Act Against Mobile Users Who Abused Journalists Ravish Kumar, Abhisar Sharma; Crackdown on Obscene Messages: Govt to Telecom Operators
The letter, dated February 19, says carriage of abusive and obscene messages is 'not permitted as per established laws of the country.'
New Delhi, February 21: Taking cognizance of the complaints registered by journalists Ravish Kumar and Abhisar Sharma, the Centre has written to telecom operators seeking immediate action against users who sent abusive, offensive and obscene messages. The mobile network providers were also reminded of a clause in their agreements which prevents them from circulating illicit and explicit content.
The Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology sent a letter to Bharti Airtel, Vodafone Idea, Reliance Jio, Aircel, MTNL, BSNL, Reliance Communications, Reliance Telecom and Tata Teleservices, asking them to comply with the directive and take action within 15 days. The operators were also asked to prevent such messages to be delivered in the future. Barkha Dutt Gets 'Dick Pic' on WhatsApp, Trolled For Sharing Image & Details of Sender on Twitter.
The letter, dated February 19, says carriage of abusive and obscene messages is "not permitted as per established laws of the country."
Here's the Copy of the Letter Dispatched to Telecom Ops:
Several journalists, particularly those critical of the ruling party, have complained over the past couple of years of being abused not only on social media, but also on their personal contact numbers.
"I have been receiving innumerable death threats. The callers hurl the worst form of abuse," Ravish Kumar, NDTV India anchor, said in a recent interview.
The fresh round of abuses were directed following the Pulwama attack. Scribes and intellectuals who appear "soft on Pakistan" have been viciously trolled and abused, apart from being charged as "anti-national" by scores of social media users.
(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Feb 21, 2019 04:45 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).