Police Stations still registering FIRs under quashed Section of IT Act
There’s an important legal principle that says “ignorance of the law is no excuse.”
But, if law enforcement agencies uses the law that was quashed many years back; what would you say….
Section 66A of the Information Technology Act, 2000 was quashed by the Supreme Court in a landmark judgment in March 2015. But still Police Stations in various states and UTs are still registering FIRs under this scrapped Section 66A. Shockingly, over 1,000 new cases had been filed under the scrapped law.
The Supreme Court expressed shock and displeasure on knowing these facts and on 2nd August, 2021 issued a notice to all states and UTs on registration of cases under Section 66A of the IT Act, which was quashed by the court in 2015. A notice has also been issued to the Registrar-General of all High Courts and responses have been sought within four weeks.
The Supreme Court had earlier also warned of strict action against officials who continue to use the defunct law.
A month back, the central government also told states and UTs not to register cases under the defunct law, and to instruct their respective police forces that any such case should be withdrawn.
Section 66A which was quashed reads as under:
“Any person who sends by any means of a computer resource any information that is grossly offensive or has a menacing character; or any information which he knows to be false, but for the purpose of causing annoyance, inconvenience, danger, obstruction, insult shall be punishable with imprisonment for a term which may extend to three years and with fine.”