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Pirated DVD buyers too face jail !
Catching the
latest Bollywood release on a pirated CD or DVD may soon land you in
jail. President Pratibha Patil has okayed a proposal that makes
Maharashtra the first state where not just selling but even buying
pirated CDs and DVDs can land one in prison. The
state government had forwarded a proposal to the Centre suggesting that
both buyers and sellers be booked under the stringent Maharashtra
Prevention of Dangerous Activities (MPDA) Act. The act denies alleged
offenders bail for the first three months. Movie pirates are now booked
under Section 420 of the Indian Penal Code and the Copyright Act. State
home department principal secretary Anna Dani said that the bill would
be introduced in the state legislature in either the monsoon or winter
session. “We hope to curtail video piracy drastically after the
introduction of the law,’’ she added. The
Hindi film industry can make an estimated Rs 5,500 crore a year,but
loses 27% of this amount to piracy. The industry has been urging the
state and Centre to take stronger action as existing norms have failed
to curb piracy. Film and Television Producers’ Guild general secretary
Supran Sen said, “We had put forth our grievances, including piracy, to the President.” A home department official said the new law would hit the underworld, which controls a big chunk of the piracy market.
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