The Karnataka High Court on Tuesday ordered social media platforms Facebook, X and YouTube not to allow individuals to upload clips from live-streamed videos of court proceedings, Live Law reported.
The court, in an interim order, also directed the social media companies to delete any such videos unauthorisedly posted on their channels.
Justice Hemant Chandangoudar passed the order in response to a petition by the Advocates Association Bengaluru seeking that social media users, media agencies and the public be restrained from using live-streamed videos of court proceedings.
This came after two video clips showing High Court Justice V Srishananda making controversial comments about a woman advocate and the Muslim community were widely shared online.
The lawyers’ association argued that videos of court proceedings have given the public the scope to criticise the judiciary and advocates in an unwarranted manner. It also claimed that the videos were hurting young professionals in the field.
Although the judge on Tuesday told social media platforms not to allow clips from live-streamed court proceedings, he also verbally observed that stopping live streaming was not the solution to concerns about its misuse.
“Even judges have to be thick-skinned,” Chandangoudar said, according to Bar and Bench. “I agree that lawyers morale can be affected but the solution is not to stop live streaming. Any offence is made, you bring it to the judge's notice.”
High Court judge’s remarks
One of the video clips of High Court judge V Srishananda showed him referring to the Muslim-dominated locality of Gori Palya in Bengaluru as “Pakistan” and claiming that the police could not enforce traffic rules there. In another video, he was heard saying to a woman lawyer that she seemed to know so much about the opposite party in a litigation that she could even reveal the colour of their undergarments.
Srishananda’s comments had led to widespread criticism on social media platforms.
On Friday, the Supreme Court had taken cognisance of the two video clips of Srishananda’s remarks. A five-judge bench headed by Chief Justice DY Chandrachud sought a report from the High Court registrar general on the comments.
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