The court also further mentioned that management cannot sue employees for posting messages on WhatsApp groups expressing their critical views towards management.
The court is hearing a lawsuit filed by a Tamil Nadu Grama Bank employee, A Lakshminarayanan, who is said to have been disciplined for anti-government messages on a WhatsApp group.
"There is such a thing as the right to vent. Every employee or member of an organization will have a problem with management. It is in the interests of the organization that complaints are expressed. It will have a cathartic effect. If the image of the institution is affected, the management can intervene, but can't intervene earlier," Live Law said, citing the court, which also provided relief for bank employees.
The Court further noted that Section 19(1)(a) of the Constitution of India guarantees freedom of speech and expression until legally binding. The court found that the common law principle was that "every man's house is his castle".
The Court further observed that what the respondent is proposing amounts to ideological policymaking.
