The Kerala High Court has refused to categorise the cover of the March issue of Grihalakshmi magazine showing a woman breastfeeding her baby as obscene, noting that shocking one's morals is an elusive concept, and that one man's vulgarity is another
man's lyric. The Bench observed: We do not see, despite our best efforts, obscenity in the picture, nor do we find anything objectionable in the caption, for men. We looked at the picture with the same eyes we look
at the paintings of artists like Raja Ravi Varma. As the beauty lies in the beholder's eye, so does obscenity, perhaps.
Petitioner Felix M.A. had contended that the magazine cover violated provisions of the Protection of Children from
Sexual Offences Act and Rules, as well as Section 45 of the Juvenile Justice Act. He had also alleged violation of provisions of the Indecent Representation of Women (Prohibition) Act, 1986, and an Article of the Constitution of India.
|