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$~ * IN THE HIGH COURT OF DELHI AT NEW DELHI % + Reserved on: 10.01.2024 Pronounced on: 05.02.2024 CRL.M.C. 6347/2019 ARVIND KEJRIWAL Through: ..... Petitioner Mr. Manish Vashishth, Senior Advocate with Mr. Karan Sharma, Mr. Rishabh Sharma, Mr. Vedanth Vashishth, Mohd. Irshad & Ms. Harshita Nathrani, Advocates. versus STATE & ANR Through: ..... Respondents Mr. Manoj Pant, APP for the State. Mr. Raghav Awasthi, Mr. Kunal Tiwari and Mukesh Sharma, Advocates for respondent No.2. CORAM: HON'BLE MS. JUSTICE SWARANA KANTA SHARMA JUDGMENT INDEX TO THE JUDGMENT PRELUDE .......................................................................................... 3 BACKGROUND FACTS .................................................................... 5 The Allegations ............................................................................................... 7 History of Judicial Proceedings ..................................................................... 8 Signature Not Verified Digitally Signed By:ZEENAT PRAVEEN Signing Date:05.02.2024 16:25:50 CRL.M.C. 6347/2019 Page 1 of 50

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Kejriwal v. State of India

Case Law

Country

India

Country Location

Latitude: 23.078537445745496

Longitude: 78.60363571015989

Country Location (linked Case Law): India

Decision Date: Feb 5, 2024

Case Status: In progress

Case Outcome (Procedural)

Affirmed Lower Court

Keywords

Defamation / Reputation
Digital Rights
Political Expression
Social Media

Judicial Body: Appellate Court

Court Name: Delhi High Court

Case Number: CRL. M.C. 6347/2019

Case Summary: The Delhi High Court ruled that public figures (or persons with a large public following) who retweet or repost defamatory material on social media can prima facie attract liability for criminal defamation under Section 499 of the Indian Penal Code, 1860 (IPC), which provides sufficient basis for summoning them to trial as accused. Arvind Kejriwal, the incumbent Chief Minister of Delhi, and the petitioner in this case, retweeted an allegedly defamatory tweet by a YouTuber, accusing the IT Cell of the ruling Bhartiya Janta Party (BJP) of corruption. A criminal defamation action was initiated against Kejriwal, and he was summoned by the presiding Trial Court. Kejriwal requested the Delhi High Court to quash the summoning order. In rejecting Kejriwal’s petition, the Delhi High Court reasoned that public figures must be held to a higher standard of accountability for their social media activity given their influence and ability to shape public opinion. The Court argued that, owing to their clout, public figures can inflict significant reputational injury by negligently reposting defamatory imputations and, therefore, should not be allowed to escape criminal liability merely for not authoring at-issue libelous material.

Case Significance: This ruling widens the scope of liability of public figures for criminal defamation. Seemingly, they can now be prosecuted for this offense simply for recirculating ostensibly defamatory material on social media, even without a showing of criminal intent to defame. From the judgment, it appears that intentionality is to be presumed when the person retweeting has significant influence or following. Obligating public figures to vet the authenticity of all content they repost could fetter their participation on social media and hamper the free exchange of information online, thereby chilling free expression. The Delhi High Court has also left the term “public figure” undefined, creating ambiguity regarding the applicability of its heightened accountability standard. This could result in a larger than intended section of the population self-censoring their social media activity to avoid prosecution.

This case did not set a binding or persuasive precedent either within or outside its jurisdiction. The significance of this case is undetermined at this point in time.

Related Caselaw (self)

Subramanian Swamy v. Union of India

Related Law

Source URL: Global Freedom of Expression

Collection

Columbia

Date Updated: Jul 19, 2024

Primary Documents

Judgment
English
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