Court raps Google, Facebook; orders removal of content within 15 days

NEW DELHI: A trial court in the capital on Monday asked US-based internet majors such as Google, Facebook and forums such as Boardreader to remove ' objectionable content' within 15 days.

"Why are you (Google India) not coming properly with your reply?" Additional Civil Judge Mukesh Kumar of the trial court said, in reference to his order on December 22, asking websites to file a compliance report.

The court had ordered 21 websites which include Google, Facebook, Microsoft, Yahoo and forums such Exbii, Boardreader to remove 'objectionable content' on their websites cited by founder of fatwaonline.org Mufti Aijaz Arshad Qazmi in his civil complaint.
"Don't tell me you have been served only on Friday. After this entire hullabaloo that has been created in the last few months you should have been prepared," the court rapped Google, Microsoft, Yahoo and other websites which said they have not been supplied the evidence material.

Santosh Pandey, counsel for the complainant, told ET: "We have given hard copies of the objectionable content to websites such as Google. They will have to comply within 15 days or face contempt of court."

In submissions to court, Google and Facebook said they had already removed some content. "This step is in accordance with Google's policy of responding to court orders," a Google's spokeswoman in India said.

The websites told court that a compliance report was not filed as they did not possess the material in question. "This was a delaying tactic on their behalf," Pandey told ET. Paper copies of the material in question have been distributed since electronic copying the evidence on CDs would have amounted to violation of the Indian Copyright Act.

The evidence submitted contains 'objectionable' images of Gods and Goddesses, besides some morphed images of Indian politicians.

Besides Google's Orkut, YouTube, Blogspot, Facebook, Microsoft India, Yahoo India and forums such as Zombie Time, Exbii, Boardreader, IMC India, My Lot, Shyni Blog have been made party to the case. The Indian government has given a sanction to prosecute the websites, many of whom, it said did not comply to requests for checking 'objectionable' content last year.