A criminal case under the Indecent Representation of Women Act has been filed against ‘Grihalakshmi’ magazine for publishing the picture of a breastfeeding woman in the cover page of its latest edition.
The cover page of the Malayalam magazine shows a woman breastfeeding a baby, with the caption “Mothers tell Kerala :- Don’t stare, we want to breastfeed”. From the cover page it appears that the magazine edition features a campaign for the right to breastfeed in public without shame and unwanted male attention. The picture has garnered a lot of attention, and has been reported even in international media.
The criminal complaint has been filed in the Court of Chief Judicial Magistrate, Kollam, by Advocate Vinod Mathew Wilson. It is alleged in the complaint that the picture is lascivious in nature, appealing to prurient interests and tends to degrade the dignity of womanhood. Therefore, the complaint alleges commission of offences punishable under Sections 3 and 4 of the Indecent Representation of Women(Prohibition) Act, 1986.
According to Section 2(c) of the Act,
Section 3 prohibits advertisement with indecent representation of women and Section 4 prohibits publication of books with indecent representation. The offence is punishable with a maximum punishment of imprisonment up to two years and fine up to two thousand rupees for first time offence.
The Managing Director of Mathrubhoomi publications P.V Gangadharan, the Managing Editor of Grihalakshmi P.V Chandran, the Editor-in-charge M.P Gopinath are made accused in the complaint, apart from Gilu Joseph, the model who figured in the cover picture.
Courtesy : LIVELAW NEWS NETWORK