Rahul Gandhi tweet controversy: Offence still survives, NCPCR submits in Delhi HC

New Delhi [India], October 14 (ANI): The National Commission for Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR) on Friday submitted in Delhi High Court that in spite of Twitter’s claim it has already deleted Congress leader Rahul Gandhi’s tweet allegedly revealing the identity of the relatives of a rape and murder victim in Delhi last year.
The Lawyer representing NCPCR submitted before the bench of Justice Satish Chander Sharma and Justice Subramonium Prasad that we (NCPCR) want to support and join hands with the petitioner in the matter. The lawyer also requested the court to issue a notice in the matter so that it can file an affidavit as we believe that the offence survives.
The submissions come during the hearing of PIL seeking directions to Twitter and the Delhi Police to take action against Rahul Gandhi’s tweet allegedly revealing the identity of the relatives of a rape and murder victim in Delhi last year.
The predecessor bench had earlier issued notice to Twitter only made “explicitly clear” that no notice is being issued to other respondents.
Senior Advocate Sajan Poovayya appeared for Twitter on Friday and informed the Court that “nothing survived” in the petition as the tweet in question has been taken down and is presently not available in India.
Earlier the Twitter counsel had submitted that Rahul Gandhi’s tweet violated our policy also, we have already removed that tweet and his Twitter account was also blocked for sometime.
The Bench on Friday later deferred the matter for December 7, after taking note that the petitioner has engaged a new lawyer in the matter. The bench also refused to issue notice to Gandhi and Delhi Police on the public interest litigation (PIL) at this stage.
The petitioner Makarand Suresh Mhadlekar, claimed to be a social activist had approached Delhi HC seeking its intervention for appropriate legal action against Rahul Gandhi for allegedly disclosing sensitive information about a rape victim and her family members by publishing a photograph of her parents on his Twitter handle.
The Petitioner stated that Rahul Gandhi had violated section 74 of the Juvenile Justice Act, 2015 and section 23(2) of the POCSO Act, 2012, both of which mandate that the identity of a child victim of a crime shall not be disclosed.
“The law in this regard is very well-settled in a catena of judgments including in the case of Nipun Saxena v Union Of India wherein it was held by the Supreme Court of India, that the name, address, school or other particulars which may lead to the identification of the child in conflict with law/victim cannot be disclosed in the media,’ the plea reads.
No picture of such a child, or any such particular which can directly or indirectly disclose her identity, can be published. A child who is not in conflict with the law but is a victim of an offence, especially a sexual offence needs this protection, even more, plea read.
In August last year, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi had met the family of the minor girl who was allegedly raped, murdered, and cremated without her parents’ consent in Delhi’s Old Nangal crematorium. After meeting with the family, he assured his support to the family.
Rahul Gandhi also tweeted about his meeting and shared a picture of him with the victim’s parents on Twitter. (ANI)