India court releases writer, says liberty non-negotiable

Monitoring Desk

NEW DELHI: India’s Supreme Court on Tuesday ordered the immediate release of a freelance journalist Prashant Kanojia.

He was arrested for allegedly making “objectionable comments” against Yogi Adityanath — chief minister of India’s largest province, Uttar Pradesh (UP).

The two judge bench, however, ruled that the order should not be read as an approval of his social media posts, adding that the government was free to proceed against him in accordance with the law.

The government attorney told court that Kanojia was an habitual offender, who had made provocative tweets against gods and religion, on previous occasions as well.

Kanojia was arrested Saturday last week for his posts on Twitter and Facebook, which included a video of a woman speaking to reporters outside the chief minister’s office, claiming she had sent Adityanath a marriage proposal.

The head of a Delhi-based news channel that had broadcast the video shared by Kanojia was also arrested, along with one of the editors of the channel. A fourth person named Raju Singh Yadav was arrested Monday morning for allegedly uploading morphed photographs of the chief minister with the woman.

The court pointed out that to prosecute someone under the law on criminal defamation, there should be a complaint filed by an individual.

In this case, the police said they had acted of their own accord because Kanojia’s tweet was “inflammatory” in nature.

“Is this a case of murder? … Opinions of individuals may vary. He (Kanojia) probably should not have published or written that tweet, but on what basis was he arrested?” the court asked, adding that Kanojia cannot be kept in custody for 11 days for merely posting something on social media.

The court, in its order, said the liberty of citizen is sacrosanct and non-negotiable. “It is guaranteed by the Constitution and it cannot be infringed upon,” read the court order.

The court, however, noted that everything that is put up on social media is not correct and that the state could proceed with the trial even after bail.

On Sunday, the Editors Guild of India condemned arrest of journalists, calling it a “brazen misuse of law” and an “effort to intimidate the press and stifle freedom of expression”.

The South Asia Media Defenders Network (SAMDEN) — a network monitoring media freedom in South Asia — welcomed the court decision. In a statement, SAMDEN said that one of the two charges under which Kanojia was arrested — that of criminal defamation — was added without seeking mandatory permission from a magistrate.

Talking to Anadolu Agency, senior journalist Urmilesh Urmil said the court order has protected the rule of law.

“The court has protected the constitution and the constitutional rights. But ordinary citizen should remain alert and guard their freedom enshrined in the constitution,” he said. (AA)