VIJAYAWADA: While hearing a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) filed by Pola Vijay Babu, a journalist, on cases being filed against social media activists, the Andhra Pradesh High Court on Wednesday sought to know what was wrong with booking people for posting offensive content on social media.
Recalling the derogatory comments made against judges in the past, a division bench of Chief Justice Dhiraj Singh Thakur and Justice C Ravi said the court cannot control police from registering cases.
Further, the bench added that a PIL cannot be filed in such issues. People who have objections can file quash petitions, the court said.
Representing the petitioner, senior advocate Subrahmanya Sriram informed the Court that police were filing cases and arresting social media activists indiscriminately. He argued that even though the High Court, in the past, ruled against filing of cases under Section 153A (promotion of enmity between different groups on the basis of religion, race, place of birth, residence, language, or other factors), the police were booking social media activists under the same provision for criticising the government.
Claiming that the police were acting indiscriminately to impress senior leaders in power, Sriram said the government was attempting to suppress dissent.
Intervening at this juncture, the Court suggested that those having objections in the matter can take up a legal fight. In response, the advocate mentioned that social media activists had filed Habeas Corpus petitions against the illegal arrests.
Stating that rights of the social media activists were being violated, Sriram said false cases were being filed with an intention to create panic among people, thereby desisting them from criticising the government.