New Delhi, August 7: The National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) has raised alarms over child sexual exploitation and objectionable content on Instagram, receiving over 50 complaints in the past week. NHRC member Priyank Kanungo announced that notices have been sent to the Directors General of Police (DGPs) across several states, including Delhi, Punjab, Bihar, and West Bengal.
Kanungo shared on the social media platform ‘X’, stating, “In the last week, we have received more than 50 complaints regarding child sexual exploitation and objectionable material (CSEAM) on Instagram. Based on this information, we have issued notices to police chiefs in Punjab, Delhi, Telangana, Maharashtra, Odisha, West Bengal, Haryana, and Bihar, directing them to register FIRs and take necessary action.”
He further revealed that Meta India has also been warned to improve its practices and comply with Indian laws. Additionally, Kanungo has alerted the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology regarding these issues.
Earlier, in an interview with a news agency, Kanungo mentioned, “Based on complaints about content related to child sexual exploitation on Instagram and other Meta platforms, we have written to the DGPs of six states, urging them to take action against the offenders.”
He explained that child sexual exploitation includes filming such acts and uploading them on social media platforms. These crimes fall into three distinct categories. Social media platforms cannot evade their responsibilities in this matter. We have urged the police to file FIRs.
Kanungo emphasized that the presence of such content on social media reflects the negligence of the platform. The NHRC has also taken note of the BBC case and sent a notice to the Delhi Police. When timely FIRs and investigation reports were not received, we summoned the Delhi Police Commissioner to appear before the commission.
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