VERDICTUM.IN
NEUTRAL CITATION NO. 2023/DHC/001676
precisely and/or prescribing or representing sexual activity in
direct and detailed way”. Expression “sexual activity” is
defined in black’s law dictionary as “physically sexual
activity or both persons engaged in sexual relations”.
26.
In Ekta Kapoor v. State of M.P. I.L.R (2020) M.P. 2837,
Madhya Pradesh High Court has held as under:
“54. The aforesaid concept is importable while interpreting
Section 67 of Information Technology Act, 2000. In the
aforesaid provision, there are no such words that the person
who publishes or transmits or caused to be published or
transmitted in the electronic form any lascivious material or
such material which appeals to prurient interest was having or
supposed to be having the knowledge about the content of the
material. Thus, even if the content is not known and a person
publishes or transmits or caused to do so even without
knowledge, provisions of Section 67 of Information
Technology Act, 2000, would be attracted. Presumption of
knowledge on the part of petitioner shall have to be assumed
and onus will be upon the petitioner to rebut such
presumption by leading evidence”.
II.
27.
Community Standard Test
In the case at hand, the argument of the complainant, based on
the community standard test, is that if the content of the web series is
tested in light of the said test, it would certainly deprave and corrupt
persons who watch such content. His other plea is that the content
also tends to morally corrupt the viewers and depicts what does not
happen in colleges and universities. The argument of the complainant
was countered by the learned senior counsel for petitioners who
stated that the content of the web series does not breach any existing
CRL.M.C. 2214/2020 & connected matters
Page 15 of 41