2 hours ago
The Bombay High Court on Thursday observed that access to social media does not give individuals the right to publish content that may defame others, whether they are private citizens or public figures. The observation came during the hearing of a dispute involving actor Salman Khan and his neighbour, Ketan Kakkad, over a property matter in Panvel.
Salman Khan vs Neighbour: Bombay HC suggests removal of social media posts over Panvel property dispute
A single-judge bench of Justice Sharmila Deshmukh was hearing an appeal filed by Salman Khan. The actor has challenged a civil court order that refused to grant him interim relief in a defamation suit against Kakkad.
During the proceedings, the Court indicated that parties should avoid taking their disputes to social media platforms and instead seek remedies through appropriate legal forums. The Court also suggested that Kakkad consider removing tweets and YouTube videos related to the dispute. The Bench expressed concern over the continued circulation of such content online. It observed that valuable judicial time should not be spent examining whether such videos should remain available on the internet.
The Court further noted that even if the content had been uploaded by third parties, steps could be taken through intermediaries to have it removed. The matter has now been posted for further hearing on July 6.
The dispute relates to adjoining properties in Panvel, where Salman Khan owns a farmhouse. Kakkad has alleged that Khan violated environmental norms and blocked access to his property. He has also claimed that he approached authorities regarding the issue but no action was taken.
Following this, Kakkad posted tweets and participated in YouTube interviews discussing the dispute. Salman Khan subsequently filed a defamation suit against these statements. According to Khan, the posts and videos shared by Kakkad are defamatory and communally provocative.
It was submitted before the Court that the videos contained false, speculative and inflammatory material. The submissions also stated that the content included references allegedly intended to provoke communal sentiments against the actor.
The Court was informed that the content had received significant online engagement and viewership. The defamation suit also names several social media platforms as parties, including Facebook, X, Google and YouTube.
Khan has claimed that Kakkad's allegations emerged after authorities cancelled a proposed land transaction involving a plot adjacent to his farmhouse on the grounds of illegality. According to Khan, Kakkad then began making allegations that the cancellation had been orchestrated by Khan and his family.
Kakkad has opposed the defamation suit. He has argued that his statements are based on facts concerning Khan's property and do not amount to defamation. It has also been contended that Khan, being a public figure, has already placed details of his property in the public domain.
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