Shivani Gadhavi
Published On: December 27, 2021 at 18:05 IST
Madras High Court passed an order observing that an administrator of WhatsApp group cannot be held vicariously liable for offensive messages shared on WhatsApp groups in regards with a First Information Report (FIR) registered against the administrator and other members of the group.
The Madurai Bench of the Madras High Court was hearing a petition filed by the Administrator of a WhatsApp group named ‘Karur Lawyers’. The Petitioner sought dismissal of the First Information Report (FIR) registered against him in the case. The FIR was filed by a member of the group who alleged that highly offensive messages were being posted on the group by a member of the group named Pachaiyappan.
The complaint was filed against the Petitioner as he is the Administrator of the aforementioned group. The complaint was registered against him under Section 153A (Promoting enmity between different groups on certain grounds by words written or spoken) and Section 294B (utters any obscene song, ballad or words, in or near any public place) of the Indian Penal Code.
The High Court also mentioned the judgment of the Bombay High Court in the case of Kishore V State of Maharashtra, the Bench stated, “In the absence of specific penal provision creating vicarious liability, an administrator of a WhatsApp group cannot be held liable for objectionable content posted by a member of a group.”
The High Court noted, “A group administrator cannot be held vicariously liable for an act of member of the group, who posts objectionable content, unless it is shown that there was common intention or pre-arranged plan acting in concert pursuant to such plan by such member of a WhatsApp group and the administrator.”