Plea in HC to Frame Guidelines for Police Action on Social Media Posts
The petitioner said there is a need for such guidelines since the number of criminal cases on political commentators, activists and social media users is on the rise.
Chennai: A Public Interest Litigation (PIL) has been filed in the Madras High Court seeking the framing of guidelines to be followed by the police while dealing with complaints in connection with social media posts, political criticism, satire and online speech.
The plea filed by a Chennai-based advocate H. Syed Alim is expected to come up before the division bench comprising Chief Justice Sushrut Arvind Dharmadhikari and Justice G. Arul Murugan.
The petitioner said he had given a representation to the DGP to frame the guidelines on August 20.
The petitioner said the Telangana High Court had on September 10 last year laid down eight guidelines to be followed by the police to prevent the misuse of criminal law in matters concerning political speech and social media posts.
He said there is a need for such guidelines since the number of criminal cases on political commentators, activists and social media users is on the rise.
Criminal cases are booked for criticism, satire, political opinion and democratic dissent expressed through online platforms, he said.
He alleged that the police are entertaining the complaints mechanically without examining whether the speech was protected under Article 19 of the Constitution or not.
The recent instances of police action called for the laying down of guidelines to be followed by the police while dealing with complaints against the democratic right to free speech, the petitioner said.
