Play Safe on Orkut: Inapproprite Comments Could Land You in Jail

Watch what you post on Orkut. Your comments on your favourite communities, if considered inappropriate, could land you in jail. Rahul Krishnakumar Vaid, a Gurgaon lad, learnt it the hard way when he was arrested for posting obscene comments about Sonia Gandhi on the community ‘I hate Sonia Gandhi’.

Vaid was arrested under section 292 of the Indian Penal Code and section 67 of the Information Technology act. He could be jailed for five years and fined one lakh rupees.

Orkut addicts find it amusing because communities on the site are replete with comments that go much beyond obscene. Check out ‘I hate Aishwarya Rai’, ‘I hate Ekta Kapoor’, ‘I hate Himesh Reshammiya’, and the list goes on.

DCP Rajan Bhagat, PRO Delhi Police, says that obscenity is well defined in the law and making derogatory remarks against anyone can land the accused in jail, that is if the person complains. So what all can land you in jail, courtesy your posts on Orkut? If you hack into a person’s profile and meddle with it, for one.

A major pain these days is a certain person from Andhra Pradesh who is adding communities that celebrate South Indian movie stars and politicians. Don’t be surprised if you log onto Orkut and find “I love Nisha Kothari” community on your profile.

There are even scraps that read, “Unlock anyone’s album. Learn it here”. Advocate Deepak Kohli of Tiz Hazari court says that although cyber laws are very strong, it becomes tough to trace the accused unless the site cooperates and even that might not solve the purpose because people have so many identities. “The punishment is well defined in the law and if people come forward and complain, the accused will be punished,” he says.

© HT Media