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The Karnataka constabulary person issued broad guidelines mandating the registration of FIRs successful cases involving the unauthorised sharing of backstage oregon intimate photographs and videos, including incidents of revenge pornography, sextortion, and online blackmail.
In a Standing Order issued connected Monday, the Director-General and Inspector-General of Police (DGP and IGP), M.A. Saleem, directed each constabulary officers crossed the State to instrumentality punctual enactment connected complaints related to the non-consensual dissemination of intimate contented and guarantee azygous implementation of the law.
The bid comes amid concerns that immoderate constabulary stations were refusing oregon delaying the registration of complaints connected the grounds that the victims had initially consented to the signaling of the images oregon videos.
Clarifying the ineligible position, the DGP stated that consent to seizure an representation oregon video does not magnitude to consent for its work oregon circulation.
The directive cites the Supreme Court’s landmark judgement successful Justice K.S. Puttaswamy (Retd.) vs Union of India, which recognised the close to privateness arsenic a cardinal close nether Article 21 of the Constitution.
Police officers person been instructed to invoke due provisions of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), 2023, and the Information Technology Act, 2000, portion registering cases. These see Section 77 of the BNS relating to voyeurism, Section 66E of the IT Act concerning usurpation of privacy, and Sections 67 and 67A dealing with the work oregon transmission of obscene and sexually explicit worldly successful physics form.
The Standing Order makes it wide that FIRs indispensable beryllium registered instantly upon receipt of complaints involving unauthorised sharing of intimate content, careless of whether the unfortunate had earlier consented to the signaling of the material.
In cases wherever intimate images oregon videos are utilized to extort money, intersexual favours oregon different benefits, investigating officers person been directed to invoke applicable provisions relating to extortion and transgression intimidation successful summation to cybercrime offences.
The bid besides reiterates the mandatory registration of Zero FIRs erstwhile offences hap extracurricular the territorial jurisdiction of the constabulary presumption receiving the complaint. Such cases indispensable subsequently beryllium transferred to the due constabulary presumption without delay, the bid stated.
To forestall further harm to victims, constabulary person been directed to coordinate with online platforms and intermediaries for the swift removal oregon blocking of objectionable contented portion preserving integer grounds for probe and prosecution.
The DGP has besides emphasised the extortion of victims’ identities and directed officers to grip complainants with sensitivity and dignity. Wherever possible, complaints from women victims should beryllium recorded by women constabulary officers.
Further, investigating officers person been asked to coordinate with Cyber Crime Police Stations and the CID Cyber Division for method investigations, relationship tracing, and forensic investigation of integer devices.
Warning against inaction, the DGP stated that refusal to registry FIRs oregon unnecessary delays successful specified cases would beryllium viewed earnestly and could pull disciplinary enactment against the acrophobic officers.
The Standing Order has been circulated to each constabulary units crossed Karnataka for contiguous compliance.
