Karnataka HC revisits ruling on child pornography case, allows further investigation
Bengaluru: The Karnataka High Court has retracted its July 10 order that had previously ruled that an individual viewing child pornography online could not be prosecuted under Section 67B of the Information Technology Act.
The revision came after the court's single judge bench, led by Justice M Nagaprasanna, on Friday acknowledged an oversight regarding Section 67B(b) of the Act.
Initially, the court had dismissed charges against Inayathulla N, arguing that merely accessing pornographic content did not constitute "publishing or transmitting material," a requirement under Section 67B.
However, upon a recall application filed by the state government, the court realised that its earlier ruling had neglected Section 67B(b).
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This section stipulates that creating, collecting, seeking, browsing, downloading, advertising, promoting, exchanging, or distributing material that depicts children in an obscene or sexually explicit manner falls under the purview of Section 67B.
The court stated, "Section 67B(b) is relevant to this case," and concluded that the initial ruling had erred by not considering this provision, leading to an improper annulment of the proceedings.
The court rejected arguments from the petitioner’s counsel, who claimed that the recall was barred by Section 362 of the CrPC.
Instead, the court maintained that its inherent powers under Section 482 of the CrPC allowed for such a revision.
Emphasising the human fallibility of judges, the court noted, "Judges are also humans, and infallibility is not known to humanity." The court then permitted further investigation into the case and annulled its previous order that had quashed the proceedings.
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B'desh: Lawyer killed in clash between security personnel, followers of Hindu leader
Dhaka, Nov 26: A lawyer was killed on Tuesday during clashes between the security personnel and followers of a Hindu community leader, who was denied bail and sent to jail by a Bangladesh court, according to local media reports.
The victim was identified as Saiful Islam, a 35-year-old assistant public prosecutor and a member of the Chattogram District Bar Association, the Dhaka Tribune newspaper reported.
Citing Dr Nibedita Ghosh, a duty doctor at the emergency department of Chittagong Medical College Hospital, the paper said that six others were injured in the clashes that erupted after Chattogram’s Sixth Metropolitan Magistrate court denied bail to prominent Hindu leader Chinmoy Krishna Das Brahmachari, arrested on sedition charges.
Nazim Uddin Chowdhury, president of the Chittagong Lawyers' Association, said that protesters dragged a lawyer from beneath his chamber and hacked him to death.
As Das was being taken away in a police van, he addressed the crowd through a hand mike, urging them to remain calm.
Around 3 pm, the law enforcement agencies resorted to sound grenades, tear gas shells, and baton charges, dispersing the protesters.
Deputy Commissioner of City Police Liaquat Ali confirmed one death but said they were still investigating the cause.
The Daily Star newspaper reported that at least 10 people, including journalists, were injured during the clash.
