Monday, 4th May 2020: The Delhi Cyber Cell filed an FIR against the members of a social media group on Instagram for sharing comprisable pictures of women, commenting on their bodies, and using objectionable language against them.
The nefarious activities of the group termed, “Bois locker room” was brought to light when a few screenshots from the group were shared by a nineteen-year-old girl on her Instagram handle.
The screenshots were proof that several such girls had been verbally abused by the young boys, under the locked Instagram account.
The activities were further highlighted by few more girls on social media, which brought it to the attention of others and caused it to become viral. Screenshots and the lewd comments made the boys of the group made were public to generate as much awareness and condemn their wrongdoings.
Soon the matter was taken up for action by legal authorities. The Delhi Commission for Women took Suo moto cognizance of reports about the ‘Bois locker room’ and issued notices to the Social media platform as well as the Delhi Police’s cyber wing for appropriate action.
The investigation further revealed that many of the pictures shared on the group were of minor girls, and the members of the group were themselves were school going, kids. Boys from prominent South Delhi Schools and posh regions of Noida were the main perpetrators behind the heinous discussions and this calls for grave attention.
Additionally, on Monday, 4th May 2020, the administration of a prominent school also filed a complaint against the said group and its member at the Saket Police station. The School authorities requested the police personnel to investigate the matter thoroughly.
On receiving the complaint, the officers with the help of technical surveillance mediums uncovered the names of the group members and the registered mobile number of a boy who had shared one of the pictures on the forum.
While the phone number acquired was switched off; the residential address of the boy was traced, and he was thereafter apprehended by the police personnel. On interrogation, the names and contact details of twenty other boys were gathered and the Police are now probing the matter further.
The principles of the schools, where the boys are admitted were approached, however; three of the four contacted did not vitiate a response. One of the school heads took cognizance of the matter and expressed her disappointment in knowing that some of the members of the said group studied at her school.
She maintained that the school will be organizing multiple workshops to increase sensitivity in their students and to create a space for informed discussion; while also pivoting on the need of increased parental involvement in the lives of their children to control such incidents in the future.
Multiple legal actions are currently underway against the group’s members. Mr. Anyesh Roy, DCP (Cyber wing), informed members of the press that complaints under section 465, 469, 471, 509 of the Indian Penal Code, 1870 and sections 67 and 67(A) of the Information Technology Act, 2000 have been filed for the offenses of forgery, using forged materials as genuine documents, forgery for harming reputation, using lude gesture or acts to outrage the modesty of a woman, and publishing or transmitting obscene material in online form, respectively.
Moreover, in a press statement on the matter, a representative of Facebook (parent organization of Instagram), took cognizance of the incident and maintained that the social media platform has strict rules and community standards for indecent acts and does not allow the sharing of non-consensual intimate imagery.
