New Delhi:

The Supreme Court has restored the bail of a Youtuber who allegedly made derogatory remarks against Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Stalin, saying everyone who made allegations on social media cannot be jailed.

The bench, comprising Justices Abhay S Oka and Ujjal Bhuyan, said there was no evidence to suggest that A Duraimurugan Sattai abused the freedom given to him. During the hearing, Justice Oka posed a key question to senior advocate Mukul Rohatgi, representing the state, who said: “If before the elections we start putting all the charges on Youtube of people in jail, imagine how many more people will be incarcerated?”

The Supreme Court has granted relief to a Tamil Nadu YouTuber, restoring bail and holding that arrest for criticism is untenable.

NDTV’s Sunil Prabhu has more details. pic.twitter.com/tAx1KBVnt1

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The court also did not entertain a request to impose conditions on Satay not to make defamatory statements while on bail. Justice Oka asked Mukul Rohatji who determines whether a statement is defamatory.

The case arose out of Mr. Sathay’s challenge to the Madras High Court order canceling his bail. The High Court noted that soon after making the undertaking before the court and obtaining relief, Mr Sathai committed a further offence, making derogatory remarks about the Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu.

Seeking justice, Mr. Sattai approached the Supreme Court, which issued notice on his plea in July 2022. The Supreme Court continued to grant him bail in August 2021. Therefore, Mr. Sattai’s bail period exceeds 2.5 years.

In support of the State’s case, Mukul Rohatgi highlighted two FIRs registered against Mr. Sattai in December 2022 and March 2023.

The ruling comes days ahead of the Lok Sabha elections, in which voting will be held in seven phases starting from April 19. Results will be announced on June 4.