Social Media & Democracy
On 19 November 2012 a Mumbai girl is arrested & sent for 14-day judicial custody for expressing annoyance (on Social Media) over the shutdown of Mumbai for Bal Thackeray’s death. Another girl is also arrested for liking the post.
In April 2012, a Chemistry Professor of Jadavpur University, Kolkata, is arrested for sharing a meme video of West Bengal CM Mamata Banerjee & then Railway Minister, Mukul Roy. The video had been shared through e-mail.
On 18 March 2015 a teenage boy in Uttar Pradesh is arrested for a Facebook post on Azam Khan.
On 30 October 2012, a Puducherry businessman is arrested for a tweet, calling Karti Chidambaram, son of former Finance Minister, P Chidambaram ‘corrupt’.
2014, Goa, a shipping professional in Goa was booked for a Facebook post stating that then Prime Ministerial contender, Narendra Modi, if elected to power would start a “holocaust” in India.
The list of such incidents in India is endless. Does this mean that in a Sovereign Socialist Secular Democratic Republic, freedom of speech in only limited to the living room? Is it true that in an open forum, one needs to check what one wants to post?
To answer this question, we need to look at the highly controversial Section 66A of the IT Act which states that sending through a computer resource/communication device/electronic mail any information which is “grossly offensive”, causes “annoyance” or “inconvenience’’ is a punishable offence which can lead up to 3 years of imprisonment & fine.
The vagueness of the law, especially the words used — such as ‘annoyance’, ‘inconvenience’ & ‘offensive’ have led to many protests against it — the first notable one taking place after the arrests of the 2 Mumbai girls in 2012. However, till 2018, nothing much has been done about it except for the Supreme Court striking it down or calling it ‘draconian’ on March 24, 2015.
Needless to say is that such a law which tries to control free speech can be a challenge for social media in any country. But the truth is that Social Media can be a boon to any democracy — through e-Governance.
· Not only can it become the mouthpiece of the administration but also a platform for two-way communication between the Government & the public.
· Social Media is a cost-effective, convenient & quick way for creating awareness among public about governmental policies, disseminating information & countering fake news!
· Social Media allows a government to directly interact with the citizens in getting their feedback or grievances.
But the truth is that in a Democratic Republic like India there are only a few Governments who have been able to do this!
