NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court on Friday suspended the Madras High Court's order, imposing a condition to shut down a YouTube channel as for bail to senior journalist Felix Jerald following "scurrilous" allegations made against the women police officers and judiciary in Tamil Nadu.
A bench of Chief Justice of India D Y Chandrachud and Justices J B Pardiwala and Manoj Misra questioned senior advocate Gopal Sankaranarayanan, appearing for the petitioner, as to why he had to make "scurrilous" charges all women police officers and judiciary.
The counsel submitted that the petitioner should not have allowed airing of those allegations in the channel. However, he said that Jerald's YouTube channel, with 2.6 million subscribers functioned as a news platform since 2014.
The court issued notice to the Tamil Nadu and stayed the condition till the further order.
The bench, however, clarified that the petitioner should comply with all other conditions.
Jerald was arrested on May 10 by the Tamil Nadu police from New Delhi for airing an interview with ‘Savukku’ Shankar in which the whistleblower had allegedly made defamatory remarks against women police personnel.
The High Court had on July 31 directed the petitioner to close his YouTube channel Red Pix 24x7 and shall file an affidavit of undertaking before the trial court that he would not indulge in similar type of activities in future.
Gerald faced the FIR under 294(b) (obscene acts and songs), 509 (word, gesture or act intended to insult the modesty of a woman), and 353 (assault or criminal force to deter public servant from discharge of his duty), of IPC, Section 4 of Tamil Nadu Prohibition of Harassment of Woman Act and Section 67 of Information Technology Act, 2000.
Gerald and Shankar have been vociferous critic of the DMK government led by Chief Minister M K Stalin.
Shankar has been put under the preventive detention order passed on August 12 under the Goondas Act, just three days after his previous detention order was quashed by the Madras High Court. His plea is pending before the top court separately.
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