Describing the Internet as the marketplace of ideas, creative expression and information, the Supreme Court has ruled that children have a fundamental right to access and use the Internet and protecting them from online harm cannot justify denial of this right to them.A Bench of Justice JB Pardiwala and Justice K Vinod Chandran said, “The safety of our children and their freedom are not at odds with each other. Our children are entitled to both.”“We have no hesitation in saying that the right to access and use the Internet is a fundamental right of every individual under Article 21 (right to life and liberty) read with Article 19(1)(a) (right to freedom of speech and expression) of the Constitution.“Our children, irrespective of their age, enjoy the same rights, and to deny the same altogether would be as absurd as saying children below a certain age do not have a conscience worth protecting or a freedom of speech worth expressing,” it said in its October 15 verdict.Writing the judgment for the Bench, Justice Pardiala said, “The Internet is, without a doubt, the marketplace of ideas, creative expression and information. Its value is priceless, not merely in the information it holds, but in the access it affords, to adults and children alike.“For many children, particularly in remote areas, it is often the only source of learning and information. Likewise, for children with special needs, the Internet is often the only place where they are able to find company in others like them,” it said.The top court, however, said, “This does not mean that there should be no age-based restrictions. We acknowledge that some form of safeguards is necessary for the safety of our children online and the moderation of the content accessible at their fingertips.”The Bench suggested that there could be a system that places greater emphasis on parental consent, guidance and oversight on the access to social media platforms by children along with a dedicated “child mode” for such accounts with measures proportionate to the object of ensuring their safety.“These may include accounts being made private by default, restrictions on contacts and messages from unknown adults, moderation of advertising and content accessible to children. Such measures may be implemented for pre-teens, with a reasonable and proportionate means to verify parental consent in respect of the same,” it said, leaving the actual modalities to the wisdom of the Union of India.“We may clarify with a view to obviate any confusion that, nothing stated hereinabove would preclude the Union of India from restricting the access of children to specific categories of content or services that are inherently harmful to them, such as adult content websites etc.,” the top court said.The top court issued the directions on ‘a plea by Just Rights for Children Alliance’ alleging lapses on the part of intermediaries in dealing with Child Sexual Exploitation and Abuse Material (CSEAM) despite its September 2024 verdict on the issue.The Bench said any measure for the safety of children must be directed at the harmful material and those responsible for the same, and not at the children themselves.“We say so because, insofar as CSEAM is concerned, the wrongdoer is the person who creates, circulates, sells or seeks out such material, and the intermediary which fails to detect and remove the same. To keep the child away from the Internet on account of such failures would be to mistake the victim for the problem,” it noted.