The Supreme Court said social media users should be careful with its impact and reach when it dismissed a lawsuit filed by actor and former Tamil MP Nadu S Ve Shekher, who is facing criminal action. legal action for sharing a Facebook post in 2018 that contained derogatory remarks about female journalists.
A bench of Judges BR Gavai and PK Mishra listening to Shekher's plea against the Madras High Court's July 14 order dismissing his request to have the relevant criminal proceedings dismissed to the post he shared. "If someone uses social media, they should be more careful about its impact and reach," the bench told lawyers representing the plaintiffs.
The lawyer argued that Shekher had put medication in his eyes on the day of the incident so he couldn't read the text of the message he was sharing.
The bench observes that one should be careful when using social media. He said if someone finds it necessary to use social media, they must also be prepared to face the consequences.
Under its order, HC noted that Shekher allegedly "posted/spread an abusive, offensive, and vulgar comment on his Facebook account" on April 19, 2018, after which the complaint was filed. A complaint has been filed with the Chennai Police Commissioner.
He noted that an FIR has been registered in this case and other private claims have also been filed against him in various parts of Tamil Nadu. Before the high court, Shekher's lawyer argued that he did not know the content of the message sent to him and that he was only transmitting it from his Facebook account.
His attorney said that after learning of the derogatory remarks in the message, Shekher deleted its content within hours of the same day which was followed by a letter dated April 20, 2018, offering an apology. unconditional apology to the relevant female journalists and the media. The Supreme Court noted in its order that the attorney argued that while the case was pending, the petitioner was required to file an apologetic statement and he did so.
“A careful reading of the content of the message transmitted from the petitioner's Facebook account on April 19, 2018, shows that female journalists have a bad view. This court was even hesitant to translate the message conveyed by the petitioner. because, to say the least, it's despicable. The content is highly offensive to the general press in Tamil Nadu,” the Supreme Court said.
He added: "We live in an era where social media dominates almost every individual's life in the world. A message sent/forwarded on social media can reach every corner of the world in an instant." The Supreme Court has said that given the size of the petitioner, he must be more responsible when bringing it up. make a statement or convey a message." A message sent or conveyed on social media is like an arrow that has been shot out of a bow," he said.
