Notice to Punjab, Hry on sex-determination kits

Chandigarh, February 11

Acting on a petition alleging online sale of sex determination kits, the Punjab and Haryana High Court today put the states of Punjab and Haryana, along with the Union of India on notice. The bench of Justice Satish Kumar Mittal and Justice Deepak Sibal also fixed March 3 as the next date of hearing.

The notice came on a petition filed by Ravinder Singh Dhul, claiming that the kits could be purchased online for amount ranging anywhere between $19 and $500. He added the issue first came up for consideration before the high court in 2007.

The kits were available on popular online stores. The articles were packed in the US where sex determination was legal before being transported to India where they could be used. He suggested that instead of banning the sites, the search could be blocked in popular search engines.

“The only way to prevent this, is by making a database of such tests and kits and thereafter blocking any such content at the level of search sites so that no such information is flashed while it is being searched,” he said. — TNS