The Supreme Court on Monday instructed a Delhi court to suspend proceedings on a plea against Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal until further notice. This plea pertains to Kejriwal”s retweet of a video, alleged to be defamatory, shared by YouTuber Dhruv Rathee in May 2018.
During the hearing, Kejriwal conceded to the Supreme Court that he had erred in retweeting the video associated with the BJP IT Cell. A bench comprising Justice Sanjiv Khanna and Justice Dipankar Datta ordered a stay on the trial court”s proceedings, scheduling the matter for a hearing on March 11.
AAP chief Kejriwal faces charges of defamation under Section 499 IPC for retweeting a post by YouTuber Dhruv Rathee. The Delhi High Court, on February 5, declined to dismiss the criminal defamation case against Kejriwal. It ruled that engaging in online interactions on microblogging platforms and sharing posts through retweeting can attract liability for defamation.
The court emphasised that the act of retweeting false accusations on social media while holding a prominent social and political position carries significant weight in determining defamation. Moreover, it stated that if a user with limited followers or influence retweets defamatory content, it might not constitute defamation if the reach is insignificant and unlikely to gain traction among responsible members of society.
“When a public figure with a political standing tweets or retweets defamatory posts, the repercussions escalate given the broader implications on society. The audience therefore becomes a citizenry at large whose opinion may be influenced by the information they consume, including the defamatory statement published on social media,” a bench of justice Swarana Kanta Sharma said.
In the high court, the chief minister argued that the trial court failed to recognise that his tweet was not intended or likely to harm the complainant, Vikas Sankrityayan.
Sankrityayan, the founder of a Facebook page called “I Support Narendra Modi,” filed a complaint against Kejriwal for retweeting a video posted by Dhruv Rathee. He claimed the YouTube video titled “BJP IT Cell Part II” was circulated by Rathee, who lives in Germany, “wherein a number of false and defamatory allegations were made”.
Sankrityayan alleged that the video contained false and defamatory allegations, which tarnished his reputation among right-thinking members of society.
“The complainant alleged that the allegations made against him in the video are false, malicious and defamatory. It has lowered the reputation of the complainant in the eyes of right-thinking members of the society. So far no proof has been tendered on the allegations,” Sankrityayan”s complaint said.
According to Sankrityayan”s complaint, Kejriwal retweeted the video without verifying its authenticity.
