'Had To Use Earphones': Delhi HC Comes Down Heavily On 'College Romance' Web Series

Pic Courtesy: Instagram

New Delhi: The Delhi High Court has ruled that the language used in web series "College Romance," which is streaming on the over-the-top (OTT) platform TVF, is filthy, profane, and vulgar and will deprave and corrupt the brains of young people.

The obscenity of the language used in the episodes, according to single-judge bench of Justice Swarana Kanta Sharma, was so extreme that it was impossible for her to hear in the chamber without shocking others in the vicinity.

"This court notes that this is not the language that nation's youth or otherwise citizens of this country use, and this language cannot be called the frequently spoken language used in our country," the judgment noted.

The judge ruled that TVF, the show's director Simarpreet Singh, and actor Apoorva Arora are liable to face action under Information Technology (IT) Act's Sections 67 (publishing or transmitting any material that is lascivious in electronic form) and 67A (punishment for publishing or transmitting material that contains sexually explicit act).

Justice Sharma was dealing with the petitions filed by TVF, Singh and Arora against order of Additional Sessions Judge and the Additional Chief Metropolitan Magistrate.

The ACMM had directed the police to register FIRs against the petitioner under Sections 292 and 294 of the Indian Penal Code and Section 67 and 67A of the IT Act and the she upheld the ACMM's order.

"The use of obscene words and foul language in social media platforms have to be regulated when it crosses a particular line, as it can be a true threat to impressionable minds and cannot receive constitutional protection of free speech," Justice Swarana Kanta Sharma said in a 41-page judgement.

The judge said while in schools, offices etc., students and workers can be punished for using profane speech, the authorities also need to regulate "profanity which enters into the domain of indecent speech by a broadcast medium."

The high court's verdict came while upholding an order of the Additional Chief Metropolitan Magistrate (ACMM) asking the Delhi Police to register an FIR against TVF, the show's director Simarpreet Singh and actor Apoorva Arora under the Information Technology Act.

It clarified that the direction to register FIR does not include a direction to arrest any of the accused or petitioner. The court said the challenge faced by India, as faced by many other countries, for enacting appropriate law, guidelines and rules to regulate the content on social media and on OTT platforms needs urgent attention.

This court draws the attention of the Ministry of Information and Technology to the situations which are fast emerging on a daily basis and to take steps for enforcing stricter application of its rules qua the intermediaries as notified in Information Technology (Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media Ethics Code) Rules, 2021 and make any laws or rules as deemed appropriate in its wisdom, in light of the observations made in this judgment, it said.

After watching a few episodes of the series, the court found excessive use of swear words', profane language' and vulgar expletives' were there and the judge had to watch the episodes with the aid of earphones, in the chamber, as the profanity of language was such that it could not have been heard without shocking or alarming the people around and keeping in mind the decorum of language maintained by a common prudent man.

"Most certainly, this court notes that this is not the language that nation's youth or otherwise citizens of this country use, and this language cannot be called the frequently spoken language used in our country, it said.

The court said if the web series using such obscene and abusive words and foul language is allowed to be aired without setting any boundaries, it will fail to send message that a certain standard of decency and civility is expected from electronic media.

As this court has observed, the impressionable minds consume what they have been served and they will serve the same on the streets, in schools, in their houses and all other places resulting in absence of civilized society. Societal standards fall if no effort is made to ensure that they are upheld. The petty incivilities will certainly lead to declining standard of civility and the fallen language standards will lead to moral depravity, it said.

Justice Sharma said there is no doubt that the courts cannot do moral policing nor do the courts ever want to.

The jurisprudence of judicial restraint, however, cannot remain separate from the civil social sciences and the orders and judgments in different cases, different situations and situations arising for the first time cannot be subject to straight jacket formula and be condemned as moral policing, it said.

The court said the use of profanity is also a moral issue and society has to deal with it by its own means, too.

The court said the Indian cinema which has now also extended to such web series and other short films at social media and OTT platforms, undoubtedly is not the same as was in the old films where the romance between two persons was symbolically shown by showing two birds or flowers meeting on the screen.

It said even if a judgment triggers a debate in society about an issue at the heart of a societal problem, it will serve the ends of justice, that is, the ultimate goal of a judge.