled on April 11, according to local media reports.
