Hindu Gods can't be depicted disrespectfully: Madras High Court revives case over FB post on Lord Krishna

The Madras High Court recently criticised the Tamil Nadu Police for mechanically closing a criminal case registered over a Facebook post which contained vulgar captions alongside an image of Lord Krishna stealing clothes from gopis (female devotees) [P Paramasivan v. Inspector of Police]

Justice K Murali Shankar emphasised that the depiction of religious figures must be handled with due sensitivity and that the government must ensure that freedom of speech does not translate into hurting religious feelings.

"Depicting Hindu Gods in a disrespectful manner, intentionally hurting the sentiments of millions, cannot be justified. Such actions have the potential to spark enmity, religious outrage, social disorder, and undermine communal harmony. Given the deep-rooted respect for religious symbols and deities, disrespect can lead to social unrest and hurt a large section of society. Therefore, it is crucial to approach such depictions with sensitivity. The Government must ensure that freedom of expression does not translate into hurting religious feelings," the August 4 ruling said.

The FB post in question contained two Tamil comments, including a remark that Krishna Jayanti was a celebration of a man who stole the clothes of bathing women. It was made on an account belonging to one Sathish Kumar.

A criminal case was registered in the matter on a complaint by one P Paramasivan, who alleged that the post was uploaded with an intent to defame Hindu gods and damage the image of Hindu women. The complainant also raised concerns that the post could potentially trigger law and order problems and create enmity between different groups on religious grounds.

In February this year, the police filed a negative final report before the trial court. It claimed that it had requested information about the Facebook user who uploaded the post from Meta (which owns Facebook), but was unable to secure such user details. Meta had sent an email in reply, stating that a Mutual Legal Assistance Treaty (MLAT) request or letter rogatory was required for it to give the information sought.

In March this year, the trial court accepted the police's negative final report, which had classified the case as UN (undetected) and proceeded to close the case after giving the complainant liberty to file a private complaint.

Aggrieved, the complainant approached the High Court with a revision plea, questioning such a closure of the case.

The Court pulled up the police for not being diligent in pursuing the criminal case and eventually ordered them to resume the investigation and file a final report in three months.

"Despite the seriousness of the allegations, the respondent police handled the case casually, halting the investigation and closing it as 'undetected'. Given these circumstances, this Court finds it necessary to direct the respondent to continue and complete the investigation within a stipulated period," it said.

The High Court further observed that the police had limited its investigation to merely requesting information from Facebook authorities, without undertaking further investigation.It pointed out that the Facebook page in question already contained personal details would could have been verified to trace the Facebook user.

"The investigation was not pursued diligently, and the final report appears to have been filed mechanically."

It also noted that the story of Lord Krishna hiding the clothes of gopis is viewed as a symbolic tale with multiple interpretations, including that it was a test to see whether the devotion of the gopis transcended worldly attachments.

"This story highlights the importance of spiritual pursuit and detachment," the Court observed.

The judge added that he was not concerned with analysing the story's significance. However, the Facebook post in question has clearly exceeded acceptable limits of free speech, he said.

Advocate S Saravanan appeared for the petitioner (complainant).

Government Advocate (criminal side) M Aasha represented the State government.

[Read Order]