Three-year jail for indecent depiction of women

Second offence may attract imprisonment up to seven years

October 12, 2012 02:51 am | Updated October 18, 2016 02:16 pm IST - NEW DELHI

The Union Cabinet on Thursday cleared a proposal to broaden the scope of the Indecent Representation of Women (Prohibition) Act, 1986, and make the punishment harsher.

The penalty may be enhanced to a maximum of three years of imprisonment and a fine between Rs. 50, 000 and Rs. 1 lakh for the first conviction.

An offender convicted for the second time can be awarded a jail sentence of not less than two years, which may be extended up to seven years, and asked to pay a fine between Rs. 1 lakh and Rs. 5 lakh.

The law will cover audio-visual media and material in electronic form. Police officers not below the rank of inspectors are authorised to carry out search and seizure, in addition to State and Central government officers.

A senior Women and Child Development Ministry official said: “We hope the stricter provisions will help in addressing the problem of increased objectification of women and cover the newer forms of communication including the Internet, multimedia messaging etc., beyond the print and audio-visual media.’’

A note issued by the Ministry said the law was enacted with the aim of prohibiting indecent representation of women in advertisements and publications.

However, since the existing legislation lacked the focus necessary to protect women from exploitation, particularly from the increasing use of advanced technology and communication devices in everyday life, it was felt that the Act needed amendment.

0 / 0
Sign in to unlock member-only benefits!
  • Access 10 free stories every month
  • Save stories to read later
  • Access to comment on every story
  • Sign-up/manage your newsletter subscriptions with a single click
  • Get notified by email for early access to discounts & offers on our products
Sign in

Comments

Comments have to be in English, and in full sentences. They cannot be abusive or personal. Please abide by our community guidelines for posting your comments.

We have migrated to a new commenting platform. If you are already a registered user of The Hindu and logged in, you may continue to engage with our articles. If you do not have an account please register and login to post comments. Users can access their older comments by logging into their accounts on Vuukle.