- What is IRWA?
- Why do we need to amend it?
- Proposed amendments
- Critiques of IRWA amendment
- Constitutional angle:
What is IRWA?
- Indecent Representation of Women (Prohibition) Act, (IRWA) was enacted 1980.
- Why? Ans. To prohibiting the indecent representation of women through advertisement, publication, writing, and painting.
Why do we need to amend it?
- Because the existing Act, in its present form, covers the print media.
- But, over the years, technological revolution has resulted in the development of newer forms of communication = Internet, youtube, SMS, MMS, Cable TV, Direct to Home (DTH) TV, etc.
- Therefore, we need to widen the scope of the law so as to cover these new forms of media.
- + need to increase the punishment.
Proposed amendments
In Oct 2012, the Union Cabinet approved following Amendments in IRWA 1986
- law will cover the audio-visual media and material in electronic form.
- Penalties to be enhanced
| Maximum jail | Fines | |
|---|---|---|
| First conviction | 3 years | 50k to 1 lakh |
| Repeat offender | 7 years | 1 lakh to 5 lakhs |
- Police officers not below the rank of Inspectors will be authorized to carry out search and seizure.
Critiques of IRWA amendment
The move has not gone down well with the television, online and advertising industries. Executives fear the law may be abused by the government to censor content.
- the issues the amendments deal with, are already covered under in the IT Act and they have even stronger punishments than the ones given in IRWA Act.
- There should be guidelines or parameters that define “indecent”, else the amendments can, at best, be described as “blurry”. What constitutes “indecent” is subjective. Most worrying is that what constitutes indecent will be left to a police inspector to decide.
- Indecent representation of any gender across any form of media is not acceptable- Whether it is male, female or child. Hence the name of the Act should be Indecent Representation of (Prohibition) Act, (IRA) instead of Indecent Representation of Women (Prohibition) Act.
Constitutional angle:
- Fundamental duty (Art 51): It should be duty of every citizen of Inida to renounce practices derogatory to the dignity of women.
- National Commission for Women (NCW; a Statutory body) reviews the Constitutional and Legal safeguards for women.
Ref:
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HELLO SIR, COULD YOU PLEASE TELL WHETEHR IGNOU NOTES(MA OR BA)COVER THINKERS- WILSON, SIMON etc. IF YES THEN UNDER WHICH BOOKLET NUMBER?
try in Administrative theory EPA-01 block
As far as my knowledge goes, the IRWA was enacted in 1986 (not 1980) i guess??
yaa, u r rite its of 1986..
Representing the image of women in writing also covered in this act?
Means if someone writes a story in which a vamp is playing antics so the writer can be convicted by this law?
spelling mistake- Inida instead of India in constitutional angle……
Thanks for explaining IRWA
IRWA ACT is it 1986 or 1980? you have written both
I hope it would help in keeping check on vulgarism in TV shows,advertisements and movies so that everyone watch these with family
sir,
thanks for your valuable contribution for IAS aspirants.
this year I was appeard in the ias mains exam.my optional sub is pub. ad. and georgaphy.
as you know ,no gap between my optional exams and i do mistake because of this. How should manage this?
plz suggest me.
hi what do u feel about pub add paper 1?
can u sshare ur experience, and that of ur friends who appeared this year
Sir, can u write an article on the functions, role, powers of National Commission for Women, and its role that it could have played in the recent Delhi gangrape (or for that matter in wider perspective of protection of women)?
Thank You.