Cyber crime investigation procedure in India is in bad shape. We have no cyber crime investigation best practices in India. Further, cyber crimes investigation capabilities in India are also poor.

As the Indian government slept over this crucial issue, a public spirited lawyer filed public interest litigation before the Supreme Court of India. The PIL requested the Supreme Court to ask Indian government to prescribe guidelines for effective investigation of cyber crimes in India.

Reacting positively to such PIL, the Supreme Court of India has issued notices to the Maharashtra Government and the Ministry of Communications and Information Technology to put together their propositions for framing safety guidelines and procedures for cyber crime investigation in India.

Defective cyber crimes investigations in India have resulted in innocent citizens being illegally imprisoned. For instance, Lakshmana Kailash K was put in jail for 50 days due to improper cyber crime investigation by Indian police. Similarly, industrialist Dilipkumar Shah was wrongly accused of identity theft on a social networking site.

Indian police is also arresting very causally any person who posts a politically sensitive statement at social media websites. It is only after the intervention of the Supreme Court that now a senior police officer’s permission is required to arrest a person for posting such statements on social media websites.

This action of Supreme Court of India was very much required as the Indian cyber law has become a piece of legal jargon fit to be repealed. Its main purpose is to silence the political dissident and to be abused by politically connected and powerful people. It is otherwise serving no purpose and need a complete rejuvenation.