The Delhi High Court on Thursday observed that social media posts criticizing MP Raghav Chadha’s decision to join the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) cannot, prima facie, be treated as a violation of his personal rights.
Chadha, a former Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) member, joined the BJP last month, along with six other AAP legislators, including Swati Maliwal and former cricketer Harbhajan Singh. Chadha filed a lawsuit in the Supreme Court against malicious and fabricated posts on social media that he said seriously harmed his reputation and personal rights.
Senior advocate Rajeev Nayar, appearing for Chadha, confirmed that there are posts with obscene content, including when the politician appears to have “sold himself for money”.
While reserving the ruling on the side of interim relief to remove such allegedly offensive content, Justice Subramonium Prasad held that while an individual has the right to live with dignity, the right to freedom of expression cannot also be taken away under the Constitution.
The judge considered that the line between criticism and defamation was “very thin” and that the case may not warrant a temporary injunction.
Justice Prasad said: “Prima facie, there is no personal right involved in this matter. The decision you have taken in your political arena is being criticized… As a political leader, can you be sensitive?”
The judge also added: “The line between defamation and criticism is very thin, and it is very easy to slip to the other extreme, affecting your right to live in dignity… It may not be appropriate to issue an interim injunction, unlike other matters.”
“Since Independence, we have grown up seeing cartoons of RK Laxman… Decisions taken politically and economically have been criticized in various ways… Now social media has gone to a greater extent. But ultimately, it is still within the ambit of a person’s comment,” Justice Prasad said.
Meta’s lawyer opposed Chadha’s plea, contending that the posts were benign in nature and did not even contain his photo.
Meanwhile, Chadha has been nominated as Chairman of the Rajya Sabha Petitions Committee, a Parliament notification said. This is the first time that Chadha has been given the chairmanship of the committee, which is decided by the Rajya Sabha Speaker.
An opposition leader quipped that the presidency was a “reward” for Chadha, who joined the BJP last month along with six other AAP members.
Chadha’s decision to join the BJP came days after the AAP removed him as deputy leader of the Rajya Sabha over allegations that he was not raising major issues against the Union government and was instead doing “soft PR”.
As president, Chadha is entitled to an office and staff.
