The Government has issued new guidelines to the states that an officer not below the rank of DCP will decide on filing of cases under section 66A of IT Act. Our correspondent reports, the guidelines come in the wake of alleged misuse of the section in recent few cases. Communications & IT Minister Kapil Sibal had this morning met civil society activists for Internet freedom who had sought clarifications on the definition of section 66A of the IT Act. According to the new guidelines, police officers at the level of IGP or DCP will have to give prior approval for registration of cases relating to 66 A of the IT Act. The senior officer will also decide whether a complaint needs to be registered under this section or not.

AIR correspondent reports, recently two girls from Palghar, in Maharasthra were arrested citing section 66A of the Act. A Mumbai based NGO had also written to Minister of information and technology Milind Deora, seeking to form an expert committee to clarify the implications of section 66A of IT Act.