Delhi HC restrains ‘YouTube’ channels from sharing fake news on Aaradhya Bachchan
The Delhi High Court on Thursday restrained several ‘YouTube’ channels from spreading or continuing to broadcast videos that make false claims regarding Aishwarya Rai and Abhishek Bachchan’s daughter Aaradhya Bachchan.
Aaradhya (11), the granddaughter of Amitabh Bachchan, sought an injunction against such reporting by the media about her as she is a minor. While issuing notice on the plea, Justice C Hari Shankar restrained the ‘YouTube’ channels and their affiliates from spreading or continuing to broadcast the videos mentioned in the complaint.
“Defendants 1-9 are also restrained from creating, publishing, uploading or disseminating any videos that are identical or similar in content to the videos forming the subject matter of the aforesaid URLs. It is clarified that this would encompass all videos that deal with the physical condition of the plaintiff. In other words, defendants are completely restrained from disseminating on any platform available across the Internet relating to the mental or physical health of the plaintiff,” the court said.
It is to be noted that ‘Google LLC’ and the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (Grievance Cell) were also made parties in the case and the former was directed to reveal the identity of the defendants to the Bachchans and immediately take steps to deactivate the URLs mentioned in the complaint.
“On the plaintiff bringing to their notice any other video clip uploaded on its platform dealing with the physical health and well-being of the plaintiff, Google will take immediate steps to take those down,” the judge said.
The Centre was also ordered by the court to prohibit access to all of the content as well as to any other videos or clips with content that is comparable. Further directions were given to Google to clarify its policy and show compliance with the Information Technology (Intermediary Guidelines for Digital Media Ethics) Rules to demonstrate that it has changed its policy to comply with the amendment that was made.
