By Suryatapa Bhattacharya And Aditi Malhotra
NEW DELHI-- Google Inc. said Thursday that Indian
law-enforcement agencies asked the company to block links on its
YouTube video-sharing site that led to copies of a documentary
about a 2012 gang rape and murder in Delhi.
Indian police sought and received a court order earlier this
week banning broadcast of the film "India's Daughter," which tells
the story of the brutal attack that galvanized public opinion in
India and tarnished the nation's image abroad.
The court said comments by one of the convicted rapists, Mukesh
Singh, who was interviewed in the documentary could cause "huge
public outcry." The court order also banned publication of Mr.
Singh's comments.
The British Broadcasting Corp. showed the film Wednesday evening
in the U.K. Internet users then uploaded the documentary on
YouTube, where Indian viewers were able to see it early
Thursday.
Gaurav Bhaskar, a Google spokesman in India, said that by later
Thursday the company had "complied with the court order and blocked
access to those web links" specified by law-enforcement
authorities.
Clicking on some YouTube links resulted in a message reading:
"This content is not available on this country domain due to a
court order. Sorry about that." Other links to the documentary
still appeared to work, however.
Speaking to reporters Thursday, Home Minister Rajnath Singh said
"all options are open" to prevent broadcast of the film.
The BBC said the film was made with the "full support and
cooperation" of the rape victim's family. A spokesman said it
"handles the issue responsibly and we are confident the program
fully complies with our editorial guidelines."
Government efforts to keep the documentary, made by a British
filmmaker, from being seen have sparked vigorous debate in
India.
On Wednesday, Mr. Singh told Parliament the government wouldn't
"allow any attempt by any individual, group or organization to
leverage such an unfortunate incident for commercial benefits."
Anu Aga, a member of Parliament, said in the upper house
Wednesday the documentary reflected the view that women are often
held responsible for provoking men with their choice of
clothing.
"If there is a rape, blame is put on the woman," she said. "We
have to confront the issue that men in India do not respect women
in India."
The father of the victim told The Wall Street Journal on
Thursday that he felt the documentary had succeeded in holding up a
mirror to society's attitude toward women. "It reflects upon our
society what men think of our daughters, their views on women and
rape," he said.
Still, he said, he supported the government's restrictions on
the film. "The government must have put some thought to it," he
said.
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