When you post…
What Bombay HC said while freeing a student applies to US govt approach to foreign students as well
Ravi Srinivasan had only 16 followers on X when he posted against a senior politician's son 13 years ago. That police took note, and felt compelled to arrest him over other pressing matters, was surprising at the time, but no more. Police and lower courts have made examples of countless Ravis since then. A 19-year-old student in Maharashtra learnt this the hard way after posting words sympathetic to Pakistan during Op Sindoor. Although she realised her mistake, deleted the post, and apologised, her college rusticated her, and Maharashtra Police arrested her on May 9 for endangering India's sovereignty, unity and integrity, promoting enmity, and outraging religious feelings.
While striking down the dreaded Sec 66A of the IT Act – which was used to harass Ravi, students Shaheen Dhada and Renu Srinivasan, Kolkata prof Ambikesh Mahapatra, and many others – as unconstitutional in March 2015, Supreme Court had made a distinction between discussion, advocacy and incitement. Discussion and advocacy, 'howsoever unpopular', were at the heart of the freedom of expression, a fundamental right, SC had explained. And on Tuesday, Bombay HC did so again, in different words.
'What does the state want? Does the state want students to stop expressing themselves and be converted into criminals,' it asked. To the college, HC said: 'Someone expresses something, you want to ruin the life of a student? How can you rusticate like this?' How grave was the girl's 'offence'? In HC's own words: 'At the most, her act of sharing the post can be termed an indiscretion by a young student.' For this, she spent 18 days in jail and missed two exams.
In faraway America, Trump's admin is also bent on silencing foreign students through social media vetting. Details are fuzzy, but to get a student visa you'll probably need to have a particular kind of social media profile. 'We will continue to use every tool we can to assess who it is that's coming here,' a State Dept spokesperson said. Could liking a post about the suffering of children in Gaza be a disqualification? Maybe. But as American Civil Liberties Union pointed out in 2018, social media is today's public square, and it's so concentrated and easy to monitor that just knowing govt is watching you has a chilling effect on free speech. That's why people leave China for US, not the other way round. So, curbing free speech can't be good for democracies, in the West or East.
Facebook Twitter Linkedin Email
This piece appeared as an editorial opinion in the print edition of The Times of India.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Time of India
4 hours ago
- Time of India
Allahabad HC bins Patanjali's plea against Rs 273 crore GST penalty
File photo PRAYAGRAJ: Allahabad high court has dismissed a petition by yoga practitioner Ramdev's Patanjali Ayurved Ltd challenging a Rs 273.5-cr penalty imposed by GST authorities. In a recent order, a bench of Justices Shekhar B Saraf and Vipin Chandra Dixit rejected Patanjali's argument that such penalties constituted criminal liability and could be imposed only after a criminal trial. The court cited Section 122 of CGST Act, 2017, and held that such fines could be imposed through civil proceedings, without requiring criminal trials. The HC pointed out that GST penalty proceedings were civil in nature and could be adjudicated by proper officers and 'were not required to undergo prosecution'. According to GST authorities, Patanjali came under investigation following information about suspicious transactions involving firms with high input tax credit (ITC) utilisation but no income tax credentials. The investigation led to allegations that Patanjali 'indulged in circular trading of tax invoices only on paper without actual supply of goods'. Directorate General of Goods and Services Tax Intelligence (DGGI), (Ghaziabad circle) issued Patanjali a showcause in April 2024 proposing the penalty of Rs 273.51. The company then moved the HC.
Time of India
5 hours ago
- Time of India
West Bengal to table caste survey in assembly, lists 140 sub-groups for 17% OBC quota benefits
KOLKATA: West Bengal govt will table an OBC survey that has identified a total of 140 sub-groups under this category during the monsoon session of assembly, beginning June 9. The state govt is also likely to retain 17% OBC reservation, reports Debashis Konar. Tired of too many ads? go ad free now The state cabinet in a meeting on Monday approved the recommendation of West Bengal Commission for Backward Classes (WBCBC) to include 76 sub-castes to OBC list, thereby entitling them to reservation benefits along with 64 other communities. Calcutta HC had last year scrapped OBC certificates awarded to 77 communities since 2010, an overwhelming majority of them Muslim, prompting the TMC govt to approach Supreme Court. The state govt told SC on March 19 that it would complete the fresh OBC survey within three months, setting a June third-week deadline. The apex court had asked the state to clarify the social and educational backwardness of these sub-groups. Earlier, the OBC list had 66 sub-groups, but two of them did not match the required criteria. This total of 140 subgroups are likely to be included in the OBC list. 'The decision on the two groups will be taken later,' an official said. The OBC legal gridlock for Bengal govt started with HC in May 2024 nullifying 12 lakh caste certificates, striking down the OBC status of a number of these. 'Religion indeed appears to have been the sole criterion for declaring these communities as OBCs,' the HC observed. During the SC hearing, Bengal govt stood by its decision to include 77 castes in the OBC list, saying the additions were made after conducting the required elaborate three-tier process. Bengal provides 17% OBC reservation, divided into two buckets — OBC A, which has 10% quota and 81 communities, out of which 56 are Muslim, and OBC B, which has 7% quota and 99 communities, out of which 41 are Muslim.
Hindustan Times
6 hours ago
- Hindustan Times
Controversial former cop sent to judicial custody
MUMBAI: Former police officer Ranjeet Kasle, who had earlier claimed that he was offered a contract to kill Massajog sarpanch murder accused Walmik Karad, was on Monday produced at the Esplanade court and remanded in judicial custody. Kasle is accused of spreading communal hatred, defaming public officials and sharing objectionable content on social media. The NM Joshi police station had registered a first information report (FIR) against Kasle last week, based on a complaint by a Bhandup-based social activist. He was accused of posting defamatory and objectionable messages against a woman politician, and booked for publishing or circulating false information, defamation and criminal actions intended to insult the modesty of a woman under the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita along with the IT Act, said police. On Friday, Kasle was arrested from Delhi and brought to Mumbai. He was produced before the court on Saturday and remanded in police custody for two days. On Monday, he was produced before the court again and remanded in judicial custody. Police officers who interrogated Kasle said he wanted to increase his followers on social media by putting up controversial posts. Kasle's viewership on social media was around 80,000 and he would start getting money once the figure crossed the 100,000-mark, he told the police. 'During interrogation, he said that does not care about police cases and will continue to put up controversial posts once he is released from judicial custody,' a police officer aware of the matter said. Kalse was suspended when he claimed that he was offered a contract to kill the main accused in the Santosh Deshmukh murder case while he was posted in Beed district. He was dismissed from service under Article 311 of the Constitution around two months ago after he uploaded videos about the supposed offer to kill Karad and other matters, said police. Kasle had worked as a sub-inspector at the DB Marg and Marine Drive police stations in Mumbai before he was transferred to Beed district. His wife is a police sub-inspector and is presently posted in Nanded.
