New Delhi : A Delhi Metropolitan magistrate’s court has told representatives of 21 social networking sites, including Facebook, Microsoft, Google, Yahoo and Youtube, to remove all derogatory content by February 6, 2012.

Taking cognizance of a private criminal complaint, Metropolitan Magistrate (MM) Sudesh Kumar had issued summons to the web site representatives on Friday to face trial for allegedly webcasting objectionable contents.

Kumar also directed the Central Government to take “immediate appropriate steps” and file a report before the court by January 13.

The court’s order came three days after another court in a civil case had restrained these sites, including Facebook, Google and Youtube from webcasting any “anti-religious” or “anti-social” content promoting hatred or communal disharmony.

In the fresh case, the court said: “It appears from a bare perusal of the documents that prima facie the accused in connivance with each other and other unknown persons are selling, publicly exhibiting and have put into circulation obscene, lascivious content which also appears to the prurient interests and tends to deprave and corrupt the persons who are likely to read, see or hear the same.”

“It is also evident that such contents are continuously openly and freely available to everyone who is using the said network irrespective of their age and even the persons under the age of 18 years have full and uncensored access to such obscene contents,” the court added.

Kumar summoned the accused companies to face trial for allegedly committing the offence punishable under Section 292 (Sale of Obscene Books etc), Section 293 (Sale of Obscene Objects to a Young Person etc) and Section 120-B (Criminal Conspiracy) of the Indian Penal Code.

Kumar noted that in the website material submitted by the complainant, Vinay Rai, a journalist, contained obscene picture and derogatory articles pertaining to Prophet Mohammad, Jesus Christ and various Hindu Gods and Godesses.