​The Delhi High Court has emphasized the need for regulatory measures concerning content on OTT platforms, particularly addressing the use of vulgar language accessible to younger audiences. In a judgment from March 2023, Justice Swarana Kanta Sharma criticized the language used in the web series “College Romance,” stating it failed the “moral decency community test” and ventured into obscenity. The court directed the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) to enforce stricter application of the Information Technology (Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media Ethics Code) Rules, 2021, and to consider formulating additional laws or guidelines as deemed appropriate. ​

Subsequently, in April 2023, the High Court granted MeitY additional time to report on steps taken to regulate content on social media and OTT platforms. The court underscored the urgency of framing rules and guidelines for content regulation, highlighting concerns over the use of obscene language in public domains accessible to children.

While the High Court has called for regulatory actions, it has left the decision-making to the government. The matter was listed for the next hearing on April 25, 2023.

In a related development, the Supreme Court dismissed a Public Interest Litigation in October 2024 that sought the establishment of a central-level autonomous body to monitor and regulate OTT content. The court deemed the issue a policy matter best addressed by the government.

These developments indicate an ongoing discourse on the regulation of OTT content in India, with the judiciary urging the executive to take appropriate actions while respecting the boundaries of policy-making.​

Sources