The Uttarakhand High Court has sought responses from Facebook and other social media platforms in a case involving online threats made against a female advocate, directing them to present their side before the bench.
A division bench of Chief Justice G Narendra and Justice Subhash Upadhyay issued the directive while hearing the matter, which the court had earlier taken up on its own motion. The bench has also added the Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) of Dehradun’s Special Task Force as a party to the proceedings.
Earlier, upon taking suo motu cognisance of the issue, the court had directed the SSP of Nainital to ensure the advocate’s safety and provide necessary protection to her and her family. Police protection has since been provided.
The court further instructed the Inspector General of Police (Cybercrime) to remove inflammatory and threatening posts targeting the advocate from online platforms and to take appropriate legal action against the individuals responsible.
According to case details, the accused who allegedly threatened the lawyer has been identified as Akhtar Ali, who had previously been convicted by a trial court in Haldwani for the rape and murder of a woman from Pithoragarh. While the trial court sentenced him to death—a verdict upheld by the High Court—the Supreme Court later acquitted him.
The advocate reportedly began receiving online threats soon after Ali’s release from jail, prompting the High Court to step in to safeguard her and to hold social media intermediaries accountable for preventing the spread of such threatening content.
