5 years imprisonment for offensive social media post, No implementation of Kerala Police Act

Thiruvananthapuram:Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan on Monday clarified that the controversial amendment to the Kerala Police Act will not be implemented.

The Chief Minister, in a release, said the issues related to the amendment of the Act will be discussed in the Legislative Assembly.The further procedures on the issue will be initiated only after discussing it in the Assembly, Mr Vijayan added.

Meanwhile, Opposition leader in Kerala Assembly Ramesh Chennithala, who staged a protest march to the Government Secretariat this morning, alleged that the new amendment to Kerala Police Act is a tacit move of the state government to silence media and curtail the freedom of speech.

The new amendment to Kerala Police Act shows the intolerance of the Pinarayi Vijayan Government against free speech, the Opposition leader alleged.

"This amendment is against the freedom of speech and expression which is a constitutional right. The new law is a tacit move to silence critics and media. Nothing more, nothing less," he added.

Reacting to the amendment, Senior Congress leader  P Chidambaram on Sunday said "Shocked by the law made by the LDF government of Kerala making a so-called 'offensive' post on social media punishable by 5 years in prison.""How will my friend @SitaramYechury , GS, CPI(M), defend these atrocious decisions?," he tweeted.

Earlier, Kerala Governor Arif Mohammed Khan had signed the Kerala Police Act Amendment ordinance aiming to prevent cyber attack against women and children.

The Act with addition of Section 118-A stipulates either imprisonment for up to five years or a fine of up to Rs 10,000 or both to those who violate the rule.

Those who produce, publish or disseminate content through any means of communication with an intention to defame anybody can be arrested by the police without getting a complaint from anybody.

IJU condemns ordinance of Kerala Govt amending Police Act

Hyderabad:Indian Journalists Union (IJU) severely condemned the ordinance brought out by the Left Government in Kerala amending the Police Act ostensibly to curb abusive content.

The amended law gives unfettered power to police to book people for mere exercising of the right to speak their mind, the Union said.

In a statement  here on Monday, Mr K Sreenivas Reddy and Mr Balwinder Singh Jammu, President and Secretary General of the IJU demanded the Kerala Government to withdraw the amendment forthwith as it is against the basic right of freedom of expression and will have a chilling effect on free flow of thoughts.

They said, according to the amended law, a person convicted of producing, publishing or disseminating derogatory content through any means of communication can be punished with a prison sentence of three years and a fine of up to Rs10,000.

Given the dangerous portents of malicious content being pushed online every minute, it is indeed desirable to have regulation of social media and even the Supreme Court is seized of this matter, the IJU leaders said.

But it is not for the government or police to decide what is good and what is bad, they added.

Any regulation should be through an independent body the composition and mandate of which has to be decided only after thorough consultations with all the stakeholders.

It is surprising that a left Government brought this retrogressive measure empowering police to decide defamation which can be abused to silence media, the IJU leaders said.(UNI)