Supreme Court Stresses Responsibility in Social Media Use; Denies Relief to Actor S Ve Shekher
The Supreme Court emphasized the importance of being cautious about the impact and reach of social media. This came as the court declined to offer relief to actor, playwright, and former legislator S Ve Shekher, who sought leniency in cases filed against him for sharing a derogatory Facebook post against women journalists in April 2018.
Shekher, defending his actions before a bench led by Justice Bhushan R Gavai, claimed that he mistakenly shared the offensive posts against women journalists without reading them due to the blurring effect of eye drops he had used that day. Responding to this, the bench, which also included Justice Prashant Kumar Mishra, remarked,
“If he had allegedly put eye drops, he should have been more careful about what he was doing. It is not essential to use social media. Who forces you? But if one uses social media, then he should be more careful about its impact and reach.“
Senior advocate S Nagamuthu, representing Shekher, highlighted that the actor is 73 years old and had already apologized for his actions before the Tamil Nadu High Court. He argued,
“Should at this age he goes to jail after he has expressed regret and apologized? He respects women and women journalists. It happened because of the eye drops. He never did anything like this before and it was one time thing that happened by mistake.“
However, the court countered by pointing out Shekher’s significant fan following on social media platforms, emphasizing the responsibility that comes with such influence.
“You have such a huge fan following…Why do you take a chance of forwarding anything without reading it? If you find social media essential, then you face the consequences too. We cannot give special treatment to someone just because he can approach the Supreme Court,“
the bench asserted.
The court upheld the July order of the Madras High Court, which refused to quash the criminal cases against Shekher. The Madras High Court had noted that the message shared by him contained a vitriolic attack on women press reporters. The court stated,
“An offence has already been committed and the petitioner cannot now escape from the offence by merely coming up with an apology statement subsequently.“
Shekher had shared the controversial post in response to a complaint by a woman journalist against the then Tamil Nadu governor Banwarilal Purohit, accusing him of inappropriate behavior during a press meet. The Madras High Court emphasized that an apology does not absolve one from the consequences of their actions, especially when the act affects a large group.
