NEW DELHI: The high court on Wednesday rejected a petition by Tamil Nadu politician Sasikala Pushpa alleging that her image was being discolored due to uploading of her alleged morphed pictures and videos with a man on social networking platforms and ruled that people have a “right to know whom their electoral representative is meeting behind closed doors”.
“Considering the fact that the plaintiff (Sasikala) is a politician, participating in the electoral process and is a representative of the people”, the people and/or the electorate have a right to know who the plaintiff meets behind closed doors, a single judge bench of Justice Rajiv Sahai Endlaw held.
While dismissing Sasikala’s plea for removing the photographs/blocking access to them, the court directed her to equally pay costs of `2lakh each to Facebook Inc on one hand, and Google LLC and YouTube LLC together on the other, after noting that she was not entitled to any relief against the social media giants.
In 2016, when the suit was filed, Sasikala was an expelled Rajya Sabha MP from AIADMK but now she has joined the BJP.
“I am of the opinion that the claim of the plaintiff, of the photographs being morphed, forged and fabricated, does not deserve to be put to trial,” the court said.
The court further opined that if the photographs showing her with a man, according to the plaintiff had been morphed, forged and she was suing for relief on the said basis, the first person to be impleaded would have been the subject man. “Strangely the plaintiff instituted the suit without even impleading the said man,” the court said.
HC rejects Sasikala Pushpa’s plea
Tamil Nadu politician Sasikala Pushpa had claimed that her image was being tarnished by uploading her alleged morphed photos and videos with a man on social media platforms
(With agency inputs)