Case needs to be probed by SIT or CBI as the students belong to high profile families, said plea.
Delhi High Court on Wednesday adjourned to May 18 hearing on a petition seeking an SIT or CBI investigation into the case related to "Bois Locker Room" social media group, in which a bunch of schoolboys allegedly shared objectionable pictures of minor girls.
A division bench of Justice Rajiv Sahai Endlaw and Justice Sangita Dhingra Sehgal deferred the hearing on a public interest litigation (PIL), filed by one Dev Ashish Dubey through advocates Dushyant Tiwari and Omprakash Parihar, which also sought protection to the girls and women who called out the alleged criminal activities in the social media group.
The PIL said that screenshots from an Instagram group called "Bois Locker Room" were shared by social media users, which revealed chats between a group of school students from Class 11 and 12 sharing photos of underage girls, followed by lurid discussions on their bodies.
It said that the group was also allegedly used to share nude/morphed photographs of women.
"The group is run by and has membership of 16 to 18-year-old boys from posh schools in South Delhi, all of whom were involved in the objectification of their classmates and other women, some as young as 14 years of age," the petition said.
"The offence committed by these students through the group is illegal and amounts to violation of various laws of India. Morphing photos and sharing images of people's private parts is a violation of Section 66E of the Information Technology Act, as well as Section 354C of the Indian Penal Code," it added.
The plea claimed that the members of the group have committed several offences, including defamation, threatening women, etc, which are punishable under several sections of the Indian Penal Code (IPC).
It said that the actions of these students show the mindset of the young generation towards girls and added that if it is not stopped and these people are not punished, it may lead to an increase in crime against the women in the future.
The issue needs to be investigated by SIT or CBI as these students belong to high profile families and there is an apprehension that the investigation or enquiry conducted by the local police will be influenced and wrongdoer''s will never be arrested and punished, plea said.