The National Commission for Protection of Child Rights wrote to the Jammu and Kashmir Police on Monday regarding a video shared on Twitter that allegedly violates ‘child rights’, Live Law reported.
The NCPCR has also requested the police to file an FIR in the matter against Twitter India’s managing director Manish Maheshwari and policy manager Shagufta Kamran.
On receiving a complaint about a video posted on the platform, the Commission that is constituted to protect child rights and monitor the effective implementation of Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act and the Juvenile Justice Act, wrote to the Jammu and Kashmir Police asking them to investigate.
According to NCPCR’s letter, the video in question, posted by the Twitter handle @AGH HISTOrY, features a child using a gun and firing bullets in the air while being encouraged and appreciated by a group of 4-5 men.
The complaint received by the NCPCR alleges that the video shows the unlawful “promotion of terrorism using children and allowing terror organisations to use Twitter to facilitate recruitment activities for terrorism in Union Territories of Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh.”
Stating that the Twitter post was tagged with different regions of Jammu and Kashmir where “terrorist activities are prevalent”, the complainant claimed that this indicates that such videos are posted on Twitter with the intention to instigate and encourage people to involve children in terrorist activities and make them child soldiers. The same video provided a link to a Telegram group promoting terrorist organisations, the complaint mentioned.
Since Twitter’s policy permits children aged 13 years and above to use the microblogging site, the Commission expressed concern that such posts will have an adverse effect on children using the platform and also give them access to join such illegal groups on Telegram.
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The Commission requested the police to investigate the allegations and also identify the origin of the video. If, after identification of the origin, it is found that the place falls under the jurisdiction of the J&K police, the Commission requested that an FIR be lodged and the offenders be brought to book.
In addition to this, the NCPCR also noted that since Twitter has lost its status as an ‘intermediary social media platform’ in India, the Commission requests that an FIR be filed against Twitter India’s managing director and policy manager, and strict penal action be taken against the microblogging site for allowing the circulation of such posts on its platform. It further requested that appropriate action be taken against Telegram as well.
Twitter lost its intermediary status on June 16 due to its non-compliance with the new IT Rules 2021 ,which call for the appointment of a resident grievance officer and a chief compliance officer.
Losing this status means losing any kind of legal immunity. If there is any charge against Twitter for alleged unlawful content on its platform, it will now be treated as a ‘publisher’ and not an intermediary and will be liable for punishment under any law, including the Information Technology Act, 2000 as well as the penal laws of the country.
On June 30, the National Commission for Women (NCW) sent a notice to Twitter India regarding the removal of pornographic and obscene content on the platform within a week. The commission also wrote to the Commissioner of Police, Delhi to investigate the matter and take appropriate legal action.
The Ministry of Electronics and Information technology informed the Delhi High Court in an affidavit that the Safe Harbour Immunity under the Information Technology Act, 2000 (IT Act) is no longer available to Twitter India, for not “fully” complying with the new IT Rules 2021.
The Delhi High Court is scheduled to hear the matter on Tuesday.