There is no justice for judges targeted by social media propaganda: Allahabad High Court

The Allahabad High Court has observed that judges targeted by social media propaganda have no recourse to justice, and called for revisiting the constitutional jurisprudence on free speech to address the dissemination of fake information.

A bench of Justice Ajay Bhanot and Justice Divesh Chandra Samana made the observations while commenting on the social media narrative surrounding a recent incident of courtroom violence at the High Court.

The Court said that "propagandist scale of falsehoods" regarding court proceedings poses a serious threat to the credibility of the judicial process and majesty of the Courts. 

It added that reputations of judges are built over a lifetime in the profession but falsehoods on social media can destroy them irreparably in a matter of seconds.

"There is no justice for judges who are prey to such social media propaganda," the Court said.

The Court added that the capacity of fake social media narratives to create disaffection against the constitutional organs of governance, paralyze their functioning and create anarchical conditions cannot be underrated.

Thus, the Court said that there was a need to revisit some principles of constitutional jurisprudence on free speech to address the dissemination of falsehoods and fake information.

"Many first principles of constitutional law on freedom of speech have to be recast to adapt fundamental freedoms to this new form of technology," the Court said.

The Court further noted that the absence of mechanisms to prevent the dissemination of fake news on such large scale is not compatible with the constitutional mandate of the courts to find the truth and dispense justice and the process of law in general.

"Hence the Court will have to take measures to protect the judicial process from fake social media outpourings which are interfering in the process of law in the facts of this case," the bench added.

The High Court last week witnessed a major incident of vandalism when a group of lawyers broke furniture in Justice Bhanot's courtroom and assaulted the staff and government lawyers present there.

The incident occurred over alleged ill-treatment of a lawyer by Justice Bhanot. The Allahabad High Court had warned to boycott the judge's court.

However, the Court in an order passed on October 29 denied the allegations and said that the bar body had made false imputations and used provocative language in their letter to the Chief Justice.

The Court also said that social media platforms had erupted with false news and disinformation regarding the incident.

"An entire narrative of falsehoods and half truths was developed and propagated on the social media platforms to bring the High Court into disrepute and irreparably assault the constitutional stature and glorious standing of the Allahabad High Court. The false narrative has created disaffection against the High Court, and impeded the process of law. Besides bringing the judges (one of us, Ajay Bhanot, J.) into disrepute," the bench said.

False propaganda on social media against a Constitutional Court was disseminated indiscriminately in this case, the Court added. It has now recommended an FIR against the persons who put out the false posts.

"The Goebbilian dictum, “A lie told a thousand times becomes the truth” became the reality of the day. Social media had a field day and played its role of a Goebbilian institution to the hilt in this case," the bench said in the order.

[Read Order]