Sex determination is banned in India, even its advertisement is punishable by law. On Tuesday, (September 5) petitioner Sabu Mathew George’s counsel, senior advocate Sanjay Parekh, informed the Supreme Court that despite the court order and the existence of a nodal agency to monitor such ads on the internet and otherwise, advertisements can still be found on a search on Google and YouTube.
The PIL is regarding advertisements in violation of the legal provisions contained in the Pre-conception and Pre-natal Diagnostic Techniques (Prohibition of Sex Selection) Act, 1994.
The court has sought petitioner Mathew’s suggestions on how the Centre’s nodal agency—set up after the top court’s order—can be effective in preventing these illegal advertisements from being published.
The bench of Chief Justice Dipak Misra and Justices Amitava Roy and AM Khanwilkar heard arguments from both sides on Tuesday.
The Centre’s counsel, Solicitor General Ranjit Kumar, said that seven complaints had been received between February 18 and 26. He said they had been forwarded to the respective websites for action. He said it wasn’t possible for government officials to monitor such a vast network.
On the other hand, the counsel for Microsoft said it had not received any complaint so far, while Google said all objectionable materials that were noticed had been removed.
The matter has been listed for November 24.
—India Legal Bureau