Excelsior Correspondent
Srinagar, Dec 7: High Court today directed that YouTube, Facebook and Twitter shall remain bound even in future to remove all the materials / posts / publications and names of the infant victim of the sexual violence in the incident of May 8, 2019 in district Bandipora strictly by the ruling of Supreme Court of India and closed the proceedings accordingly.
The Division Bench of Chief Justice Gita Mittal and Justice Puneet Gupta issued directions while hearing an application filed by Mukul Rohatgi, Sr. Advocate, on behalf of Facebook, seeking modification of earlier order to the extent of paragraph 7 of the order whereby court had directed that YouTube, Facebook and Twitter International Company shall remain bound even in future to remove all the materials / posts / publications which tend to disclose the identity and name of the infant victim of the sexual violence in the incident of May 8, 2019 in District Bandipora, which may be posted on any platform maintained by them.
Senior Counsel while seeking modification of order has relied on the directions made in Shreya Singhal versus Union of India in 2015 whereby the Supreme Court of India has delineated on the liability of an internet service provider for and the manner in which a service provider has to proceed with regard to the objectionable material posted on its platform.
On a consideration of the matter, DB found substance in the contentions made and said the expression ‘tend to disclose’ is capable of being misused and would lead to multiplicity of complaints and litigation against the service providers on differential interpretations of this court.
“The order made by us in paragraph 7 of the order dated 28.10.2020 is also wider than the limited liability imposed on the service provider by the Supreme Court. There is no responsibility of service providers for scrutiny or monitoring of the posts on the platform posted by it”, DB said
“It is further directed that YouTube, Facebook and Twitter International Company shall remain bound even in future to remove all the materials / posts / publications and name of the infant victim of the sexual violence in the incident of May 8, 2019 in District Bandipora, which may be posted on any platform maintained by them, strictly in terms of para 122 of the judgement of the Supreme Court of India reported at (2015) 5 SCC 1, Shreya Singhal v. Union of India”, DB said while modifying its earlier direction.
Court also found that there are reports in the media which express grave apprehensions with regard to the effectiveness of the investigation and attempts by accused persons to interfere with the same in order to prevent the guilty being brought to book. There can be no manner of doubt that the investigating agency has to be permitted to discharge its responsibilities independently and freely without any kind of interference and obstruction by any person or authority.
“Additionally the police is vested with the responsibility of ensuring adequate protection to the victim as well as her family”, reads the order.
The incident at hand, court said, is not the first incident of sexual violence in the State but sexual violence unfortunately is endemic to human beings and is not confined to any particular culture, class, religion, age or geographical location.
“While legislations have attempted to take a strict view of the matter and provide stringent punishments for sexual violence, however, it is increasingly being found that even youngsters are being implicated, some of them unwittingly rendering themselves liable under penal laws being ignorant and unaware of the consequences of their acts or omissions”, DB said.
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