The Lucknow Bench of the Allahabad High Court on Saturday directed Meta and Google to take down, within 48 hours, allegedly objectionable videos circulating on social media against renowned Ramkatha narrator and Padma Vibhushan awardee Jagadguru Rambhadracharya.
A Division Bench of Justice Shekhar B. Saraf and Justice Prashant Kumar passed the interim order while hearing a petition filed by Sharad Chandra Srivastava and others.
Court’s Directions
- Meta and Google have been asked to remove the flagged videos within 48 hours.
- Petitioners must furnish specific URL links to facilitate prompt compliance by the platforms.
- The matter has been listed next on November 11.
The petition alleges that Shashank Shekhar, who reportedly operates multiple channels on YouTube, Facebook, and Instagram, has been publishing derogatory and defamatory content targeting Jagadguru Rambhadracharya, who serves as the Vice-Chancellor of Jagadguru Swami Ram Bhadracharya Divyang University, Chitrakoot (Madhya Pradesh).
Despite objections raised by followers, the videos remain online, and no effective action has been taken by the concerned platforms, the plea states. The petitioners further contend the content mocks Rambhadracharya’s disability, noting that he lost his eyesight in childhood.
Beyond takedown relief, the plea urges the Union and State governments to frame and strictly enforce rules for regulating social media platforms to curb the spread of defamatory and harmful content online.
During the hearing, the State informed the Court that the Office of the State Commissioner for Persons with Disabilities has already taken cognisance of the issue and issued a notice to Shashank Shekhar, directing him to appear on October 18.
With specific URLs to be supplied by the petitioners and a 48-hour compliance window for the platforms, the Court will review compliance and further submissions on November 11.
