The Madras high court on July 14 refused to quash a 2018 criminal case against Tamil film actor and director S.Ve. Shekher for allegedly circulating “abusive, derogatory and vulgar” social media comments showing women journalists in poor light. Justice N. Anand Venkatesh said, such posts are like “arrows shot from the bow” with consequences which the sender must face”.
“A message sent/forwarded becomes permanent evidence and it is almost impossible to wriggle out of the consequence that falls out (of that),” the judge said in his order. Shekher had deleted the messages the same day and apologised but the court pointed out that the posts had set off demonstrations in front of his house and led to violence.
The judge observed that once a post is sent, the sender must take ownership for the consequences of the damage done by that “arrow (message)”. It becomes “very difficult to wriggle out by issuing an apology,” the court added.
The message forwarded by S.Ve. Shekher caused insult to journalists, particularly women scribes, and provoked breach of public peace, the high court said. Prima facie, an offence under IPC section 504 (intentionally insulting a person to break public peace) is made out, Justice Venkatesh explained. Multiple complaints were filed against Shekher in Madras, Karur and Tirunelveli after he posted on his social media on April 19, 2018.