HC refuses to order take down of ‘satirical’ content against BJP leader Gaurav Bhatia

The Delhi High Court has refused to order the removal of certain social media posts on BJP leader and senior advocate Gaurav Bhatia, saying they appear to be “satirical, humorous and in the nature of hyperbole”.

Justice Amit Bansal, while refusing to order the removal of around 25 social media posts without hearing their creators first, directed three social-media handles to take down their contents concerning Bhatia, after finding those obscene and containing sexually-suggestive language.

“Attacking the dignity of a person using obscene and sexually-suggestive language under the guise of free speech cannot be permissible under any circumstances,” the judge said.

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He passed the directions on an application filed by Bhatia seeking the removal of “defamatory” content from social media over his appearance on a television news show earlier this month, where he was reportedly seen wearing a kurta “without any pants/pyjama”.

The counsel representing Bhatia had told the court that he was wearing shorts and that the cameraman had shown the bottom half of his body by mistake.

In an order passed on September 25, the judge said that “while the words used in the impugned posts may appear to be defamatory by themselves, it has to be borne in mind that the impugned posts were occasioned on account of the plaintiff’s appearance, as noted above, during a live telecast and, on a prima facie view, appear to be satirical, humorous and in the nature of hyperbole”.

Further, the judge said there was no invasion of privacy of Bhatia as he “voluntarily chose to be a part of a live television debate from his place of residence in such an attire”.

“In my prima facie view, the threshold for defamation in respect of public figures or politically-exposed persons should be higher. No doubt the actions of such individuals are more often under scrutiny and prone to public criticism, however, they also have the benefit of a stage/media as well as the ability to counter any statement made against him. It is also well-settled that ex-parte ad-interim injunctions could only be granted under exceptional circumstances,” the judge said.

He said it would only be reasonable to give an opportunity to the defendants to present their case, including the defence of “fair comment” that they might take in support of their posts.

The judge further restrained the defendants from posting, circulating or publishing any content related to Bhatia, “which is explicit, obscene or sexually suggestive in nature on any online or offline platform”.

The judge on September 23 said an individual who is in politics has to be “thick-skinned”, but a distinction has to be made between satire and defamation.