Karnataka HC asks social media platforms to delete videos of its proceedings

The Advocates’ Association of Bengaluru (AAB) on Friday had requested the Chief Justice of the Karnataka High Court to stop the live streaming of the court proceedings for a few days.

Bengaluru: The Karnataka High Court on Tuesday passed an interim order directing social media platforms and other electronic media to delete the videos of court proceedings, live streamed on its YouTube channel.

Justice Hemant Chandanagoudar also directed the social media platforms such as Facebook, X Corp and YouTube not to upload live streaming of court proceedings on their respective platforms.

“Till the next date of hearing, respondents 6 to 8 (Facebook, X Corp and YouTube) are restrained from sharing the live stream court proceeding with immediate effect and respondents 9 to 13 are restrained from uploading the live stream videos on their respective platforms. Respondents 6 to 13 are hereby directed to delete all the live stream videos, uploaded on their respective platforms with immediate effect which are posted in violation of Rule 10 of the Karnataka Rules on Live Streaming and Recording of Court Proceedings, 2021,” the court said.

The respondents 9 to 13 are digital platforms Kahale News, Fans Troll, Pratidhvani, Avaniyana and Ravindra Joshi Creations.

The interim order was passed on the petition filed by the Advocates’ Association of Bengaluru (AAB). The petition claimed that certain miscreants were editing court's live streamed videos in violation of the 2021 Rules.

The videos are being circulated on several social media platforms like WhatsApp, Facebook, X, etc. after being saved on YouTube, Instagram, which are accessed by the general public who are misled and form a wrong opinion about the court proceedings/judiciary, the petition said. The petitioners claimed that the viewers also pass contemptuous comments against the Judges who have executed their work in accordance with the law of the land, the petitioner stated while seeking intervention in the matter.

The court observed that halting live streaming of court proceedings on its official page on YouTube is not a solution to prevent misuse, as contented by the petitioner. The court said that any violation can be brought to the notice of the concerned court/Judge for necessary action. The counsels representing the Union Government, Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology and the state government undertook to file response to the petition. The court issued emergent notices to the other respondents and adjourned the hearing.