Gujarat Chief Justice Dismisses Online Trolls, Calls Ignorance Best Defence
Summarized by AI; it may make mistakes. Check important info
Summarized by AI; it may make mistakes. Check important info
Ignoring offensive online comments remains the best course of action, Gujarat High Court Chief Justice Sunita Agarwal observed during a suo motu hearing on police brutality in Surat.
The division bench addressed the issue after the Gujarat High Court Advocates' Association flagged derogatory posts made by local leader Mukesh Gujarati against the Chief Justice. Senior lawyers urged the court to initiate contempt proceedings over the remarks.
Dismissing the plea to take legal action, the Chief Justice pointed to constitutional free speech guarantees, noting that courts need not pay mind to every online comment.
High-Handedness in Surat
The broader suo motu case stems from a letter written by advocate Utkarsh Dave regarding police officers publicly parading and beating suspects in Surat. The petition highlighted Supreme Court judgments explicitly banning the public parade or physical assault of accused individuals in custody.
During earlier proceedings, the court took a stern view of the incident and directed the state government to immediately transfer Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCP) Rajdeepsinh Nakum. The bench noted that keeping the senior officer in his position could intimidate junior personnel from testifying truthfully.
Preliminary Report Submitted
State authorities formally presented the preliminary investigation report on DCP Nakum's role to the bench in Ahmedabad on 21 August.
The court will resume further hearings on the police misconduct charges once judges review the submitted findings.
