Still visit Torrent? Jail may be your next destination!

New Delhi: In another disappointment to piracy freaks the Government of India has banned one of the most popular sites, Torrent. Accessing the site may land you in jail for three years along with a possible fine between rupees one to three lakhs.

A new warning on the website reads that accessing a torrent website is a criminal offence and carries punishment.

The exact warning that the webpage displays reads:

This URL has been blocked under the instructions of the Competent Government Authority or in compliance with the orders of a Court of competent jurisdiction. Viewing, downloading, exhibiting or duplicating an illicit copy of the contents under this URL is punishable as an offence under the laws of India, including but not limited to under Sections 63, 63-A, 65 and 65-A of the Copyright Act, 1957 which prescribe imprisonment for 3 years and also fine of upto Rs. 3,00,000/-. Any person aggrieved by any such blocking of this URL may contact at [email protected] who will, within 48 hours, provide you the details of relevant proceedings under which you can approach the relevant High Court or Authority for redressal of your grievance.”

The warning appeared on being redirected while clicking several torrent links.

On numerous occasions in the past a ban had been imposed on websites delivering piracy content but it is the first time when the Department of Telecommunication (DoT) has taken such strict actions against them.

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Approach HC to remove ban from Torrent:

• Any person who is aggrieved by such a ban can approach the relevant High Court or authority.
• The authorities, however, have not banned all the sites by the company. The users are able to access few sites.

No official statements by DoT:

• It is not clear which High Court has issued orders for the blocking of these websites and there is no official word from the DoT or the government on this crackdown on Torrents websites and its users.