Offensive FB Post About Goddess Saraswati: Calcutta HC Directs Sharing Of URL Details With Facebook India To Authorise Removal, Orders Impleadment Of Alleged Offender

The Calcutta High Court on Monday directed the petitioner to immediately share the URL details of an alleged offensive post about Goddess Saraswati with the authorities of Facebook India in order to authorise the removal of such an offensive post. The Court also directed the petitioner to take appropriate steps to implead the alleged offender as a party in the instant proceedings. 

A Bench comprising Chief Justice Prakash Shrivastava and Justice Rajrashi Bharadwaj was adjudicating upon a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) petition seeking directions for the removal of an offensive Facebook post about Goddess Saraswati. The alleged offender had purportedly posted that worship of Goddess Saraswati must be discouraged in schools as the Goddess is portrayed to have an 'illicit relationship' with her father. 

Directing the Facebook authorities to take steps to remove such an offensive post, the Bench observed,

"Having regard to the circumstances of the case, we are of the opinion that if such a message has been posted in the facebook, then it is required to be deleted as apparently it is offensive. Respondent No.1 is directed to do the needful in this regard."

Advocate General S.N Mookherjee appearing for the State government apprised the Bench that the alleged Facebook post was indeed an offensive post about Goddess Saraswati and must be removed. He also informed the Bench that the State government had written a letter to the authorities of Facebook India to identify the account details of the alleged user. 

Senior advocate Mukul Rohatgi appearing for Facebook India submitted before the Court that since the petitioner has not disclosed the URL details of the alleged offensive post, it is difficult to trace such a post and find out whether such an offensive post has been taken down or not. He further submitted that his client would provide basic subscriber information relating to the alleged offender with the State government as well as the petitioner. 

The senior counsel further apprised the Bench that although the name of the alleged offender had been mentioned in the petition, however the alleged offender had not been imploded as a party. Accordingly, he prayed for directions to implead the alleged offender as a party to the present proceedings. 

Senior advocate Rohatgi further submitted that the settled legal position pursuant to the Supreme Court decision in Shreya Singhal v. Union of India is that in such circumstances the Court has to give a direction for removal of such offensive Facebook posts. Since Facebook is an intermediary platform, it cannot on its own decide whether a post if immoral or not, the senior counsel stated further. 

"We don't contest if Court orders its removal", the senior counsel remarked further in relation to allegedly offensive Facebook posts. 

The counsel for the petitioner remarked before the Bench, "Facebook is not acting as an intermediary..it is missing loopholes in Indian laws to spread hate speech". 

Pursuant to the submissions of the concerned parties, the Bench further directed, 

"Learned counsel for the petitioner is directed to disclose the URL of the post in question to the respondent No.1 without any delay and also take appropriate steps to implead the person who had posted such a message in the Facebook."

The petitioner was also ordered to file English translations of the documents annexed with the petition. The Court also took on record the supplementary affidavit filed by the petitioner and further directed the petitioner to serve a copy of such a supplementary affidavit to the respondents. 

The matter is slated to be heard next on February 22. 

The petitioner has been represented by Advocates Mita Banerjee Ray and Barun Kumar Ray. 

Case Title: Madhurima Sengupta v. Facebook Inc. India and Ors 

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