For those of you who missed the funniest reactions on social media to the ban on pornography in India, scroll down to see 6 of the best ones. It’s true that DoT (Department of Telecommunications) has now asked internet providers to stop blocking the list of 857 sites they were quietly asked to disable access to less than a week ago.
But certain terms and conditions apply, and it is these that may be preventing ISPs (internet service providers) from complying with the lift on the porn ban. We still can’t access most of the websites which were on the list through two broadband services including Airtel. This is because the government has slyly passed the responsibility to them.
So now ISPs can unblock adult sites only as long as they don’t feature child pornography, or they risk being prosecuted under Section 79(3)(b). Does DoT expect them to go through all the videos on the 857 websites and disable those hosting such illegal content?
A service provider we spoke to claim they can’t offer access to porn sites they were directed to block until they can confirm that they’re clean of explicit content involving underage participants. And the process could take several weeks to get completed.
The Modi government has already come under heavy criticism for the various bans it has implemented since it came into power. Its beef with porn on the worldwide web and its attempt to prohibit it clearly shows that it does not understand the internet.
More than being so smugly unaware of how the web works, the authorities forgot that India is still a democracy. Former Union Minister Milind Deora accused the government of being a step closer to the Talibanization of the nation and hijacking personal freedom.
As you can see, people reacted strongly to the ban through Facebook, Twitter, Reddit and other platforms. The majority have spoken out against it, while a minor number who’ve forgotten we’re the land of the Kamasutra, are all for the prohibition.
There are over 40 million porn websites, with most of them being hosted outside India. Denying access to domains on such a large scale can slow down data speeds. What’s more, taking down one URL can’t prevent mirror sites from popping up on the web.
The widespread criticism from all quarters forced Communications and IT Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad to call a meeting attended by Additional Solicitor General Pinky Anand and IT Secretary RS Sharma. DoT’s discreet order was revoked immediately after this.
Prasad told PTI that the Center supports freedom of communication on the internet, and ISPs would immediately be ordered to unblock the sites. He said the pornography ban simply obeyed a Supreme Court ruling (headed by Chief Justice RM Lodha) from 2014.
Still allowed to visit or have they locked the gates? Asking for a friend. #PornBan pic.twitter.com/1a5Bdk6cIq
— Papa CJ (@PapaCJ) August 2, 2015
Prasad didn’t mention why Dot conveniently forgot about the Supreme Court’s (led by Chief Justice HL Dattu) latest refusal to allow access to porn websites to be disabled, on the grounds of right to personal liberty. Well, the government could do worse.
Earlier this year, there were reports that the ruling party wanted to have Facebook, Google and Twitter host their content on servers located in India. The intention is to get these portals under the ambit of our authorities for security purposes.
For 1 day of this #pornban I heard epic stories of male bonding. Guys who offering access to TB's of porn on Cloud coz "Tu mera bhai hai."
— Aditi Mittal (@awryaditi) August 5, 2015
Meanwhile, from telling others to vote wisely next time to claiming the government bows to certain religious factions, those who may not be keen porn viewers but are aware of our rights as citizens, are making themselves heard on social media.