Posting Insulting Content against SC/ST on Social Media Punishable Act – Delhi High Court


In recent times, when social media is becoming an important and more and more Indians are getting access to the internet. With that, the casteist and the demeaning slur against Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes is also becoming a fashion for the casteist bigots and paid trolls. But now after the Delhi High Court judgment, posting anything insulting against SC/ST communities on social media is a punishable act.

Almost every day, these casteist bigots keep on posting stuff that is insulting to great Babasaheb Ambedkar and other Dalit-Bahujan heroes. Dalits have been fighting against these casteist bigots at each and every level and have been reporting their posts to social media sites and sometimes filing police complaints also.

Most of these trolls are employed by RSS/BJP and when they cannot defend themselves against the attack on their illogical and irrational arguments, they start abusing people. They act like a modern day mafia and abuse anyone who doesn’t agree with their viewpoint.

On 3rd July 2017, Delhi High Court delivered a judgment that any offensive post on social media targeting an individual of the SC/ST community, even if made in a closed group, is punishable act. So, from now onward if anyone will post any insulting stuff on Facebook, Twitter or any other social media, that person can be taken to court.

For so-called upper castes, spreading lies and abusing Babasaheb Ambedkar and Dalit heroes have become a new way of showing hatred in the belly. Latest Facebook page which was abusing Babasaheb Ambedkar was ‘Best Indian Memes for creamy Teens’, which was later taken down after police complaints. Here are some of the posts this Facebook page was posting and you can notice how insulting and demeaning these posts are from Hindutva bigrade.

Posting against SC/ST on Facebook is Punishable Act Posting against SC/ST on Facebook is Punishable Act Posting against SC/ST on Facebook is Punishable Act

These are just a few examples of the posts we see every day on social media so it is an important and necessary judgment. Such casteist people should be punished severely so that they don’t disturb the harmony among the different communities. The high court made it clear that Scheduled Castes & Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989, will apply if a casteist slur is made against a person from these communities. Even if your post is “private”, still you can be punished now of under section 3(1)(x) of the SC/ST Act.

SC/ST PoA Act, 1989, will apply, if any casteist slur is made against any person from these communities. – Delhi High Court

Pertinently, Section 3(1)(x) of the Act does not require that the intentional insult or intimidation with intention to humiliate a member of the Scheduled Caste or Scheduled Tribe should take place in the presence of the said member of the Scheduled Caste or Scheduled Tribe. Even if the victim is not present, and behind his/ her back the offending insult or intimidation with intention to humiliate him/ her – who is a member of the Scheduled Caste or a Scheduled Tribe takes place, the same would be culpable if it takes place within public view.

You can read the full judgment of Delhi High Court on posting against SC/ST on social media from here.

Do you think it court judgment will stop casteist bigots from posting insulting stuff on social media? Will this court judgment get implemented? What are your views, let us know in the comments section.

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4 Comments

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  1. 2
    Mahadev N R (OBC 2A) and Murugan M K(Dalit)

    Sir I am an OBC and my construction maesthri an dalit adi dravida SC. My neighbour is an OBC, a barber before and now a realtor and corrupt politician excorporator, who is enimically inclined towards my father and his family for complaining and filing RTI and to lokayukta against his 6 floor palatial building has got me and my maestri fixed under the amended POA act of 1989. We are poor. My father was a freedom fighter and is no more. My construction is become intermittent with my nigbour harrasing and terrorising us since 2006. Somehow managed the money for applying for bail for me and my worker dalit friend as well. Now my bail appln has been dismissed citing section 18 of amended POA act, even though I had given our caste certificates to our advocate to produce to prove our innocence. The complainant says I have prohibited him from buying milk from my tenants shop, and my dalit worker has hit him and I have scolded him. The complainant and witnesses are also unknown to us.Infact we were at the police station complining about an assult that was commited on us by our neighbour and while returning we were again assaulted by his gangsters and later an atrocity complaint was booked against us that is alegedly have taken place when actually we were at the station trying to lodge our complaint. Can you help… we are poor and in a miserable state and cannot aford costly corrupt lawyers.

  2. 3
    Piyush Shiva

    Judgment is not good as now the abuser is free to abuse the person who file the complaint again and again. The post was very derogatory against the Sc ST community and this FIR should not have been quashed. This will give full freedom to all arrogant upper cast people to again abuse. this case need to be reopen by Dhobi community to get justice.

  3. 4
    Munish Kumar

    Not all cases of crime are reported and out of those which are report not all go to the court. The judiciary needs evidence… In the absence of evidence, the justice doesn’t prevail.

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