Adding to the number of people who have knocked at the doors of the judiciary to remove or delete online posts that may contain an embarrassing picture, video or news article mentioning them, a man has moved the Delhi High Court seeking to take down certain articles relating to his conviction in a fraud and blackmailing case abroad.
Justice Rekha Palli asked the Centre, Google, Twitter and two media houses to respond to the petition filed by the man, who was deported to India from England after undergoing his sentence.
Advocate Rajesh Rai, representing the man, contended that his client, even after undergoing the sentence, has been haunted by his past in a “manner where anybody has his background checked a click away with half-truth”. This discourages the accused to live a reformed life peacefully, the plea said.
The man was convicted by Leicester Crown Court, in 2015, for fraud and blackmail. He was sentenced to a total of nine years imprisonment. He was released from prison on March 15, 2021 after undergoing the sentence with remissions, and later deported to India on July 30, 2021.
After his return, the man said he found that articles relating to his conviction were accessible on the Internet and this adversely affected the lives of his children, during his trial and incarceration, and continue to torment them in their day-to-day social life.
“Article 20 of the Constitution protects a person from prosecution and punishment for the same offence more than once. This protection is of no avail against the exposure to torment that can be inflicted on a person who has undergone the sentence imposed by law in the social life of the person and his family,” the plea argued.
“In jurisdictions abroad, the law recognises the right to reform and the right to be forgotten after a person has undergone a sentence for a crime in appropriate circumstances. There is no corresponding law in India as of date. The right to privacy is, however, broad enough to consider such cases appropriately,” Mr. Rai argued.
The High Court has posted the case for further hearing on December 13, when other similar pleas are also listed.
The Delhi High Court is also seized of two separate petitions by two businessmen, and another by reality show celebrity Ashutosh Kaushik, which want the removal of certain videos, photos and articles from various online platforms.
Right to be forgotten is a fairly new concept in India and in the recent past different courts have given varying opinions depending upon the facts and circumstances in each case.
